Conservation of Ivan Mazepa's Hetman's Banner

Ivan Mazepa's Hetman's Banner from the Historical Museum in Kharkiv is an exceptionally treasured exhibit and one of the most important symbols of the Ukrainian statehood. The value of this object is even greater when we consider the fact that it is one of the three surviving hetman's banners in the world (the second one is kept in Moscow, and the third – in Stockholm). The banner was made in Moscow in the years 1686-1688, using silk damasks, painted and gilded on both sides. Its original surface was approx. 6 sq.m.



The exhibit was submitted for conservation works in a catastrophic state. Missing fabrics accounted for 46% of the original surface, and the preserved original (54%) consisted of a large number of separate, very fragile fragments of silk. The painting and gilding layers were only partially preserved. The above factors resulted in the fact that the object had not been exhibited for many years.

The primary goal of the conservation process was to preserve this priceless exhibit along with the accompanying studies, and at the same time to restore the standard to a condition which would allow safe display.

Works on the exhibit required gathering an international team of experts, which included museum textile and painting conservators, as well as scientists and specialists from many different fields (e.g. chemistry, physics, biology, history of art, history and linguistics) from Poland, Ukraine, Russia and Italy, cooperating with our Museum.
Due to the extensive damage and missing parts of the object, the work schedule assumed a preservative nature of museum conservation without the reconstruction or restoration of the missing fabric, layer of paint and gilding. The range of activities included the design and construction of a specialist display case.

In the course of works, the lining fabric – inserted during the 19th-century conservation – was removed, the obverse and reverse surfaces were cleaned, the loosening layers of paint and gilding were strengthened and the entire banner was lined with transparent fabric. Conservation procedures consolidated and stabilized the preserved original, prevented the banner's further destruction and allowed for its display on both sides. In addition, works were carried out to analyze the chemical and physical properties of the materials used to make the banner, compile the history of the object and decipher all the preserved inscriptions. The results of these efforts confirmed the 17th-century origin of the banner.

The restoration project was funded by the Ukrainian Foundation for Intellectual Cooperation "Ukraine – XXI Century" and lasted from September 2007 to September 2008. It was executed in preparation for a large exhibition: Ukraine – Sweden: At the Crossroads of History (17th - 18th century), which opened in Kiev on 1 October, 2008.
The project was held under the honorary patronage of Vasil Vovkun – the Minister of Culture and Tourism of Ukraine, and Bogdan Zdrojewski – the Minister of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland.

Project coordinators:

• Janusz Czop – Chief Conservator of the National Museum in Krakow
• Jurij Sawczuk – Institute of History of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Kiev