 Amber Necklace |
 Gin Glass |
 Neck Ornament |
 Irish Lady's Tresses Orchid |
 The Lennox Quilt |
 Fossil Crinoids |
 Madonna and Child |
 A Red Alga |
 Irish Wolfhound |
 Coates Family Photograph |
 Chinese Ivory Puzzle Ball |
 Early Medieval Tomb-shaped Shrine |
 The Green Coat, Sir John Lavery |
 Juvenile Bald Eagle |
Madonna and Child, ‘The Carrickfergus Madonna’
School of Bruges, Flemish, 16th Century
Purchased
Accession number: U1180
Height: 1065 mm, Width: 765 mm
This painting, which depicts the Madonna and Child, is known as the 'Carrickfergus Madonna'. Purchased in 1971 from the Church of St. Nicholas, Carrickfergus, it was originally thought to be either 'after' (meaning 'in the style of') or a copy of a lost work by Gerard David (died 1523), the last Master of the Bruges School. It has since been attributed simply to the School of Bruges.
On arrival at the Ulster Museum, the painting was in very poor condition and in need of extensive conservation and restoration. The three original supporting oak panels had parted company several times. Attempts by previous restorers to hold the members together with a variety of supports, such as battens, had all added stresses and contributed to the original panel's problems.
Conservation intervention proceeded with the removal of all restraining supports and additions from the reverse side of the panel. A support that would provide future stability for the painted surface was developed and attached. Conservation and restoration continued thereafter with treatment for fumigation, consolidation, cleaning, filling, retouching and revarnishing.
From a conservator's perspective 'The Carrickfergus Madonna' can be seen as a challenging, rewarding and satisfying conservation and restoration project.
Comment
Lynn Stinson, Easel Painting Conservator
There are only a small number of panel paintings within the Ulster Museum's collection. In the past, a lack of understanding about the use of wood as a support resulted in some radical conservation treatments being carried out. Fortunately, present day conservation has developed to give conservators a better understanding of the long-term stability of artworks in their care. Emphasis is now given to preventive conservation and creating a stable environment, both for display and storage. Intervention is kept to a minimum and generally results from past neglect, mistreatment or the use of unstable materials.
