The Conservation Process
To assess the condition and determine the best approach for treatment, access to the interior was essential. The shadow box was positioned on its back, and using suction cups, the old, brittle glass front was slowly and gently eased out through a slot at the frame’s front.
Once access was gained, the loose pieces inside the shadow box were removed, documented, and set aside. Closer examination revealed that the ship model had been previously broken and repaired multiple times. White paint from the wooden sails had splashed onto parts of the rigging lines (made of two colors of heavy cotton or linen thread) and some of the deadeye pulleys (made of glass seed beads).
Most of the rigging lines were broken and badly tangled, and those that remained were too deteriorated to reliably support the carved wooden sails’ weight. The decision was made to remove and replace all of the original threads with new upholstery thread that closely matched the color, thickness, and twist of the originals. The new threads are polyester, which helps to distinguish them as replacement parts in the future—an important consideration in conservation ethics.
Further examination revealed that this was a five-masted barquentine, which is unusual as two or three masts are far more common. Since most of the model’s original rigging lines were broken and many sails dislodged, extensive research was necessary to determine the historically accurate arrangement and attachment points of the sails and rigging. Fortunately, the New Brunswick Museum’s Archives and Research Library Department has a wealth of useful resources on the province’s shipbuilding history.
Cleaning and Discoveries
Every surface of the shadow box’s interior and exterior, the ship model, and the chip-carved “ocean” were meticulously cleaned of a century’s worth of dust and grime using a specialized conservation vacuum cleaner. Where necessary, an anionic detergent, distilled water, and solvents applied by hand-rolled cotton swabs were used.
The “ocean” surface was loose inside the shadow box and was removed for cleaning and stabilization. Once removed, several interesting surprises were found underneath, including remnants of paper flags and banners which, when pieced together, revealed the model’s name, “King of the Fleet.” A sailor figurine, a gunboat, and an anchor, all made of lead, were also discovered inside the shadow box. These elements provided evidence that the artifact had been modified on at least one earlier occasion, as the ship and the gunboat would not have been contemporary with each other. The sailor was also significantly out of scale with the ship, likely another later addition. After discussion with the curator, the decision was made to reinstall the gunboat on the ocean but to keep the sailor separate from the shadow box assemblage.
Collaborative Restoration
In the summer of 2021, Emma Griffiths, a Queens University Master of Art Conservation graduate student, completed an internship at the New Brunswick Museum conservation lab. She took on the daunting task of replacing all of the rigging on the ship model that by then was well into treatment.
The final phases of the conservation treatment were completed in the late summer and fall of 2021. These included securing the ship model in the shadow box, creating a support structure for the ocean, final surface cleaning, repairing the broken wave crests, securing the gunboat in position, and securing the ocean in place. Next came the reattachment of the anchor, re-assembly and restoration of the paper banners, re-installation of the glass front, and in-painting the more distracting chips in the paint on the front frame of the shadow box.
A Project Years in the Making
The conservation treatment took place over several years, as the work was undertaken between more time-sensitive projects. In all, it involved hundreds of hours of research and conservation treatment. As much as possible, the original materials were retained. The only new additions were the replacement rigging lines, a few glass beads to replace “deadeyes” that had broken, and a Japanese paper lining, infill, and in-painting to restore the paper banners.
Each step of the treatment process was carefully documented and photographed—over 150 photographs in all. Ultimately, the final result provides a much better understanding of the artifact and its condition history. It is now safer, more stable, and much more accessible for future research, exhibition, and interpretation.
The Historical Significance of “King of the Fleet”
As shown in Image 1, this restored shadow box, created by Samuel William Hopey (Canadian, 1846-1936) between 1890-1910, is made of painted wood with cotton, glass beads, metal, and glass, measuring 53 × 94.5 × 19.5 cm. It was donated to the New Brunswick Museum by David P. Simmons in 2017 (2017.36).
Thanks to the generosity of a descendant of the maker, this intriguing example of the province’s maritime heritage has become an important addition to the New Brunswick Museum’s collections. The skill of Samuel William Hopey, a master carpenter who worked in shipbuilding along the Fundy coast, brought to life a fictional sailing vessel, “King of the Fleet.”
The Importance of Shadow Boxes in Maritime Art
The New Brunswick Museum houses one of the most significant and extensive ship portraiture collections in Canada, of which shadow boxes form a particularly fascinating component. These shallow dioramas of sailing vessels are usually contained within a box structure that can be inserted into a wall alcove or set on a shelf or mantel. Almost without exception, the subject matter is a rigged, half or three-quarter version of a sailing vessel surrounded by a painted or sometimes sculpted seascape or shore scene.
This format became an especially popular method during the last half of the 19th and early 20th centuries and represents a fascinating variation compared to other types of ship portraiture such as paintings, prints, drawings, photographs, or ship models.
The vast majority of shadow boxes might be termed “naïve,” “vernacular,” or “folk” art since the makers most often had technical knowledge of sailing vessels but little or no formal art training. Currently, the New Brunswick Museum houses seventeen shadow boxes dating between circa 1850 and 1970, with the majority from the nineteenth century’s last quarter.
Samuel William Hopey: Craftsman and Artist
The shadow box’s maker, Samuel William Hopey, was born in St. Martins, NB, on May 4, 1846, to John Hopey and Margaret Godsoe. He married Catherine Ann McLellan of Shediac, NB, in 1873. The 1881 Census lists him in Moncton as a corker (caulker) with a wife and three children: John A., Alma, and Alexander. Additional children followed: Matilda Alberta Hopey (born in Moncton in May 1881), George Stanley Hopey (born at Turtle Creek, Albert County, in February 1891), and Frank Hopey (born in Albert County in 1895).
By 1901, the family was living in Moncton, and Samuel’s occupation was listed as carpenter. By 1911, they had moved to Sunny Brae (now a neighbourhood in Moncton), NB, where they remained until Hopey’s death on February 19, 1936.
Family history related by the donor indicates that Hopey was a ship’s carpenter and master builder who worked all his life in the shipyards along the Fundy coast from St. Martins to Moncton. The making of ship models and shadow boxes was his hobby. This shadow box was taken to the United States in the early part of the 20th century when his son, George Stanley Hopey (1891-1964), moved to the Boston, Massachusetts, area. The “King of the Fleet” descended to George Hopey’s grandson, the donor.
A Valuable Addition to the Museum’s Collection
The New Brunswick Museum’s small but significant survey collection of shadow boxes is likely one of the most comprehensive in the region. By virtue of its charming nature, it has the potential to engage the public in better understanding and appreciating the province’s rich maritime heritage.
To date, there is little evidence that the New Brunswick Museum’s collection of shadow boxes has been the subject of much serious research, publication, or exhibition. Only six of the seventeen items have makers ascribed or attributed to them. A detailed examination of their characteristics must be undertaken, including a review of their fabrication techniques, a study of the range of imagery they contain, and a review of their construction relative to shipbuilding. All these aspects must be explored and considered to understand their place not only within maritime-themed art but also within a social history context.
Despite its poor initial condition, “King of the Fleet” was determined to be an invaluable addition to the collection for comparative research, publication, and exhibition. In accepting the item, the museum recognized that it could be maintained and monitored to prevent further deterioration and that a conservation intervention would be necessary to return it to an approximation of its original state—a goal that has now been brilliantly achieved.
