202 



THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND AIKJIIITECTS JOURNAL. 



[JuN£, 



Panier-MAchc is ap|ilieil to tlic ciiiiclicd cornices of l)ookcases and cabinets, 

 to llie mouldings and corners and centre ornaments of paneling on their doors 

 ami sides ; to the enriched scroll legs of cabinets and pier tables in the old 

 French style; to ornamental brackets for clocks, busts, vases, S:c.; to the 

 cnriclied borders to rooms hung " ith silk or paper ; tlie ornamental jjarts for 

 picture and glass frames, r,o matter how curved and elaborate; also to win- 

 <lo\v-curtain cornices, the canopies of bedstc.ids, &c. I've. It has been very 

 advantageously used for tlie latter purpose in the stale bed at Chatsworth ; 

 and also to the canopy of the Royal Throne in the present House of Lords. 

 I'or the enrichment "of bookcases it is ailmiraJjly ailapted, atlbrding ojipor- 

 t\mities, if in the Gothic style, of introducing elaborate jnnnacles and pen- 

 dants, rich corbels and pierced frets of oi)en work, deeply undercut rosettes, 

 ami spandril and mitre, or intersection ornaments, ^c. ; also for the exterior 

 cases of organs it has been most advantageously and extensively used : the 

 lightest ami most intricate tracery is executeil with ease, and an ett'ect [iro- 

 duced at a very moderate cost, wli'ich by no other means could be obtained 

 without an extravagant expense. 



It is needless to add, that when the above mentioned subjects are in classic 

 or other styles, the friezes, the scrolls, consoles, pateras, &e. are among the 

 simplest and most obvious uses of Papicr-Mache. 



With regard to the mode of fixing Papicr-Miichc in cabinet work, perhaps 

 the simplest and yet most accurate rule that can be laid down, is to treat it 

 exactly as if it were wood. It is to be cut with the saw and chisel, and may 

 lie lieiit by steam or heat, plancil and cleaned nji with sand pajier to the 

 smoothest face and to the finest arris, if rcijuired ; it is to lie fastened with 

 brads, needle points, or glue. Tlie larger objects, such as brackets, canopies, 

 &c. can be made either with a wood core, or they can be wlioUy of Papicr- 

 Miiche : in cither case, two or three screws at once secure them in their 

 place. When fixed, the work can lie painted and grained without any pre- 

 vious vreparation whatever; and in gilding, tlic surface of the work is so 

 much better adapted to receive the gold than that of anyotlicr material, that 

 much of (he expense and delay usually attendant on the jirocess is saved. 

 The same observation applies to silvering ; and it may be added, th.at there 

 is good evidence (as at Chesterfield House, May Fair, &c.) to prove that the 

 metallic leaf continues untarnished longer on I'apier-Mache than on other 

 substances. 



A great variety of brackets, consoles, and cantilevers are made of tliis sub- 

 stance : indeed, "one of the first applications of C. F. Bielefeld's improved 

 Papier-Mache to architectural purposes, was to form some large consoles and 

 cornices at St. James's Palace on the accession of his late Majesty. Since 

 that time similar work has been fixed nji at the Grocers' Hall, the King's 

 College, at the Carlton Club House, the Oxford and Cambridge Club House, 

 Jiritish Museum, State Drawing Kooms at IJublin Castle, Grand Lodge Free- 

 masons' Hall, Corn Exchange, &c. Chimney pieces are very efTcctively de- 

 corated in Pa|iier-Mache, as was formerly much jiiaetised by Sir William 

 Chambers and others; specimens of ornamental chiuincy pieces in the style 

 of Elizalicth and James may be seen in the show rooms. It would, however, 

 be tedious to enumerate all the purposes to which Papicr-.Maclic can be ad- 

 vantageously applied ; it will suffice to repeat, that there is no jiossible en- 

 richment, ill any style, however coni])licated or elaborate, that may not be 

 readily executed in it. Nor is the manufacturer disposed to limit the appli- 

 cation of it to interior work. The improveil Papier-.Mache is of too recent 

 intiuductioii to enable us to refer to any example of its use in exterior work 

 further back than about fourteen years'; but there are several shop fronts in 

 London that vv^re fitted up at that time, where the Papier-Maclu; enrichments 

 are at the present day as sound and perfect as when first turned out of the 

 mould. We may, however, fin<l in the Papier-MAche of tlic last century, 

 although of inm'ieasurably inferior quality, abundant jiroof of its extreme 

 durability in exposed situations. Sir William Chambers's own house in Bcr- 

 iiers-stre'ct, that must be proba'oly tliree (piarters of a century old, lias Hie 

 Papier-Maehc, which enriched the fanciful architecture at the back of the 

 liouse, in jicrfect picservation. 



At Paris, the Carton-picrre, a substance analogous to Papier-Mache, but in 

 every way inferior to it, especially as regards its durability, being very ab- 

 sorbent of moisture, and therefore liable to become solt, is largely used for 

 exterior oniameuts, even in buildings of the most sumptuous and important 

 character. 



As there is good evidence of the durability of the old Papier-.Macbc in the 

 0)ien air, it follows of course, that for interior work its iiermancncy may be 

 btill more implicitly relied upon. There arc many [licr-glass frames, chimney- 

 pieces, S:c. composed of this sub.stancc, remaining in a perfectly sound good 

 condition, that must have been made early in the last centm-y ; and a recent 

 examination of the old Papier-Mache work at Chcstei field House h,as most 

 satisfactorily proved, that for ceilings it is equally iliirable ; the coniiionent parts 

 are, in fact.'such as to render it much less likely to decay than the laths or 

 other work to which it may be allachcd ; and in no instance tliat has ever 

 come under tlie observation of the mannfaeturcr, has he delectcil the least 

 indication of its having been attacked by worms, one of the ingredients used 

 being very olinnxious to tlicm. The Pa|iier-Maclic work nnvv rcniaining in 

 many houses in l,ondon and the country, which was put up in the time of 

 Sir Svilliam Chambers, a]ipears, wherever it lias been examined, in a iierl'ectly 

 sound stale, iiotwillistandiiig all tliose original defects in ils composition and 

 inamifacture which the manufactory has been able cll'cctually to correct. 



L 



Ir- 



It now only remains to give some general in- 

 structions for the fixing up of the work. There 

 is one rule which it will be particularly advisable 

 to note, since it is calculated to save luiich 

 trouble, and secure ]ierfcct truth in the fixing of 

 the eiiricbed meiiibers of cornices. In running 

 the plain work of a cornice, it should be remem- 

 bered to provide in the mould a sinking to receive 

 the Papiei-.Mriclie member. If, for example, it is 

 desired to enrich with foliage the cyina of a 

 cornice, the mould should be formed with a sinking 

 thus : or, should it be desired to insert an enrichment, 

 say an ogee and bead, in the bed-moulding of the cor- 

 nice, a sinking to reeinvc it should be proviiled thus : 



These sinkings need not generally exceed one-eighth 

 of an inch ; a raised fillet at the bottom of the en- 

 riched moulding would answer the same purpose, the 

 only object being to secure a perfectly conlinuous and 



unbroken line. 



In cases where a simple cornice would be sufficient, 

 and where it is desirable to have nothing to do with 

 plaster, a siii.all fillet or moulding of wood, nailed 

 to the ceiling ,ind wall with the Papier-Miiehe orna- 

 ment inserted between them, gives a very complete 

 and ornamental finish to the room at a most trifling 

 expense, and without the diit and delay unavoidably 

 attendant on running plaster mouldings. Where a 

 flower or patera has to be applied to a ceiling, one 

 screw will suflice, unless the patera be of unusual 

 tUmensions, to attach it safely to the plaster, taking 

 care that the screws are long ennught to reach the 

 joists. Where, however, the flower is intended to 

 cover an oi>eiiiiig for ventila- 

 tion, it will be requisite to 

 block down from the joists; 

 thus screwing the flower to 

 the blocking. 



Where ornamental corners 

 arc to be applied to a ceiling, 

 they should, if very heavy, be fastened up to the timbers w ith screws, but 

 generally speaking it would be (piite suflieient to use brads, taking their hold 

 on to the laths; this aftaeliment being made still more secure by the use of 

 the cement which is prcjiared and jirovidcd by the manufacturer when re- 

 quired, together with instnu-tioiis for using it. The same mode of fixing is 

 adopted for frets, friezes, and indeed for all kinds of superficial cnricbineiil, 

 care being at all times taken that brads lay well hold of the laths, for which 

 purpose it is generally expedient to drive the brads in at the hollows, and 

 such parts of the work to lie fixed ; it is also a useful precaution to drive the 

 lirads in a slanting direction, so as to prevent all chance of tlieir drawing. 

 \\'hen walls have to be enriched with panels, as is very usual in aiiartments 

 fitted up in the old French and Italian styles, exactly the same rules for fixing 

 as have been above prescribed for ceilings are to be followed, except that 

 fewer precautions arc necessary, as the weight acts dift'erently ; where the 

 work is of a very light character even commpn needle points will be found 

 sufficient, but the cement above mentioned is in all eases an useful addition. 

 With the assistance of the above rules, there is no sort of work in Papier- 

 MhcIk' thai may not be well fitted up by an ordinary joiner. 



Ill drawing up these brief notes on the use of the improved Papier-Mache, 

 the manufacturer has yet to advert to a new application of it of almost un- 

 limited extent, and one to which a higher degree of importance may justly be 

 attached than any yet describod. 



There is no art to which the lovers of the Fine Arts, and especially of 

 Sculpture, are more inilebted than to the art of moidding and casting in 

 plaster ; but for this art we should be almost wholly ignorant of the merits 

 of contemporary sculjitors, .and the glorious efforts of ancient art would be 

 all but lost to the world. Uy means of plaster-casts the chef-d'iriivres of all 

 ages are multiplied, and brought from the uttermost corners of the world into 

 the museuiii of the connoisseur and the studio of the professor. 



But how perishable and fragile is a plaster-cast ! how cumbrously heavy ! 

 how difiicult of transjiort ! such iiuleed are the risks of breakage that no one 

 is willing to pay for a cast, the ]irice that would coiiipensate for the dilHcnlfy 

 and expenses necessarily attendant on making a perfect mould and cast. The 

 result is, tli.at the iilastcr-casts ordinarily sold are most imperfect and un- 

 satisfactory representations of the works of art they arc derived from. The 

 new substance now under consideration presents itself to obviate all these iii- 

 convcnicnces ; for, whilst a copy of any piece of sculpture can be made in it 

 with perfect triitli and fidelity, its weight is scarcely one-sixth ofth:it of 

 plaster, and its liability to fracture less than that of stone, marble, or wood. 



When these advantages, coupled with economy in ]irice, are considered, it 

 vvdl be easily seen what facilities arc now aft'orded for disseminating tliroiigh- 

 oiit the emjiire a knowledge of the best works of scnlpturc. The inventor 

 hopes to |ihice within the reach of every individual the enjoyment and ad- 

 vantages ilerivable from the contemplation and study of the finest specimens 

 of this branch of the Fine Arts. 



