Dr. Deb wrote:
My wife's cousin's husband (I am living in the South where everybody
is related to everybody - give them time they will figure out how.:-)
) presented me with an oval frame that contained a plaster bas-relief
of Christ being taken down from the Cross. From the looks of it, I
would say it dated from the early 1900's

The good news is, he gave it to me. The bad news is, it needs a bit
of repair and he wants to see it when the repairs are completed.

The frame is black, with maybe a light coat of plaster over the wood
and a gold cove on the opening side of the frame. Good news is, it
is in pretty good condition. The bad news is, there are a few places
where the plaster has chipped off. How is the best way to go about
doing a repair on this?

Depends on the size of the chips. If large, the suggestions fo making a
mold would be apropos. If just tiny-small chips I'd use drywall mud on my
finger to overfill slightly. When dry, use a small, damp but not wet sponge
to smooth down to the same level as surrounding areas. When painted, the
repair will be invisible and as permanent as if you used plaster.
__________

I had originally thought the finish was "jappaned" but it may just be
black paint over the plaster. The same for the gold.

I seriously doubt it is jappaned. Even if so, doing it is probably beyond
what you would want to do. I'd use a black acrylic artist type paint and a
small, fine brush but any black paint of the correct density and sheen would
do. If the areas to be painted are small, stippling it on with the point of
the brush will give you more control than "painting" it on.

The gold could be gold leaf but I doubt that too. There are, of course,
gilt paints...problem is getting the right color. There are also waxes -
sold by framing supply places - in many colors. They are used to hide nail
holes, imperfectly joined miters, dings, etc. The advantage of the waxes is
that they can be easily removed with naptha (lighter fluid) if not right;
multiple colors can also be blended together. Apply with finger or swab
(cloth around toothpick), use a swab to remove "over spray".

There may well be a coat of varnish over all on the original.

--

dadiOH
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