Renaissance Wax

Renaissance Wax is a brand of wax polish that is widely encountered in antique restoration and museum curation. Although not appropriate for all materials, it is known to and used by almost every collection. It is also used as a primary finish for cabinetry and furniture.

To quote a typical commercial supplier of conservation materials, it is used, "to revive and protect valuable furniture, leather, paintings, metals, marble, onyx, ivory etc. Freshens colours and imparts a soft sheen." [cite web
title=Conservation By Design Ltd. commercial catalogue
url=http://www.conservation-by-design.co.uk/sundries/sundries31.html
accessdate=2007-05-01]

Wax coatings for conservation are most widely, and least controversially, applied to metals. This has several objectives: to produce a barrier that excludes moisture and oxygen from the metal surface, to ensure against further introduction of contaminating elements by handling, and to provide a protective layer over anti-corrosion undercoatings.

Waxes should not be applied to materials with deliberately loose or powdery surfaces.

Use

The wax is evenly and lightly applied over the surface, then lightly buffed with a smooth lint-free cloth to give a sheen. Where the shape of the item requires, a brush may be used instead.

Obviously the application technique and tools must be appropriate to any specific needs of the item being treated.

Application over other coatings

For retarding further red rot in leather bookbindings, it is commonplace to first consolidate the leather by application of Klucel G or similar, then to apply a protective coating of Renaissance Wax.

Conservation of metals may also use an undercoat such as Incralac, then Renaissance Wax over this.

Formulation

Renaissance Wax was originally formulated in the British Museum research laboratories in the early 1950's. It is now manufactured solely by Picreator Enterprises Ltd. [cite web
url=http://www.picreator.co.uk/articles/3_renaissance_wax.htm
title=Renaissance Wax
publisher=Picreator Enterprises Ltd. (Manufacturer)
accessdate=2007-04-27]

Earlier wax polishes based on beeswax and carnauba wax either contained acids or became acidic over time. Renaissance Wax was based on more stable microcrystalline waxes refined from crude oil. [cite book
title=Materials for Conservation
last=Horie |first=C V
publisher=Elsevier Science and Technology
isbn=0750608811]

Renaissance Wax also contains polyethylene waxes. Some other microcrystalline waxes intended for conservation use (e.g. Cosmolloid 80H) do not contain these.

The formulation is: [cite book
title=The conservation of antiquities and works of art
last=Plenderleith |first=H.
coauthors=A. Werner
date=1971
edition=2nd ed.
location=London
publisher=Oxford University Press]

Melt together and pour into 300ml of a high flash point hydrocarbon solvent, then stir constantly until cool.

Another similar formulation, giving a harder coating, can also be made: [cite journal
title=The conservation of alabaster monuments in churches
journal=The Conservator
last=Larson |first=J.
date=1979
volume=3
pages=28–33]

Melt together and pour into the solvent, then stir while cooling and add further quantities of white spirit to produce a suitable consistency.

Controversy over its use

Wax coatings are known to be susceptible to accumulations of dust and lint. They may also obscure some fine detail.

Although Renaissance Wax is generally agreed to be a useful and stable material for conservation work, this view is not without some reservations. Owing to the polyethylene wax content, some authors have reported problems in removing it. [cite journal
title=Wax Coatings on Ethnographic Metal Objects: Justifications for Allowing a Tradition to Wane
url=http://aic.stanford.edu/jaic/articles/jaic35-01-001.html
journal=JAIC
year=1996
volume=35
issue=1
pages=1–7
author=Moffett, Dana L.]

References