HL Deb 18 March 1999 vol 598 c120WA
The Marquess of Ailesbury

asked the Chairman of Committees:

Whether it is possible to clean the two largest pictures in the Royal Gallery. [HL1453]

The Chairman of Committees (Lord Boston of Faversham)

In relation to the two large paintings by Daniel Maclise in the Royal Gallery, experts have advised that there is very little which can be done to bring the bright colours back to these paintings. The paintings were painted using the waterglass technique, in which the paint was applied directly to the plaster on the walls of the Royal Gallery. The artist completed the work by spraying the surface of the painting with layers of liquid silica.

Within two years of completion, the paintings began to darken and the colours began to fade. This was either because the silica layers were applied too thickly or because the lime in the underlying plaster reacted adversely with the colours in the paint. Since the 1860s, various techniques have been tried to revive the colours. The paintings have been cleaned and at one time they were also coated with wax. The wax was removed in 1966, leaving the paintings much more visible.

The paintings are now stable and the detail can be seen reasonably well. I am afraid that nothing further can be done to brighten the colours.