Interventions
The Sculpture Workshop deals with three-dimensional works. They can be of a movable nature such as large sculptures forming clusters or sets, and of different techniques of execution and materials such as wood, cooked clay, ivory, stone, wax, vegetable fibres, among others. They may be polychrome, or not, with different finishes; gold, or silver, bleached and polychrome decorative programmes, with the addition of various materials for enriching and embellishing the final aspect of the works according to the production time.
Intervention methodologies include topographic and stratigraphic examination of the surface of the works with a binocular microscope, which is essential to the in-depth study of the technique used. Material identification is carried out by laboratory methods of examination and analysis. It is important to record the condition assessment of the works, the extent of decay, environmental conditions, exposure and/or storage conditions, which are often responsible for the specific degradation of the works. This set of actions is an important source of information for the development of material, technical and state-of-the-art knowledge in Portugal.