Morwena Stephens Conservation

27 May 2025

Morwena conserves costume, textiles and related objects from around the world. These can be made from cloth, plant fibre, feathers, beadwork and other materials.

Her clients include the National Trust, museums, art galleries, places of worship and private custodians. Supporting clients with collections care, through surveys, conservation plans, guidance and training workshops is an important part of her work. Morwena also carries out exhibition loan condition checks and gives public presentations of her work and research.

Recent projects include the conservation of a 16^th century chasuble from a Devon church, the feather friezes at A la Ronde, fashionable dress for Killerton House and Scott’s 1901-1904 Antarctic expedition sledge flag for Exeter Cathedral.

Conservation treatments

First, the client is consulted about the heritage object, its history, significance, and how it is to be engaged with. Then, a detailed condition assessment is made to develop a conservation treatment proposal and estimate. The conservation may involve cleaning, stabilisation, repairs and/ or mounting, all of which are fully documented and photographed. Guidance is given on the longer-term care of the objects.

Collections Care Consultancy

Condition surveys are carried out to establish the condition of the objects, identify threats to the collection, and to set out and prioritise any necessary actions. This can form part of a conservation plan for the collection. Threats might include pest infestations, lack of physical support, and exposure to inappropriate environmental conditions or harmful materials.

Collections Care Training

A range of collections care training is offered to cover handling, storage, display, and/ or mounting of textiles, costume and world cultures collections. This can be a half- or full-day session for a single institution, or regional group of museums, e.g. in storing or displaying costume.

It can also be a longer-term project including the supervision of paid and/ or volunteer staff. Examples include 3 days to help mount an exhibition of uniforms at Gloucester Museum and a long-term project training and supervising volunteers to improve the storage of an important collection of pattern books at Coldharbour Mill Museum.

Exhibition Loans – Condition Checking

Condition assessments and condition checking for costume, textile-based and world cultures artefacts that are on loan to the client institution or being prepared for outward loan.

Public presentations

Presentations of recent conservation projects or research projects to specialist and general audiences. Examples include research into Woollen Tradecloth, presented at the Stroudwater Textile Trust AGM; and ‘Dressed to Impress: the Conservation of Ceremonial Regalia’ at Powderham Castle Heritage Open Days.

Scott’s 1901-04 Antarctic Expedition sledge flag, front before conservation

The front of the flag obscured by previous repair materials

Scott’s 1901-04 Antarctic Expedition sledge flag, front after conservation

The flag was severely degraded and was to be transferred into good museum conditions in the new Treasures Gallery. It was considered an opportunity to stabilise the flag and remove bulky wool and thick abrasive net that were altering and obscuring the construction and design. Extensive stitched repairs were removed, the original pole sleeve revealed and a combination of stitched, adhesive and overlay methods used according to the needs of the different elements.

A 16th century chasuble, back before conservation, on an early 20th century mount

The chasuble was recorded as being in the church inventory in 1563, taken into hiding by a church warden and returned to the church in 1910. It was displayed at the V&A Museum in the 1930s and the mount is thought to date from this time. The chasuble was conserved and mounted for display in ‘Treasures of North Devon’ at Barnstaple Museum before long term display in the church.

A 16th century chasuble, back after conservation and mounting

The chasuble was recorded, cleaned with dry methods, given localised stitched support and a new mount, before being installed in the exhibition. The church was advised on the specifications for a new display case.

17th century Portuguese dossal, obverse before conservation

The dossal has hung from the architrave in front of a bare concrete wall since the church moved into the converted building in the 1950s. It is made from lengths of red silk velvet appliquéd with gold-faced cloth, edged with gold braid. It had been relined at the time of its installation and new strips of painted, red damask inserted between the lengths. The top edge was damaged from the hanging method, appliqué motifs and gold braid borders were loose, with holes in the ground velvet.

During cleaning of the dossal

Cleaning the top edge of the dossal before structural repairs, using small sponge ‘brushes’. Note the distortion, soiling and paint splashes.

17th century Portuguese dossal obverse, after conservation and re-installation

A large amount of soiling was removed with soft brush, vacuum suction and sponges. Localised holes and splits were given patch stitched support and loose braid and appliqué were restitched. The dossal was given a new lining and hanging system.

A small section of the coving feather frieze in the drawing room.

There are three remarkable feather friezes in the Drawing Room, likely to have been designed and commissioned by Parminter cousins, Jane and Mary, in the 1790s. Many of the feathers were loose, insect damaged, embrittled and heavily soiled. They were cleaned and many readhered, from a scaffold tower.

A Shell Gallery bird picture, A la Ronde, The National Trust, after conservation and reinstallation

The feathers were cleaned, resecured as necessary and the eye readhered. Loose twigs and lichen were also reattached. The bird picture was reinstated in the gallery with Japanese paper tabs.

Myanmar painting of river scene with elephants and people, unframed.

The painting was likely acquired by a soldier from the Duke of Cornwall’s Light Infantry in Burma (Myanmar) in the late 19th century. It has been exposed to damp conditions at some point in its history causing the thick cotton wefts to swell and put the fine silk warps under extreme tension. This has resulted in loss of silk and severe splitting. The damp also caused loss and discolouration of the painting.

Myanmar painting of river scene with elephants and people, after conservation and mounting.

The painting had been unframed by the frame conservator. It was removed from its backing, and cleaned. After testing the paint was consolidated and the painting given an adhesive lining. Where the thick wefts were too numerous to adhere well to the lining, additional stitched support was used where no paint layer was present. The painting was then mounted onto a covered board ready for re-framing.

Court suit after conservation and mounting

A green velvet and pink satin court suit belonging to the Sir john St Aubyn, 5th Baronet 1758-1839, at St Michael’s Mount, Cornwall. The suit was conserved in 2016 and mounted in 2026, once a suitable display case had been installed.

Client Testimonials

Morwena carried out the vital work of stabilising and conserving Captain R.F. Scott’s Antarctic Expedition sledging flag in 2025, prior to long-term display in the new Treasures Exhibition Gallery. The difference between its pre- and post-conservation condition is astonishing and the accompanying conservation report will remain a vital reference tool. She made the administration of the conservation process so straightforward.

Ellie Jones
Exeter Cathedral Archivist

Biography

Morwena Stephens

Morwena has a 3-year Postgraduate Diploma in Textile Conservation, Textile Conservation Centre, London University. She has an Adult Education City & Guilds Certificate, and Experimental Psychology BA Hons, Oxford University.

Morwena then had a 12-month Museums & Galleries internship in ethnography conservation at Exeter’s Royal Albert Memorial Museum and a 10-week Mellon Fellowship at National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution, USA.

While training she had placements at LP3 Conservation, France and Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge; and contracts at Musée de l’Armée, Paris and later at the Museum of Welsh Life, Cardiff.

She has been in independent practice for over 25 years.

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