A question that we often get asked is why conservators sometimes wear gloves and sometimes
don't when handling museum objects.
Although we emphasise wearing gloves when handling objects, there are actually no set
rules.
The conservator makes a decision on whether or not to wear gloves depending on the material,
the task and the nature and fragility of the object.
The diversity of objects requires that we assess each object individually and make the
right decision.
One of the few object types that we work with that you don't need to use gloves with is
what we call 'brown furniture'. Brown furniture objects are often jointed, they're wooden,
and they have a veneer on them and what you tend to find is that, with the exception of
highly decorative French polished surfaces, these objects are robust enough and their
surface coatings are robust enough for us to be able to handle them without gloves.
When handling metal objects gloves are normally worn in order to avoid damaging the object.
Acids and oils from fingers can have a corrosive effect on metals - in particular this is a
problem with historical metals - these can etch into the surface, can be very difficult
to remove and can ultimately affect the integrity of the object.
An important aspect of wearing nitro-gloves is not just to protect the objects but also
to protect the people handling the objects. Many of the objects in our collection have
components that are inherently toxic or hazardous. There are many other objects that have been
purposely contaminated such as poisoned weapons.
As organic materials are particularly vulnerable to being attacked by pests they were treated
with a vast array of pesticides from the 18th century up until the 1990s. That is why it
is crucial to wear gloves when handling objects with suspected or confirmed contamination.
Wearing gloves also protects us from hazardous substances. For example, mould can sometimes
be found on ceramic objects, as in the case of this terracotta figurine. When handling
hazardous objects conservators always make sure to dispose of gloves after use.
In the past, conservators at the British Museum wore white cotton gloves and apparently each
conservator had only one pair. Nowadays, conservators prefer to wear disposable, nitrile gloves
which will protect them from objects and visa versa.
There are a few main points when choosing the right glove.
Firstly: the size. It is very important to wear the right sized glove in order to prevent
any handling damage to the objects.
Secondly: the thickness of the glove. Obviously, the thicker gloves are more protective for
us, but they also create problems for our manual dexterity.
Thirdly, not to wear dirty or torn gloves as this defeats the main purpose of wearing
gloves in the first place.
When we conserve documents for Prints and Drawings, we don't usually use gloves. We
handle them with dry, clean hands. Hand washing will remove the dirt and the natural oils
from hands and is an effective alternative to using gloves.
When working with wall paintings we generally wear gloves to protect the objects. There
are fragile pigments on the surface and the oils on our hands will affect the pigment
and the colour. They also might wear away the surface. The gloves just prevent damage,
and in this case we've created an edge to handle the objects so we avoid touching the
object itself.
When treating archaeological objects such as painted polychrome Egyptian coffins we
tend to wear gloves. We want to make sure that we're not transferring any dirt or dust
that's on the surface to other areas on the object as well as on to ourselves. From a
health and safety perspective, Egyptian pigments were actually made from ground minerals, and
this is why the colours remain so vibrant today. However, some of the pigments are actually
made from toxic minerals such as orpiment and realgar which is used to make some yellows
as well as some reds and these can be hazardous to your health if ingested. When we deal with
smaller and more delicate tasks we use tweezers and this actually means that you don't have
to touch the surface of the object. So sometimes you'll see conservators not wearing gloves
because you're not handling the object.
Often as Textile Conservators we choose not to wear gloves and work with our bare hands.
That is because sometimes we really need that extra sensitivity through our fingertips to
be able to carry out our work and also to really understand the inherent fragility and
strengths of the materials that we're working with.
As you can see conservators wear gloves depending on the type of objects and the work they carry
out on them. And when there's any doubt on how to handle objects they are the best people
to get advice from.