Mr. Henry Crace was engaged in 1855 to restore some of the wood carvings in the Mercers’ Hall, London, which had been perfectly honeycombed by a small brown beetle about the size of a pin’s head. The carvings being first washed, a number of holes were bored in the back by a gimlet, and also into every projecting piece of fruit and leaves on the face. The whole was then placed in a long trough, 15 inches deep, and covered with a solution, prepared in the following manner:--16 gallons of linseed oil, with 2 lbs. of litharge finely ground, 1 lb. of camphor, and 2 lbs. of red lead, were boiled, for six hours, being well stirred the whole time; 6 lbs. of bees’-wax was then dissolved in a gallon of spirits of turpentine, and the whole mixed while warm thoroughly together. In this solution the carving remained for twenty-four hours. When taken out the face was kept downwards, that the oil in the holes might soak down to the face of the carving. The dust was allowed to remain to form a substance for the future support of the wood, and as it became saturated with the oil it increased in bulk, and rendered the carving perfectly solid. No insect has since been found to touch these carvings, as they could not subsist on this composition. In 1855 the carvings of Grinling Gibbons, at Belton House, were in such a condition as to render it absolutely necessary that something should be done to prevent their complete destruction. To this end they were placed in the hands of Mr. W. G. Rogers, who undertook to experiment upon their restoration. This gentleman reported that the first step he took was to have the various pieces photographed, as a means of recording the position of each detail of the ornamentation, &c. The whole of the works were in a serious state of decay, portions being completely honeycombed by the worm. In order to destroy or prevent any future development of the insect within the wood, Mr. Rogers caused the whole to be saturated with a strong solution of corrosive sublimate (bi-chloride of mercury) in water. The colour of the wood, however, suffered so seriously by the action of the mercury that it was found necessary to adopt some means of restoring the original tint. (It gives a dark colour to the wood, which is caused by the metal contained in the sublimate.) This was effected by ammonia in the first instance, and subsequently by a slight treatment with muriatic acid. After this the interior of the wood was injected with vegetable gum and gelatine, in order to fill up the worm-holes and strengthen the fabric of the carvings. A varnish of resin, dissolved in spirits of wine, was afterwards spread on the surface, and then the dismembered pieces were put together in conformity with the photographs taken, as records, prior to the work of restoration having been commenced.