The tacking edges of the original canvas have been removed, probably during the lining process. The lining canvas is however of some considerable age and extremely brittle and fragile and was no longer holding the painting adequately to the stretcher (hence the additional tacks through the face of the painting). On removal of the painting from the stretcher, the lining canvas was found to be two widths of canvas with a sewn vertical join (like the original canvas). This supports the proposition that the age of the lining canvas is prior to the 19th century. The lining adhesive is thick and pale suggesting it may be a paste lining.

The lining canvas was cut away from the original canvas up to 20mm inside the edge of the original canvas. Remnants of the original canvas edges were moistened and flattened. Paste remaining on the original canvas was gently moistened and scraped away with a scalpel.

Lining canvas cut back 20mm into original canvas

New polyester canvas strips were attached up to the edge of the cut lining

Attaching polyester canvas strips to the back edges of the original canvas.

The new canvas strips were then used to stretch the painting out onto a loom approximately 200mmm larger than the painting. Pre-stretching onto a loom was undertaken as an intermediary step to enable access to the whole back of the canvas during consolidation treatment. The painting was gently lifted into the vertical and the strip linings were found to well support the canvas.

Lifting the stretched painting - with new strip lining - into vertical position