6. Flakes of Silvering

Since we believe the mirror was re-silvered in the late 19^th c, we do not know how the mirrored glass panels were originally attached to the basswood frame. After the mirror was silvered, a thin layer of adhesive soaked gauze was placed between the mirrored glass panels and the wood frame to adhere the parts together. We have never seen this method of attachment before.   Overtime, this adhesive became brittle and compounded by the heavy looking glass falling off the wall, several panes of glass broke or became detached.

The detached and lifting flakes of silvering were carefully removed from the wood frame and readhered to the back of the glass in the spots they came from using a clear, conservation grade adhesive and a small heated iron.