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Highlights in this issue

The Indian Vase Carpet Fragment: Decisions and Discussions Prior to Conservation

Val Blyth, Senior Textile Conservator

In 1930 the V& A acquired a rare Mughal carpet fragment. A considerable amount of time has been spent discussing ways in which this lovely object could be made ready for loan.

Should a Conservation Treatment Reveal the Secret of Damascus Steel?

Sophy Wills, Conservator, Metalwork Conservation

This article discusses the treatment of a Damascus steel saddle axe. This type of steel has been known in Europe by many names, most commonly as damascus steel, or more accurately as watered crucible steel. Revealing the watered pattern of the steel would involve the use of a weak acid.

Ranjit Singh: The Lion of the Punjab

Nigel Bamforth, Furniture Conservator, Furniture and Woodwork Conservation

A model of Ranjit Singh's tomb appears in The Arts of the Sikh Kingdom exhibition. It had been severely damaged in a fire, and needed conservation treatment before display.

The Function of a 'Fetish' Figure

Victoria Hobbs, RCA/V&A Conservation Course (with the Horniman Museum), MA Student, Ethnographic Materials

The this paper discusses a nkisi 'fetish' figure, and questions whether, as a museum object, it has lost some of its meaning, which in turn may affect the intervention of the conservator.