Conservator Libby Melzer from the Grimwade Centre for Cultural Material Conservation at the University of Melbourne works on the Magna Carta. Photo: Grimwade Centre.
It’s been eight years in the process and many more in the planning, but one of the nation’s greatest treasures, a 1297 Inspeximus copy of the Magna Carta, is back home and taking pride of place again in Parliament House, Canberra.
The copy, purchased by former prime minister Robert Menzies in 1950, is one of only four known original copies in existence.
Found in a school in Somerset, England in the 1930s, it went up for auction and was later bought for the nation by Sir Robert for £12,500. Today, its estimated worth is $35 million (almost £18 million).
After the copy was bought, the CSIRO in Canberra was commissioned to design a case to securely seal the document. It remained in this glass case from 1961 until opened in 2016 when the decision was made to determine the document’s condition.
Director of Art Collections at Parliament House, Penelope Grist OAM, said her in-house conservation team worked with experts from the Grimwade Centre for Cultural Materials Conservation, from Melbourne University, recognised leaders in conservation.
She said with great advances in conservation since the Magna Carta was acquired, it was timely for today’s experts to examine its condition.
“They did a fantastic job with the conservation project of such a unique object,” Ms Grist said.
Senior conservator Libby Melzer, who led the Grimwade team, said the copy was removed from the glass for the first time in 55 years and analysed.
“What we discovered was that it was in an amazing condition,” Ms Melzer said. “That was because it was in an oxygen-free case which was considered best practice at the time as it would ensure no pests could get in.
“It was in very good condition, there were signs of age but there were no signs of it having suffered by being on display for so long. There was a slight indentation on one corner from mounting, but the parchment was very flexible and the silk swoop was amazingly flexible because they can become brittle over time.”
Ms Melzer, who has a masters degree in medieval parchment, said she wasn’t surprised the Magna Carta was in such good condition. “I knew they kept it in incredibly stable conditions, cool and dry, so the parchment and ink would be good.”
She said the best way to preserve such precious, fragile items for future generations was to keep them locked away in the dark where they couldn’t be affected by light or temperature.
“But we know it is important for people to see them so that’s why we work so hard to determine the best way to keep items like this on display and give them the longest life.”
Conservators work on the Magna Carta in a secure room at Parliament House. Photo: Grimwade Centre.
Asked how confronting it was to work on such a rare treasure, Ms Melzer said it was best to look at it as a collection of materials and how they behaved together.
“It’s when you step back and look at the big picture you realise it’s such a big deal. But when it comes down to it, you’re just doing the best you can in your job.”
Ms Grist praised all the teams working on the eight-year-long project.
“Our in-house conservation team was heavily involved in this project,” she said. “They were involved in all the liaison, the briefings, working through the implications of all the reports.
“With a project like this, it’s all about testing and rehearsing and doing a whole lot of planning before you deal with the real thing. So by the time you deal with the real thing, it has become routine and you have left nothing to chance.
“It was an extraordinary thing to work on and we’re all so proud to see it back on display and for our visitors to see it again.”
The Magna Carta is now on display on Level 1 at Parliament House, Canberra, in a new custom-made display case. A free exhibition detailing the conservation process is also on display at Parliament House. Open daily.
Loading ...
