Stručni rad
Conservation and restoration of the ferman of Sultan Selim III from the Republic of Dubrovnik
Vanja Marić
; Hrvatski restauratorski zavod, Restauratorski odjel Dubrovnik, Odsjek za papir, Dubrovnik, Hrvatska
Sažetak
As a legal document, the ferman developed parallel with the development of the Ottoman Empire. It is a state legislative act written according to the sultan’s express decree. A ferman began with an incumbent sultan’s tughra – a decorative form of his name, i.e. a signature of the Ottoman ruler. Another testimony of how the widespread maritime and trade afairs of the Ottoman Empire with the Dubrovnik sailors were legally regulated is the Ferman of Sultan Selim III which is owned by the Fisković family. The document is a direct order by the sultan to protect Captain Antun Fisković during his maritime voyage, issued in 1806. The document therefore has a historical, but also sentimental value. It further provides interesting insights into the similarities and the differences between the Oriental and the European technology in the selection of materials and the preparation of manuscripts.
Conservation and restoration works were prompted by the poor state of preservation of the manuscript which had been kept in inappropriate conditions. Investigation of the document indicated that the paper had been handmade from fax, and to a lesser extent, cotton fbres. In the tradition of Eastern calligraphy, the paper had been impregnated with egg white. Particularly interesting was rhdanthe –a dust used in Oriental calligraphy for drying the ink, which resembled gold in appearance. Analyses revealed it to be metal scrape, brass to be precise.
The sensitivity of the ink used for writing the ferman of Selim III affected the choice of conservation and restoration procedures, particularly in terms of selecting the right fixative. That is to say, the composition of Arabian-origin ink is more sensitive to polar solvents, due to the granulation of the pigment and the binder which is soluble in such solvents, in addition to being more sensitive to moistening in general. In order for the document to be thoroughly protected, certain “wet” restoration treatments needed to be undertaken: the removal of deep dirt, the whitening of smudges and strengthening by undergluing. To prevent rhdanthe ink from spilling and to preserve the , the text of the ferman was fixated with a 5% solution of Paraloid B72 in acetone. The poor state of the paper made it necessary to strengthen the original support with a new paper background. The missing parts were reconstructed with hand-made Japanese paper. The injuries were retouched with pastel, thereby reducing the intensity of the smudges, as it was impossible to remove them. Upon completing the restoration works, the Ferman of Selim III was properly furnished and returned to the collection of the Fisković family in Orebić.
Ključne riječi
ferman; Selim III; the Republic of Dubrovnik; conservation and restoration works; rhdan
Hrčak ID:
106460
URI
Datum izdavanja:
20.12.2012.
Posjeta: 1.387 *