The object is a poler bear pelt form the collection of Statsbygg. The pelt is part of the interior of Gamlehaugen, one of the royal residences in Norway. The bear was shot by a Norwegian explorer Fridtjof Nansen who gave the pelt as a gift to his friend Christian Michelsen, the first Prime Minister of Independent Norway.

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The owner wanted the object stabilized and the general appearance improved. After the treatment the object was going to be placed back on the floor where it had been displayed for decades.

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The pelt was very dirty and suffers from light damage caused by exposure to UV-light. The hairs on the pelt have yellowed and are very brittle. The leather had torn in several places all around the object and pieces of leather were missing all along the edge of the pelt, mainly at the ends of the legs. The mouth area of the bear was severely damaged, a piece of the bottom jaw was missing together with three of the bottom teeth. There were also losses in the fur. The lining of the pelt showed signs of insect damage and the padding inside the object had moved and was too heavy for the fragile leather of the object. The stiching around the edge of the object was pulling on the leather and causing more damage.

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In the course of the treatment, the old lining and padding were removed and the underside of the pelt vacuumed. The tears around the object as well as the areas were leather was missing were backed with a heat bonded, random weave polyester fabric. The fur was vacuum cleaned and further wet cleaned with water with a wetting agent. After cleaning, missing leather fur were replaced.

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The missing plaster around the mouth are was filled in and new teeth made out of epoxy/microballoon mixture. The filled areas were colour matched with acrylic paints.

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The old padding was replaced with a much lighter polyerster wadding and a new lining was made out of polyester felt. A mount was also made for the object, so that it would not lie directly on the floor. Handles were added to the mount to make moving of it easier.

 

The object was returned to the client with a dust sheet to protect it from dirt and further light damage. the owner was also provided with instructions for the future care of the object.

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