Sabine Cazenave, the director and chief curator of the Basque Museum and History of Bayonne begins by reassuring: “Neither the animal nor the treatment to eradicate it are harmful to humans. » Don’t panic, then. But a certain urgency to launch the attack against the beetles which infest the Dagourette house. The wood-eating insect threatens the structured wooden building and the collections it houses. After the end-of-year holidays, the institution on the banks of Nive will close its doors to the public, from January 6 to March 24. Time to put an end to the creature and all its wood-hungry cousins: capricorns and termites mainly.
The trouble with this “solidus” is that it is. “It seems that she is resistant to treatment due to anoxia. »
Museums are constantly vigilant about the appearance of unwanted insects within their walls. More precisely, it is the larva of the woodworm which nibbles the wood where it develops, leaving behind a treacherous dust. “We had an alert last August. A very limited phenomenon that we were able to eradicate. We immediately put in place a very tight monitoring protocol and we saw that the beetle was elsewhere. »
From wood, from floor to ceiling, the Basque Museum is closely monitoring the appearance of wood-eating insects.
Photo South West
A very “solidus” spindle
Nothing extraordinary in life in such places, especially in the Basque Country where the conditions of humidity and heat suit the little creature. Except that the one that appeared in the august 17th century building is of a “fairly exogenous” variety. “The Calymmaderus solidus,” informs the director. It is not endemic in France. She comes from the south. Probably imported. We are only at the beginning of our observation here, we are being followed by an entomologist. »
Archive Bertrand Lapègue
Sabine Cazenave, curator and director of the Basque Museum: “A significant amount of handling work will be necessary to treat the museum against xylophages. »
The trouble with this “solidus” is that it is. “It seems that she is resistant to treatment due to anoxia. » Or the classic method of disinfestation in museums, by removing oxygen in a hermetically sealed space. It is therefore necessary to use other approaches, also minimally invasive. Because the Basque Museum is classified as a historic monument. There is no question of burning the beams, a radical approach which consists of removing the worm moldings. So what can we say about the works, objects and furniture items?
Insecticide and heat
“We’ll start with the building. This is the logical prerequisite for not reinfecting the collections. » Sabine Cazenave describes a method involving the injection of an insecticide and repellent. “We introduce it through the existing holes. All this is done under the control of the curators of Historical Monuments and the architect of Bâtiments de France. When this is done, we can process the collections. »
We also do it in winter because the beetles are dormant. They are not likely to fly everywhere when we go to treat them at the Basque Museum
There, the Museum calls on an Austrian company, Thermo lignum international. The same one that got rid of the beetles in August, without resorting to ineffective anoxia with Calymmaderus solidus. She will apply a heat treatment to the objects and works. An extremely precise technique. “They will create rooms inside the museum where they will organize the rotation of works. They apply a process of very progressively increasing the heat around the work. At the same time as a slow drop in humidity. All this while adapting to each type of collection. The idea is to cook the gimlet but not the work. »
Photo South West
The Basque Museum offers regular temporary exhibitions, in addition to its rich permanent collections.
100 000 euros
The union council of the historical museum, the elected officials, with the approval of the prefect for this Museum of France, have decided to wait no longer. “The problem is that we have small objects among the 80,000 pieces in our collections. On an object of 50cm2, the beetle can wreak rapid havoc. » If she doesn't tackle the canvases and paintings, if she doesn't taste the leathers, the picture frames, furniture and other everyday Basque objects on display make very tempting menus.
Wikimedia Commons / Entomart
Woodworm larvae burrow into the wood and sprinkle it with small holes.
The time has come. It takes place during the low tourist season months, between the Christmas holidays and spring. “We also do it in winter because the beetles are dormant. There is no risk of them flying everywhere when we go to treat them at the Basque Museum. »
The overall schedule of the intervention provides for a month of preparation of the premises and works, with enormous handling work. One month of processing premises and collections. One month of cleaning and reinstallation. The overall cost of the operation is estimated at 100,000 euros. “It’s the price of an exhibition,” measures Sabine Cazenave.
