Reframing the Franco-Prussian War Watercolor?

Hello everyone!

I just purchased an interesting watercolor of soldiers and villagers during the Franco Prussian war. The background is somewhat yellow and colors are a bit faded. The piece is dated 1873 but was appears to have been reframed sometime prior to WW2.

Immediately I noticed something unusual with the glass. I removed the old tape from the rear and about 20 rusty glazing points around the backing fiberboard. Turns out the glass is etched (didn't seem to help anything).

Out of the frame, the watercolor is much more vibrant. Unfortunately, it appears to be backed with ancient brown crumbling matboard. I'm going to test the pH of the matboard. It's stuck on well so I'm hoping it's not acidic.

Since I've got to order some new museum glass, would you also replace the frame as well? Do you think it would look better with a real aperture and matting?

Thanks a bunch!

 

Lithograph?

 

Back in the '60s/70s there was a glare-free glass introduced that had a very light satin etch over the surface. Just holding a piece of that glass, you wouldn't have thought it could make a difference in viewing the image, but it really does deaden a picture.

 

Don't bother testing. If it is brown and crumbling, it is poor quality and acidic.

 

Thank you for the advice. Now I've just got to figure out the best way to remove the backing without damaging the watercolor. As long as I can protect the front surface, I suspect I can carefully remove the matting with a scraper.

P.S. I hope this isn't a lithograph. On close examination, it does appear to have brush stokes. I've been fooled before though.

Edit: The old glass certainly "muddied" the appearance.

 

Wow, the painting is much more crisp and better saturated after reglazing with high-grade UV glass. Also washed the frame. It's now possible to make out a few more details like the soldiers in the background down the hill. I can just picture the villagers listening to the soldier relate his war stories.



While removing the glued-on acidic matting, I discovered a clue to the original frame shop. An embedded label that appears to reference Duke Street in London.



The watercolor appears to be bonded to a dark gray pulpy material. I left this alone because I didn't want to risk damaging the painting. Separating the matting was an unsettling process...