Firnistrennung an einem Triptychon von Bartholomäus Bruyn d.Ä.

Ein wahrgenommener Glücksfall

Abstract

Varnish Separation at a triptych by Bartholomäus Bruyn the Elder. A Piece of Luck
The varnish removal, more precisely the varnish separation, was an important step in the conservation treatment of the large triptych “The Last Supper” by Bartholomäus Bruyn the Elder, property of the church of St. Severin in Cologne. The treatment was performed between November 2015 and November 2016, forming the reason for the following essay. It does not solely present a conservation technique but rather investigates the rationale why a decision is made in one way and not another. It also pursues the question of what the decision presented here means to the artwork, the decision to retain the varnish layer which is not original but a historical layer that can be characterized as “nicely aged”.