SIGLUM and Rubrum lecture: Fish Parchment – History, Technology, and Possibilities for Contemporary Application

Research Group for the Study of Manuscripts SIGLUM and Student Society “Rubrum” (Faculty of Conservation and Restoration of Works of Art, Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw) extend their invitation to a seminar on 19 November at 18:00 (CET), during which Zuzanna Podleśny and Maria Witkowska will present a talk (in Polish) entitled Pergamin rybi – historia, technologia i możliwość współczesnego zastosowania (Fish Parchment – History, Technology, and Possibilities for Contemporary Application).

For the link to the Zoom meeting, click here.

Meeting ID: 920 2456 1369
Access code: 298929

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Abstract

Fish parchment is a relatively little-known material used, inter alia, for making bookbinding components, especially in the interwar period in Germany and in the North. Owing to its high mechanical resiliance and distinctive forms, it has potential for use in contemporary bookbinding and – possibly – also in conservation.

The lecture will outline the history, properties, and production techniques of fish parchment. It will focus on the results of an experimental project carried out at the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw. As part of the project, students specializing in the conservation of paper, parchment, and historic leather, produced fish parchment using locally sourced species: rainbow trout, cod, salmon, and carp. Strength tests were then conducted to determine how fibre direction and fish species affect the mechanical properties of the material, and to identify the most durable adhesive for joining parchment pieces. In addition, four bookbindings incorporating fish parchment were made during the project.