Page:The museum, (Jackson, Marget Talbot, 1917).djvu/137

 CHAPTER V

PAINTINGS

T has unfortunately been the custom for many years to consider that the restoration and cleaning of paintings could be entrusted to any artist. As a matter of fact, the art of the restorer is as different as possible from the art of the maker of a picture. On this subject we shall attempt to sketch briefly some of the methods used, but the details given will not be sufficient to enable any one to follow any of the processes. There are numerous treatises on the subject but none can be recommended without exception. The cleaning of a painting which needs to be done from time to time should never be entrusted to any but a skilled workman. There are various processes. One restorer insists that the only way to clean a painting is to use the fingers, rubbing gently, without any medium. Others believe in the use of cold water and a sponge, while others hold that certain kinds of oil are 111