The workers tackle the job with skilfully applied effort. Centimetre by centimetre, they wrap special air-cushioned foil around an over-two-metre high wooden sculpture of a horse. Each layer is hermetically sealed with packing tape from tesa. Just one more final strip of tape, on which the exhibition venue “AMSTERDAM” is printed in large letters, and the precious cargo is ready to be shipped.
Masterfully Packed
Markets
Transporting art is itself an art. At the Hermitage in St. Petersburg, Russia, we watched packaging artists at work in one of the world’s most famous museums.
Responsible packaging for every work of art
Packing up artwork from the Hermitage in St. Petersburg, Russia, by the packaging experts Khepri.
Specialised in Handling Art Treasures
The four packaging artists are very well-versed in the shipment of masterpieces. They work for the Russian company Khepri Ltd., which specialises in transporting art treasures. With a total of 50 employees, in 2018 alone they transported over 1000 works of artworks to 90 locations worldwide. In the Hermitage museum in St. Petersburg, the Khepri team ensures that the loaned items – worth millions of dollars – are securely packaged for transport.
A variety of adhesive and masking tapes are at hand for each unique task.
"We do not scrimp on packaging materials or use substandard products because that could endanger an irreplaceable work of art."
Igor Nassosnikov
Khepri employee
Framed works of art secured with wood and foil for their shipment from Russia to the Netherlands.
> 3 million art treasures
can be found in the Hermitage Museum.
Source: official State Hermitage Museum website
“Transport places enormous demands on artwork. Even just slight shaking is sufficient to cause damage. Therefore, there are strict rules,” says Khepri employee Dmitry Sadovsky. If the packaging of a work of art is inadequate, the insurer won’t pay in case of damage. Many transport containers are made especially for a particular exhibition item. For example, double-walled wooden crates protect paintings from jolts and temperature fluctuations.
Don’t Save on the Wrong Things
tesa® adhesive tapes make it possible to optimally secure the works of art in their containers. “Even old frames are protected with tesa® masking tape. Costly damage can be prevented this way,” explains Dmitry Sadovsky. The packaging professionals have had negative experiences with the tapes of other manufacturers. “When removing cover tape strips, wooden pieces were often also pulled off, which then had to be painstakingly reconstructed. Since we started using tesa® that doesn’t happen to us anymore!”
Packaging of works of art from the Hermitage in St. Petersburg in Russia by the company Khepri.
tesa® dispenser attached to the wall for long-term use.
Did you know?
The State Hermitage Museum consists of five buildings covering a total of 233,354 square metres. This corresponds to an area of nearly 33 football fields! For about 250 years, museum cats have been trotting around the premises, guarding over three million art treasures. Empress Elizabeth Petrovna, daughter of Peter the Great, once had cats brought into the palace in order to combat the rat and mouse plague. When the Winter Palace was converted into a museum by Empress Catherine II in 1764, the feline museum guards were allowed to stay.