Restoring an Antique Wooden Carousel
JanescarouselLead_horse_906thumb1.jpg

Restoring an Antique  Wooden CarouselNEW YORK, NY - An antique wooden carousel, heavily damaged by a 1984 fire at a Youngstown, OH amusement part, has now been restored.

Now operational and housed in a protective arcylic enclosure in New York City's Brooklyn Bridge Park, the carousel was purchased at an auction in 1984 by Manhattan-based artist Jane Walentas.

Walentas began her 25-year-long effort with an intensive research into the history of the carousel, known as PTC #61 when it was built in 1922 by the Philadelphia Toboggan Co. Frank Carretta, a premier carver of the era, was involved in the creation of PTC #61. He studied cabinetmaking but preferred work as a carver for carousels because it allowed him to showcase his originality.

Restoring an Antique  Wooden Carousel"The horses in our carousel are carved from basswood," said Walentas. "A few legs were broken and had to be replaced but instead of carving new ones we decided to make molds from the existing legs and make new legs out of reinforced fiberglass.  Other than that, the wood was in very good condition and didn't need a great deal of repair."

Basswood, a favorite with carvers then and now, cuts with a clean, smooth surface in all directions of the grain, is easy to work with hand and machine tools and takes a stain or finish well.

Walentas, an artist, wanted to keep the patina of age on the carousel, now fully operational and known as Jane's Carousel. "My decision was to leave worn areas as they were rather than try to make the horses look brand new and fill every worn spot."

Have something to say? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.