CAPEL CURE PHOTOGRAPH ALBUM

Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) project
Treatment completed June 2024

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︎︎︎ Treatment Report

Description

This mid 19th-century bound album is an unpublished “amateur” photographer album titled PHOTOGRAPHS. In its current state, the album contains 141 photographs: 108 albumen silver prints, 30 salt paper prints, and 3 photomechanical prints.

The album is attributed to Alfred Capel Cure (1826 – 1896), an officer in the British Army, commissioned into the 55th Regiment of Foot and later the Grenadier Guards and served during the Crimean War (MoMA n.d.). Capel Cure was also an accomplished photographer, having learned the medium in 1850 from his uncle Robert Henry Cheney (1800-1866), a painter and photographer (Carpenter 2013). Capel Cure made salt and albumen prints of mainly architectural subjects such as cathedrals, abbeys, churches, and manor houses along with British garrisons, soldiers, and civilians.This album of Capel Cure photographs came into MoMA’s collection in 1979, donated between 6 separate individuals. During the original registration of this album, each photograph was treated as a separate entity and given individual accession numbers. At present, the album is considered and reprocessed as a single object. This conservation campaign is part of that reprocessing project.

According to the TMS record, at least 34 pages have been removed from the album and are currently matted and housed separately. On the recto of each page, depending on the size of the prints, there are 1 or 2 photographs tipped in, attached with adhesive at all four corners. One page (2.1983.29) is unique in that it contains 16 small albumen silver portraits and 1 photographic reproduction of a painting. The images range in date from 1852 to 1860 as noted in the inscriptions and depict historic landmarks around the United Kingdom and British territories including the Rock of Gibraltar, castles, chapels, abbeys, and colleges along with various named and generally named portraits.

The most common print size is approximately 8.5 x 11 inches, which are given their own album page, whereas the pages with multiple prints range from approximately 4 ½  x 4 ½  to 6 ⅝ x 8 inches. There are two instances where multiple prints have been combined to form one panoramic image (2.1983.2 and 2.1983.3) and two instances of photographic enlargements (2.1983.38). Both glass and paper negatives were used.

The album covers are greenish-brown cloth covered with black leather spine and corners. The album features a rounded spine, raised bands, hollow back, and red endbands. The spine is minimally decorated with bands of gold and blind tolling and “PHOTOGRAPHS” in gold. There is a red label on the center of the front cover with “PHOTOGRAPHS.” in gold. There is also a paper label attached to the inside of the front cover with a decorative M in blue ink.

The paper that makes up the textblock and simultaneously the mounts for the photographic prints is a handmade trimmed white wove paper. Each sheet has been folded once across the longer side, creating a folio. Each gathering is approximately 4 sheets folded, creating 8 pages, although many pages have been cut and/or removed so an accurate count is difficult. In its current state, there are 109 pages, with the pages numbered on the top right corner in black iron gall ink from 1 to 146. Below each print, there are titles and dates written in either brown iron gall ink or graphite, each in a different hand, or combination of both. Some titles are printed in the image negative as well. Pages with multiple prints on one page also have “A” and “B” inscribed next to the top left corner of the prints in graphite. On the verso of each page there are the accession numbers inscribed on the bottom right corner in graphite. Since this album is now being reprocessed as a single object, the removal of these numbers is the focus of this treatment project.

Condition Assessment

Photographic Prints: Overall the prints are in fair to good condition. The most consistent condition issue across the prints is the silver oxidation and fading along the edges, minor to moderate overall image fading, minor to moderate silver mirroring, and moderate adhesive staining and darkening. The most significant condition issues are 27 prints that contain adhesive/hinging failing, 15 prints with minor tears, and 7 prints with folds. 37 prints also contain creases and distortions in association with the hinging adhesive, see Table I for additional notes on these condition issues.  Additionally, some prints contained adhesive staining in the corners.

Paper: Overall the paper is in good condition. There is moderate foxing on the endsheet and minor foxing found throughout the album along with minor surface grime, and minor tears along the foredge. On the verso of each page there is also darkening of the paper from the photographic print facing it.

Overall Album and Structure: Overall the album cover is in fair condition and the structure is in poor condition. The cover contains abraded and worn edges, head, and tail, scratches on the label, vertical abrasions along the spine. There are also three punctures on the back cover at the top right corner, bottom right corner, and bottom left corner. The textblock is not attached to the spine of the book as the sewing threads have been cut and original gatherings have also been cut or removed in order to remove various pages. There is also scattered grime and paper debris along the gutter.

Separated/Loose Prints: The 34 prints that have been removed from the album and stored separately are in overall fair condition.See Table II for additional notes on these condition issues. Similar to the prints in the album, the photographs all exhibit silver oxidation and image fading along the edge, minor to moderate overall image fading, and minor to moderate silver mirroring. Additionally, 5 have distortions in the corners, 3 have tears, and 1 with a fold at the bottom right corner. One page (2.1983.108) has a print adhered on the recto and verso, with the verso print detached at the top left corner and bottom left corner. The rest of the prints all remain secured to the paper mounts, with no adhesive failing at the corners. The works have been housed in a variety of methods including hinged using Japanese paper or photo cornered using paper or plastic corners to window mats with interleaving material or sleeved  in plastic with interleaving and a mat board backing. The mats exhibit overall surface grime. 

Erasure Testing

Following consultation with Paper Conservator, Erika Mosier, methods to reduce the graphite inscriptions on the verso of 170.83-171.83, last page in album, were tested using a variety of erasers including sulfur-free vinyl erasers Magic Rub and Staedtler Mars block erasers and Tombo pencil erasers. All methods were successful at reducing the graphite, although Staedtler Mars block eraser may be the best choice given its ease of use and precision. 

Treatment Report 

1. Worked with Senior Collections Photographer for Conservation, Adam Neese, to document each paper before and after treatment with digital imaging including recto, verso, raking, and normal light using Canon EOS 5D and Capture One software.

Phase 1 (Album)

1. Reduced the appearance of the accession numbers on the verso of each page of the album using a combination of various vinyl erasers. First with Mars Magic Rub eraser block, then Tombo pencil eraser, and lastly Staedler Mars block eraser. Completed over the course of three work days.

Phase 2 (In-situ photograph album treatments)

1. Reduced distortions and folds to the extent possible using local humidification (50:50 water and ethanol applied on mostly-dry cotton swabs) and slowly flatten using thick blotters and weights.
2. Repaired tears using 8% Klucel G in ethanol for self mends and/or applied thin Japanese Mino tissue paper to verso for added support. 
3. Readhered prints to paper mounts using 8% Klucel G in ethanol, either attaching prints directly to the mount with small dots of adhesive applied to verso or as pre-coated Japanese Mino tissue paper activated with 8% Klucel G in ethanol and adhered as v-hinges.

Phase 3 (Separate pages)

1. Removed hinges on the verso of pages first by cutting with a scalpel to release from mount then using 4% methyl cellulose poultice and mechanical action to remove from verso.
2. Reduced distortions and folds to the extent possible using local humidification (50:50 water and ethanol applied on mostly-dry cotton swabs) and slowly flatten using thick blotters and weights.
3. Repaired tears using 8% Klucel G in ethanol for self mends and/or applied thin Japanese Mino tissue paper to verso for added support.
4. Readhered prints to paper mounts using 8% Klucel G in ethanol, either attaching prints directly to the mount with small dots of adhesive applied to verso or as pre-coated Japanese Mino tissue paper activated with 8% Klucel G in ethanol and adhered as v-hinges.
   
5. Rehoused prints to matboard using reopenable photocorners made from phototex paper. 

Local humification and flattening of a folded corner

2.1983.77: Top left corner of the print was detached and torn. Reattached using 8% Klucel G in ethanol 

2.1983.96

While handling the book during the initial condition assessment and photography of the album, this albumen print (2.1983.96) which had its top right corner detached, had become folded. Remedial treatment was then in order so that the fold would not become creased and more difficult to undo. The page was easily able to be removed with the text block and treated flat on the work table.

1. Locally humidified the crease using deionized water applied on a mostly-dry cotton swab
2. Used a stack of thick blotters to help support the print at various angles throughout the multiple rounds of humidification.
3. The last round of local humidification included recto and verso humidification with a cotton swab and drying flat between matboard to reduce distortions.
4. Readhered the corner to paper mount using pre-coated Japanese Mino tissue paper activated with 8% Klucel G in ethanol and applied to verso as a v-hinge.

 

EL1979.339.1

This albumen print had both bottom corners detached from the paper mount along with significant horizontal creases throughout and significant upward curl.

1. Locally humidified print using 50:50 water and ethanol applied on mostly-dry cotton swabs and set under blotters and weights to flatten.
2. Attached pre-coated Japanese Mino tissue paper v-hinges to each corner, activated with 8% Klucel G in ethanol.

2.1983.28

This photograph was torn and lifting at the bottom left corner and needed to be adhered to the mount.

1. Removed the torn fragment that was attached to the mount using 50:50 water and ethanol applied first on cotton swab and then on a brush to release.
2. Applied a Japanese Mino paper tissue pre-coated with 4% Klucel G in ethanol and then activated with 8% Klucel to the verso of the corner for support.
3. Reattached the fragment with 8% Klucel G in ethanol and trimmed the Mino paper support.
4. Adhered the corner of the photograph to the paper mount with 8% Klucel G in ethanol directly.