Agata Zuzanna Nalaskowska

This master thesis investigates consolidation materials and techniques for delaminating porous, proteinaceous ground layers in Chinese export lacquer, using an Early Modern cabinet as a case study. It asks which practical testing workflow can help conservators compare consolidants and application approaches to support treatment decisions. Historically informed mock-ups, using protein binders with mineral fillers, are designed to replicate these grounds to approximate the cabinet’s stratigraphy. The proposed workflow applies stepwise screening of liquid handling and drying behaviour, penetration and distribution, optical change, mechanical response, and simplified ageing. By making ethical and practical constraints (e.g., retreatability and solvent sensitivity) explicit, it proposes a reproducible, adaptable decision process for similar lacquered objects.