‘THE USE OF GLUE MOLDS IN REPRODUCING ABORIG- INAL MONUMENTS AT QUIRIGUA, GUATEMALA By NEIL M. JUDD % Jom, h Self An A oh nes ne Sg, Cit“ ey rnp te nd gape icv ol te ont ey S SESE Se Ae so "hee odio (orotate etn era SoiscRon Cont sarees net ny ecw nw Qiao ts ote wi yr on oe iin paw ty ie ing tee Tone te in ey of Qiu cl in il ne ae Sich pint cnc Be et Co Ape a a hat esi a Sprgeeseed wo tet coer hn fe SV ee ts a nad es ae eeu Say Sy, I SS ELEY eee lp po emma cant a Me a cen tcl pr cs ae “Shae feremeaea me tesargarg emer Sere cree eee ee ere ie ic ee terobet od aloe oy A pe “lead” oc Serer eeeeo RRPRODWCING AnORIGRNAL sMoNvAtENTS 19 Similar molds of the sculptured stones at this andl other pre= historic Central American site were obtained by subsequent ex palitions, among which those ofthe Peabody Museum at Cambridge fre most noteworthy. None of the paper squeezes obtained by those carly exped tons, however, pro duced. casts that are ently satisfactory Exiting reproduc tions give a. general Iimpretsion of the org inal, to be sore, and fre therfore highly ‘desirable for museum ceahiidon, but eheir value for’ the study of the hieroglyphics thas been lessened by the wnavoidable nae curacy and indistinct, ta with which they represent the carved inecriptions on the ‘monuments. "Such cats, the author be Teves, ought to serve oth ne mses ex amples ‘of primitive ya. 9p—Comtructng the planer forme around American sculpture essere fandasexict facsimiles for laboratory study ofthe ancient Mayan sytem of hieroglyphic. ‘The preservation of exact copies of Mayan monuments, and especialy of thee carvings, i quite necessary, for the ation ofthe ‘ements is slowly but surely ering this evidence of primitive ‘man's cultural development in the jungles of Guatemala. Whea|830 Aumeicu axraoroLocisr ws. rni Mavislay made his Gest observations, these stones were almost hidden in the dense forest and were overgrown witha thick mat of Vines and moss in which even large tres had taken root. He re- ‘moved cis growth inorder to secure better photographs, but after Ihe visi a now coves ing had formed, and the ceasing wae ne cssarily repeated when the School of Amer can Archaology began cra yearsago.. When four party reached Qvirigva last January ‘we found that aight sowth of lichens had reappeared on all the stele, but it readily Yielded to scrubbing brash ‘These Quirigua monuments aeof oro types: tall stones with human figures Served on bith fee fd columns of itor lyphios om the mare rower sides, and low, animal-shaped blocks bearing similar in seriptons on thelr Peseta hen mame ist raes SN oe ‘monument hae been carved fom a slid block of stone, of a texture that multplion the ficulties of sucessful reproduction. The rock may be described 8 soriaceous sandstone, for it coasts mostly of voleaie sora, ‘vith varying proportions of sand and coaree gravel. Earthquakesue) REPRODUCING AxoRIGHNAL MoNEMENTS a and growing vegetation have broken and split these heavy masses, sa well as the remaining wall of the temples; swaying branches and Akipping water have cit and grooved their surfaces and liberated ‘many exposed pebbles, thereby adding small pttngs tothe already rough, granular faces. Such a superial texture greatly increases the difculties of making satistactory paper molds by resisting every lor to force pulp or similar lifeless materials into the pores of the stone's surface, and by tenaciously gripping chose substances, once they have been deiven into place. In reproducing the iregular texture of the Quirigua monuments, glue proved an ileal agent, since the material of the molds wae applied in a linuid condition, and when hardened, its natural elasticity permitted great distortion in removal. Te was easily manipulated ‘hen property prepared, yet gave considerable diticuley before its topical Limitations were ‘ucienly determined Glue, or gelatin, ean animal substance that deteriorates rapidly fon expoture to heat and moisture. Commercially, gelatin is ob ‘tained in thin, dry fakes that require soaking and melting in pre paration for use. Although well known and much wtilzed in ecorative architectural constriction in the cooler portions of the country, le had never before been employed in the American topics. Those experta whom we had consulted seriously doubted its practicability for such a task as ours—they were a unt in ad- ising adherence tothe old method, despite admitted imperectons Daring our first weeks in Guatemala, while awaiting the asival ‘of cupplie, we performed euch minor experiments ae available ‘materiale would permit. Te became evident at this time that glue ‘molds must be prepared with more care in the topics than in the vworkehops of our New England states. Foriastance, a mere damp= ‘ening of the dry fakes gave firmer, heavier molds that yielded more ‘aisfactory casts than those made from glue which had received the customary soaking. Our fist pourings were too thin and resulted in sft, eather sticky molds incapable of producing clearcut reproductions.” We learned leo that melted elie, left in pale or tube, would neither eo! nor solidify, but deteriorated within aeom- paratively short time, Alter having served thee prpoe, our glue ‘molds were usually cut into small pices and remelted. When allte auvnnicax avrunorovcisr feats these fragments were not required for the evening pouring, they \vere dred and retained for fatare ute, but if earlesely spread and 2 ae circulation of aie prevented, the pices invariably sweated fnd soured, rendering them wae for new molds. With all ite uncertainties, how- lever, glue proved an ideal medium forthe hasty reproduction of sich enormoss, rege lar carvings as those at Quiigua Our method of mold-making wat very simple. We be- san by bulding ight plaster foundation Around the base of che vent the escape of the reked glue and to suppor the weigh of the plaster forms which were to see ound the monument fn serve as retaining walls for’ the ge molds, Above this foundation, « definite section of the stone woe covered with layer of commen day sid, approximately fone inch thick. In Dulldng the forms, ach lage quantities of thie mud were used that one native was kept at work coataually, mixing with hi bre feet, while one of two companions Kncaded it iato sizable Dalle, These masses were then pounded or thrown onto the stonepeo} REPRODUCING ABORIGINAL MoUUANTS 133 ‘wth force suficient to make them adhere, uniform thickness of the layer and its conformation withthe outline of the stone being pee= served during che operation. (Over this clay were bile the forms or supports above refesed to. While being constructed, each form was braced with two or ‘more smal saplings, laid at eight angles upon a number of bamboo ‘strips. Bach form was completed and its ees carefully trimmed before the adjoining form was begun. Four ofthese forms, one for tach side of the monument, composed a section. On completion, ‘the several parts were bound together with temporary tes of plaster- soaked fiber and the working platforms raed for another seis. Continuing in this manner, the whole monument was covered—a layer of clay, of thickness corresponding to that of the desired mold, lying against the stone, and over thie clay the careflly- snatched plaster forms. When the topmost form had een finished, the real process of mali-making bora. Commencing atthe top, one entire horizontal section was lowered cach day and the aubjacine layer of elay throw aside. The ex: ‘ose surface ofthe stone was then thoroughly scrubbed to remove ‘what dct and lichenous growth sil ung to the monument. ‘The inside sefaces of the four forms were scraped fre fom ll iregie lusts and palnted with a coat of thick cay-water which fled ‘the pores of the plaster and aided materially in separating molds land forms. After the stone had dried it was oiled with a com ‘position of atearine, Kerotne, and vaseline and the forme raised fo ther original position, bound with fiber, and all joints covered ‘with plaster. Ta thee "orginal poston” these forms were sepa ‘ated from the monument by an interstce equal to the thicknes of the layer of clay over which they had een built, Tnto this space ‘the melted glue was later poured. The resultant glue molds, therefore, were equal in thickness tothe layer of clay they replaced; their backs were supported by the plaster forma, and thelr facoe epredced, in intalio, the lines and carvings of the monument, During ‘these preparations, galvanized iron tubs, containing flue, were over the fer and their contents melting forthe daly pouring. To avold burning the material, that tub which held the ve was placed upon three or four smal atone aa larger receptacle4 Ausiican avrunorovocist — woay sn a88 and separated from ie by a quantity of boiling water. ‘The outer ‘yessal in tun, rested upon iron rods or pointed stones that eased above the fe-pit. When the glue had thoroughly melted and attained uniform consistency, it was red forthe forms, Pouring the glue was a simple proces, ad required only a ‘number of pails and sea to past them ‘Our day's work was so divided that this operation war pore formed just before sundown, leaving the ‘ool hoursof the night foe the hardening of the molds, Small holes for the exape of air bubbles were eed through howe forms that inclined from the perpendicus lar, but they were a: ways vedosed as the rmoled hn ing in the mold-space, began to Sow from’ them. Further to prevent the formation of bubbles in the gluo after ie Thad been poured into ‘the forms, improvised funoels were fre= ‘quently employed, the presure of the liquid remaining in the funnel after the forms had been filled forcing out the imprisoned sir and alto counteracting the effect of shrinkage along the upper ‘ge of the mod.won] REPRODUCING ABORIGINAL MoNUaENTS 135 ‘The plaster forms ha been built one aginst the other, therefore their joints were ab tight and fitted as nie au two reunited fag rents ofa broke dish, In order thatthe plaster casts mig unite perfectly, the glue mod frm which they were taken, conformed, necessary, to the dimensions oftheir forms, The srinkage of the folding glue left « narrow, unrecorded margin along the upper trig of each section of molds, an inaccuracy that was easily over- ‘come by adding alow rim of plaster tothe top ofeach series of forms, ‘When filed with glic, these enlarged forms produced molds that wore slightly wider than those desired, but the excess was easly removed with a kai, leaving the glue molds flush with the original fees of their forms and assuring perfect joints when the sections ‘Should be fally nite, Each morning at daylight the glue molds poured the previous evening were lowered from the monument and prepared for carting Great care war taken to protect Ghee molds from even the early- ‘morning aun, since only few moments’ exposure served to soften tnd mele the impresion.. The mold, supported by their respective plaster forms, were fist dusted with French chalk, co eemove any fdhering grease, then thoroughly brushed with a saturated lum136 AunRicaw avranorovocisr ay snaps olution, ‘This Higuidl required, on an average, about one hour for complete evaporation, but i always lef a thin coating of alum that hhardened the sisface of the give molds and aided materially ia protecting them from the heat generated by the seting of the plaster composing the cast. The mold surfaces were lightly oled ‘wth stearine and kerosine before applying the plaster. ‘The caste were made by coveriag the old surface of each glue mold with liquid plaster, the thickness of which varied in direct ‘proportion to the size ad iregularty ofthe mold. Wooden braces land hemp fiber, imbedded in the plaster, inreated the toughnest fof the casts and lessened the possibility of their warping and breaking Each horizontal section of the stele, oF upright monuments, consisted of four eatte which were usually united before being 5p ‘arated from the glue mols. Since the pater forms were made ix Close conformation with the outline of the monument, cheir corner anges were known to be exact. By matching these corners and tnikng the four parts of the newly-made plaster cast while they sil rested guint the gle olde and thelr supporting plaster forms, ‘the angles of the cast could be made a perfec a thoee ofthe stone ‘whose inscriptions it reproduced. Any other method would have quired numerous measurements and much care in using them. (ur way merely necesitated uniform setting of the plaster com posing the detached parts ofthe cast and a reasonable amount of Speedin ining thor, for, even with an alimshardened mirfare, ‘he het of the setting plarter soon melted the glue molda. ‘The climate was, ofcourse, the greatese handicap under whic the expedition labored. We reached Quirgua atthe beginning of| the dry season, a ninety day period during whch the rains are more feregular and of shorter duration than usual. Available 19r4 records for this interval, Febreary, March and Apel, show an everage dally teniperature, ab observed on the shaded veranda at the nearest United Fruit Company farmhouse, of 66° at 6 aa; 88° at noon; and 76° at 6 Fae. In the small open epace where our work of reproduction was pursued, the heat was obviously higher and more unbearable. | Under the intense rays af the aus, aot only the nature fof our medium but also our personal comfort required a temporaryyc) RRPRODUCING avoRICINAL MoNEMENTS "7 aheter over the monument being cast. To afd this neecary protectin, canvas apa mere der over poles thet reached Tove the monument, dup crt being tized whon driving Fainstorm ot the ero son tet taod the exposed pore ‘kona ofthe tone habit to secure cool water for ening increta the die fis ofthat important breach of the wor made the setting of the raterboh rg lar and uncen, fad raced more tn aig the materi han wool otheenise have boon necrnry. A ston sing problem at ‘oomteret in the Giving thd where sinute worms deve. Sets babi of ving the interior of or planter casts ‘Their produ ap retrace nt pater eee "Det ea” eee ae eng rae eee Sesvon's work was toed only by foqveny exposing each cst tothe dict rays OF the brning un For shipment, the cists were encod in wooden crates and protected with dd banana enon ‘Te face tat they sed the stock of repeated leading and unleaings and reached the138 AMERICAN ANTHROPOLOGIST bet t95 destination with very little breakage was due to generous and cael reénforcement rather than abundant packing ‘The recent expedition entered the field with no previous exper- fence and but very lite knowledge ofthe use of ge molds. Te ‘employed a medium that ad been considered impracticable ia the ‘torrid zone, but which, at comparatively amall cost, has given esl far surpassing thove secured by any other process, Tn four ‘monthe casts were made of sx colossal nontments, and each cast, fon cose examination, wil be found to be am exact counterpart of it ‘orginal, reproducing not only every carved line and figure of the ancient sculpture but the very texture of the stone in which the fxrving was done. These reproductions are t be installed at San Diogo, Californie, during the Panaza-Calforaia Exposition, and later willbe removed tothe hallsof the School of American Arch logy at Santa Fe, New Mexico.