Some icons are old, others will be completed tomorrow, or does icon imply age?
On Jun 9, 2010 7:08 PM, <bugma...@aol.com> wrote: Here we go again - IS IT ACTIVE OR INACTIVE? Icons are so old, they've often lost their appeal to wood destroying insects. In time the sugars turn to starchs. What you're usually seeing is old damage, frass, and galleries; especially if some of the finish or surface has been scraped off in the past. Powdered frass can drift out of the piece as it is moved about. I have yet to see actual activity in ancient icons. If an "old" icon has activity, it may be a forgery and of more recent vintage. Even old statuary covered in gesso often has old beetle galleries and packed frass beneath the gesso, which is exposed when some removes (or a tourist picks off) the gesso. Tom Parker -----Original Message----- From: Appelbaum & Himmelstein <aa...@mindspring.com> To: pestl...@museu...
