Dear Colleagues,

connected to the wallcovering just described, I wonder if any of you might know literature about ageing of jute.

The textile concerned has a very peculiar "problem". With the exception of one covered area it has turned reddish. At first glance, I interpreted this as ageing. But as the color is exactly even over all surfaces, disregarding if the textile is in a very dark corridor or next to a brightly lit huge window. Therefore I think, that the color has nothing to do with light.

One hypothesys we are following (with analysis for dyes and pigments) is, that the textile was already "new fashion" and was considered too light for the (slightly retarded) Swiss taste. Maybe the walls have therefore be painted / stained with a red color. 

I would like to balance the dye / pigment analysis with detailed knowledge about aging and changes in jute. Unfortunately I cannot find anything really substantial. Is there some kind of "dark aging" for jute which would lead to a red (and definitely not a yellow/brown) tint? 

The corridors are not heated, the house is heated moderately. Therefore it would not be extremely dry in winter, not does it seem to be very humid in summer: there are no signs of elevated humidity. The stainig visible on some of the images stem from fire-fighting water in 1990.

I also exclude the heat durin this fire (roof), because of the extremely even tint. There are no signs of different thermal areas as would be seen in case of a fire damage. And it is not soot.

I am curious, if any of you know more about jute.

Sincerely,

Karin

über 20 Jahre Atelier für Textilkonservierung – 15 Jahre Ideen für Museen 

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Prev art ^GmbH - Atelier für Textilkonservierung 

Dipl. Textilkonservatorin-Restauratorin FH / SKR Karin von Lerber
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