PRESERVATION OF WALLPAPERS AS PARTS OF INTERIORS

Methods of wallpaper production and mounting
2.4. HISTORICAL METHODS
OF MOUNTING WALLPAPERS
The following chapter will focus on various historical methods
of attaching wallpaper on walls. Similarly to wall paintings,
mosaics and plaster decoration, wallpapers are usually considered
to be immovable objects. Although the modern theory of
conservation supports the idea of treating historic wall covers
in situ, they might need to be removed from their original location
for better protection and more thorough treatment. When
remounting a historic wallpaper, it is ethical to return it to its
original location. Depending on the condition of the object,
either the original method or an improved interpretation of it
can be chosen.
It is common that properties of a historic installation, such
as big over-laps, unevenly trimmed strip-edges and mismatching
patterns, are unusual for a modern viewer. This can easily
lead to misinterpretation and false preservation decisions. Even
if seemingly wrong to our eyes, the visual evidence should be
respected during the restoration of a room with reproduction
wallpapers. 212
Dating a wallpaper according to a method of installation
can be misleading, since paperhanging techniques are not easily
dated. 213 Although fashions changed frequently, the tools
and techniques of mounting a wallpaper did not develop much.
Since trade magazines did not appear until the last quarter of
the 19th century, the know-how was passed on from a master
to an apprentice. Thus most of the information about various
older mounting methods can be gathered through observing
preserved installations, and from archival sources, historical
descriptions or wallpaper history books.
In general, all lining systems were intended to create an
improved surface on which the wallpaper could be hung and to
protect it from the structure that it covered. The preparation of a
wall surface, the skills of the paper-hanger and the budget of the
house owners dictated the methods of mounting a wallpaper.
212
Kelly, “Historic Paper-hanging Techniques:...”, 2,
213
Ibidem.
127