Back to Bronze Sculpture Repair & Restoration Index

Bronze cat with broken tail

This cat was damaged in shipment.  The tail was broken off, but it was basically a "clean"
break.  Since the sculpture is hollow, and the metal in this location quite thin, there was not
a lot of surface to hold it securely in place.  

Because the metal the patina could have been damaged by heat I decided to support the tail internally with a
stainless steel rod (secured in the tail and the body with a gypsum-based compound).  I filled the broken joints
with epoxy and matched the patina with acrylic pigments.  I finished by washing and waxing the entire piece.