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The treatment used to restore an object depends on its age, material and condition and some are much easier than others. Ceramics require the skills of a conservator.

The plate shown here was a product of W & J A Bailey's Alloa Pottery. It is signed "G Snaddon 1899" on the base. George Snaddon was one of the most talented employees in the pottery and was still working there just before it closed in 1907. He could turn his hand to most aspects of the work, but was particularly skilled at freehand painting in colour.

This plate has been glazed with the blue mazarine glaze, then hand-painted by George Snaddon. He made a number of items for his daughter Margaret. When she died in 1979 she left some of these, including this plate, to the Museum. Unfortunately, the plate had already been broken by then and had been very clumsily restored, leaving it in a state unfit for display.

The plate was sent for restoration. The conservator dismantled the plate, removing the badly applied ceramic cement. She glued the pieces back together, then began to fill in the chipped areas along the joints. The extent of the damage meant that she had to repaint small areas of the flower decoration. The plate was then refired; this has the effect of melting the original glaze again, thus giving the plate a virtually new surface. If this work had been done for a collector or dealer, the conservator would have made both surfaces look as good as new. Museums, however, do not wish to conceal the fact that an object has been restored, so on the underside of this plate the repairs have been left deliberately obvious.

Mus Accn No 902 642