Glossary of restoration and conservation terms

Aqueous Cleaning System - Systems consisting of enzymes, detergents, surfactants, gels and soaps used for cleaning, reduction or removal of disfiguring accumulations of dirt and modern finish layers.
Autofluorescense - Is a functional group in a molecule, which will absorb energy of a specific wavelength and re-emit energy at a different (but equally specific) wavelength.
Beeswax - The inert wax secreted by bees to make honeycombs and used to make wood polishes and candles.
Brass - A yellow alloy of copper and zinc.
Brown Rot - A fungus that attacks the cell walls in softwoods so that they remain as a fragile brown matrix that cracks into cubes as they dry, severely compromising the structural integrity of the wood.
Carbonize - Convert into carbon, typically by heating or burning.
CAT Scan - A three-dimensional image of a cross section of an item made with X-rays. CAT stands for computerized axial tomography, the name of the method used to produce the image.
Chippendale - Chippendale, Thomas (1718 to 1779), English furniture-maker and designer. He produced furniture in a neoclassical vein, with elements of the French rococo, chinoiserie, and Gothic revival styles.
Conservation - The profession devoted to the preservation of cultural property for the future. Conservation activities include examination, documentation, stabilization treatment, and preventive care in accordance with an ethical code such as the AIC Code of Ethics and Guidelines for Practice.
Conservator - A professional whose primary occupation is the practice of conservation and who, through specialized education, knowledge, training and experience, devises and implements all the activities of conservation including preventive care, examination, documentation, stabilization treatment and aesthetic treatment activities in accordance with an ethical code such as the AIC Code of Ethics and Guidelines for Practice.
Conserve - Protect something, especially an environmentally or culturally important place or thing from harm or destruction.
Consolidate - Glue down loose and flaking finish material.
Copper - A red-brown metal, the chemical element of atomic number 29. (Symbol: Cu)
Dendrochronology - The method of scientific dating of wood based on the analysis of tree-ring growth patterns.
Dry Rot - An eighteenth century term for brown rot.
Faux - Artificial or imitation; false.
Figurehead - A carving, typically a bust or a full-length figure, set at the prow of an old-fashioned sailing ship.
Gesso - A hard compound of plaster of Paris or whiting in glue, used in sculpture or as a base for gilding or painting on wood.
Gild - Cover thinly with gold.
Gold Leaf - Gold that has been beaten into a very thin sheet, used in gilding.
Hepplewhite - Hepplewhite, George (died 1786), English cabinetmaker and furniture designer. The posthumously published book of his designs, The Cabinetmaker and Upholsterer's Guide (1788), contains almost 300 designs.
Hide Glue - Reversible animal glue which is derived from collagen.
Inert - Chemically inactive.
Ingild - The process of matching and applying gold to areas where the gilding is missing.
Inlay - A design, pattern, or piece of material inlaid in something.
Inpaint - The process of matching and applying finish to areas where the finish materials are missing.
Karat - A measure of the purity of gold, pure gold being 24 karats
Linseed Oil - A pale yellow oil extracted from linseed, used especially in paint and varnish.
Marquetry - The art of inlaying different woods, and other natural materials to create a picture.
Microscopic Finish Analysis - A method of identifying the components and different layers of finishes using the information obtained under a fluorescent light microscope.
Mold - A furry growth of minute fungal hyphae occurring typically in moist warm conditions, especially on food or other organic matter, such as the dirt, oil, and pollen layers found on furniture and other artifacts.
Ormolu - A gold-colored alloy of copper, zinc, and sometimes tin, cast into desired shapes and often gilded, used especially in the 18th century for decorating furniture and making ornaments
Oxidize - Combine or become combined chemically with oxygen.
Patina - An acquired change in the appearance of a surface.
Patination - The color variations in an object due to the effects of time, light exposure, dirt and wax.
Polymerize - Combine or cause to combine to form a polymer.
Queen Anne - Denoting a style of English furniture or architecture characteristic of the early 18th century. The furniture is noted for its simple, proportioned style and for its cabriole legs and walnut veneer; the architecture is characterized by the use of red brick in simple, basically rectangular designs.
Radial Checks or Cracks - Cracks occurring along the radius from the outside of the tree to the center as the wood in whole logs dry.
Reversibility - Ability to be removed completely without affecting the surrounding original materials.
Sheraton - Designed, made by, or in the simple, delicate, and graceful style of the English furniture maker Thomas Sheraton (1751â€“1806).
Stratigraphy - The distribution, deposition, and age of finish layers.
Tone - The particular quality of brightness, deepness, or hue of a tint or shade of a color
Ultraviolet light - Radiation lying in the ultraviolet range; wavelengths shorter than light but longer than X rays.
Veneer - A thinly cut surface or plane of wood that serves as the skin of a piece of furniture.
X-Radiography - Photography that uses electromagnetic radiation, similar to light, but of shorter wavelength, and capable of penetrating solids and of ionizing gases.
Zinc - The chemical element of atomic number 30, a silvery-white metal that is a constituent of brass and is used for coating (galvanizing) iron and steel to protect against corrosion. (Symbol: Zn)

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