The beetles are infesting the Dagourette house. The Basque Museum will close its doors during the winter season, from January 6 to March 24, in order to ensure “preventive and curative treatment” of the wooden building and the exhibitions it houses.
“We have to move quickly,” reacts Yves Ugalde, President of the Joint Union of the Basque Museum and the History of Bayonne. “The reality is indeed that we are the target of a regular attack by beetles, insects that eat the wood where they develop,” explains the man who is also deputy for culture at the City of Bayonne. The wood-eating insect poses no danger to human health, but can cause considerable damage to wooden structures.
Treatment over three months
For almost three months, “after the end-of-year festivities and before the season”, explains Yves Ugalde, treatment of the buildings and collections will be carried out by an Austrian company Thermo lignum international. Yves Ugalde describes “a long treatment” in three phases, which ensures “a duration of effectiveness of around ten years”.
This unfortunate event involved a reorientation of budgets. According to our colleagues from Sudouest, who were able to speak with Sabine Cazenave, the curator and director of the Basque Museum, the overall cost of the operation is estimated at 100,000 euros. “We didn't use any additional money, we did it at a constant euro,” guarantees Yves Ugalde, who regrets having consequently had to cancel an exhibition that was close to his heart.
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