In the Loire Valley there are some highly skilled conservation and restoration workshops for historic objects of all sorts. Sometimes they are the only workshops capable of working with certain rare materials. They may be the only workshop who has retained an old piece of machinery that does a very specific job, or they may be at the cutting edge of conservation science. Sometimes the materials a historic object is made from are no longer legally available -- at least to ordinary members of the public. But never fear, beautiful objects with ivory inlay or lead paint can be restored using original materials under strict licencing rules. Furniture restorers are very secretive about their sources of rare woods and animal products such as ivory. They are legally allowed to work with these materials, but only under strict and regularly reviewed conditions. If you would like to know more about how historic objects are repaired and cared for, let us know. We are always delighted to include some interesting examples and share our knowledge of this specialised subject with travellers.
To enquire about our private guided tours of chateaux, wineries, markets and more email us or use our contact form. More tour ideas can be found on the Loire Valley Time Travel website.