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  • NEPAL

view of Halji Gonpa's Entrance

The
worksite
was
located
in
Limi
Valley,
Humla
district,
and
used
to
be
reachable
only
after
a
long
trek
from
Simikot.
The
8-10
day
walk
would
lead
to
the
village
of
Halji,
located
at
3,600
meters.
Even
though
the
foundation
of
rinchenling
monastery
dates
back
to
the
10th
century,
only
a
few
of
the
artifacts
within
the
monastery
can
be
considered
contemporaneous.

The
project,
started
in
2003,
was
sponsored
by
The
Rotary
Club
U.K.
in
collaboration
with
Nepal
Trust
and
carried
out
by
John
Sanday
Associates.
The
main
aim
was
to
train
volunteer
trekkers
and
locals
in
restoration
techniques
for
the
safeguarding
of
Halji’s
cultural
heritage.
The
first
phase
of
the
project
consisted
of
emergency
consolidation
operations
together
with
a
study
of
the
stratification
of
the
soot
and
the
varnish
present
on
the
surface
of
the
wall
paintings
to
find
out
the
most
suitable
chemicals
for
their
removal.
In
addition,
cleaning
samples
were
carried
out
in
different
areas
so
as
to
check
the
efficacy
of
the
solutions.
The
cataloguing
of
all
statues
and
artefacts
present
in
the
monastery
was
another
important
achievement.
In
total,
117
statues
and
chortens
made
from
clay,
metal
and
wood
were
identified,
measured
and
photographed.

view of limi valley

emergency
consolidation

The
purpose
of
the
present
mission
was
the
fixation
of
dangerous
painted
fragments
in
risk
of
collapsing
from
the
wall
and
the
consolidation
of
detached
preparatory
layers
of
the
wall
paintings.
Since
it
was
impossible
to
complete
the
consolidation
due
to
the
short
time
of
the
mission,
the
whole
painted
surface
was
thoroughly
checked
and
the
areas
in
need
of
consolidation
were
marked
with
white
chalk
sticks.
A
further
classification,
according
to
the
degree
of
damage,
grouped
the
zones
into
three
main
classes
of
danger
so
as
to
have
a
clear
idea
of
the
priority
of
the
work
to
be
done.

The
fixing
of
renders:
 Initially the most suitable point for injecting had to be chosen, preferring the use of existing cracks to piercing holes with hand-drills. Secondly, a surfactant agent was injected to allow the acrylic binder solution, which was injected later on, to better permeate through the detached renders. When the area to be consolidated was just lacking adhesion and it was detached without separation of preparatory layers, only an emulsion of the acrylic binder was injected to glue both sides of the renders. When the area to be consolidated presented detachment of preparatory layers, the emulsion had to be mixed together with very finely sifted local clays, so that the mortar could fill up the gap and glue the detached renders at the same time.

The
fixing
of
paint
layer:
 This operation was performed only if the preparatory layers were sound enough; otherwise a consolidation of the renders was needed prior to any intervention, taking care to not touch the scales/flakes. Eventual deposits of dust, cobwebs, etc. had to be removed with soft brushes or rubber siphons. Japanese tissue paper had to be carefully applied on the area to be treated with brushes soaked in water. In some cases it was not possible to apply the Japanese tissue paper because of the size of the scales; hence scales had be softened by injecting or spreading a surfactant solution. An Acrylic binder emulsion in water was then injected taking care to spread it thoroughly underneath the scales. Then the paint layer flakes were unrolled back in place very carefully using a soft synthetic sponge soaked in water. A double-headed spatula, wrapped in plastic foil, was used for pushing back curled scales. While pressing the flakes, eventual excess of the acrylic binder was removed and rinsed meticulously with a wet sponge. Then cotton swabs soaked in water were used to remove the excess of binder from the surface of the wall paintings and the Japanese tissue paper had to be removed while still wet.

the
cleaning

A
series
of
cleaning
tests
were
carried
out
on
the
two
rooms
hosting
wall
paintings
in
order
to
find
out
the
most
suitable
chemical
for
cleaning
the
paint
layer
from
aged
varnish
and
butter
lamp
smoke.
The
first
task
was
to
remove
dust
and
cobwebs
with
long
bristle
brushes
in
the
areas
chosen
for
the
cleaning
samples.
The
two
coatings
of
varnish
present
in
the
main
shrine
were
successfully
removed
by
using
a
mixture
of
organic
chemicals.
The
cleaning
samples
were
carried
out
using
Japanese
tissue
paper
and
cotton
swabs:
the
former
was
applied
on
the
area
to
be
cleaned
and
the
latter,
soaked
in
the
same
mixture
of
organic
chemicals,
were
used
to
melt
the
varnish
coatings.
The
rough
plaster,
applied
to
cover
cracks
and
holes
by
the
locals
in
recent
time,
was
removed
with
cotton
compresses
soaked
in
water.
When
the
rough
plaster
was
swollen,
its
removal
was
achieved
by
using
bamboo
sticks
and
surgical
knives.
The
deposits
of
dirt
and
the
soot
from
smoke
and
grease
present
on
the
wall
paintings
of
the
second
room
were
softened
by
short
application
of
an
organic
chemical
by
brush.
Thereafter
the
soot
was
removed
with
cotton
swabs
soaked
in
the
same
chemical.
The
rough
plaster,
applied
to
cover
cracks
and
holes
by
the
locals
in
recent
time,
was
swollen
with
cotton
swabs
soaked
in
ethyl
alcohol
because
the
wall
paintings'
binder
was
extremely
water-sensitive.
The
swollen
rough
plaster
was
removed
then
with
bamboo
sticks
and
surgical
knives.

the
end

The
project
run
only
in
2003
and
unfortunately
it
was
closed
soon
after
the
end
of
the
first
mission
due
to
safety
concerns.
It
was
a
time
of
very
dangerous
turmoils
in
Nepal
and
the
district
of
Humla
was
the
target
of
many
raids
as
a
consequence
of
the
civil
war.
After
a
couple
of
bombs
blasted
in
Simikot,
where
one
of
the
logistics
offices
of
the
project
was
based,
the
foundations
behind
the
project
decided
to
close
it
permanently.