'No Damp Air, No Mouldring Worm, or Corroding Time, Can Possibly Deface It.' John Stalker and George Parker, 'A Treatise of Japanning and Varnishing', 1688

摘要

Oriental lacquer is a well-defined material. It is an almost indestructible substance whose composition is based on urushi - the sap of the tree Rhus vernicifera. In the 17th and 18th centuries, urushi was unavailable in the West. Therefore, Europeans attempted to imitate the appearance and properties of Oriental lacquer using a variety of other resins in innumerable combinations. Their success was limited, so today we are faced with scores of European objects which are in need of conservation. Our interest in lacquers grew out of a project in which we treated wooden panels decorated with European lacquer.