Beij, Williams & Zito, Incorporated

John T. Zito III (860) 983-1036

Email: John@FineArtStone.com

Typical 1804 Portland Brownstone colonial tablet displaying deterioration from freezing temperatures in New England. The face is mostly intact and this 19th century memorial is a good candidate for conservation or restoration.
West Thompson Ancient Burying Ground
BEFORE – This 19th century marble tablet was showing signs of heavy loss and biological growth. The iron pins used in it’s construction eventually rusted and split the marble apart. These were removed and the seams were patched with a special restoration mortar. As shown below, the results can be quite satisfactory.
AFTER – the same ancient memorial tablet is now ready to endure many future winters after cleaning and reattachment of fragments. The old footing was replaced with new gravel for optimal drainage. Repointing on the joint will keep out water, ensuring longevity. Some stains, from the iron rust, are permanent and will never change.

Restoration Portfolio

These are just a few of the pieces we have restored over recent years. Brownstone and marble are the most widely chosen stone varieties for restoration or conservation projects.

Conservation: the preservation and reconstitution of ancient stones that focus on longevity and original dimension only. Rather than exact reproduction of details like color, texture, lettering and decorative & architecture, the goal, like an Egyptian vase conservation, is not to create missing details that are hard to decipher from original surface. Instead, an intentional filling and rebuilding of original dimensions with an appropriate material that doesn’t necessarily blend but is obvious in it’s presence is the usual result.

Restoration: the act of returning something to its original state or condition, which can involve repairing, renewing or reconstructing it. Restoration is a more involved undertaking in that once the piece is conserved, it is then recarved, textured and color matched as much as possible to it’s original appearance. This process adds considerably to the cost of such a commission.

New England burying ground restoration enjoyed its first wave of interest in Hartford in the 1890s, sparked by the Daughters of the American Revolution. The group restored many ancient brownstone memorial tablets carved of Portland Brownstone from Portland, Connecticut which started quarrying in about 1700. Having lasted reasonably well for about 100 years, the memorials began to show signs of deterioration in the late 19th century.

Over the years, the porous brownstone had readily absorbed and held large quantities of water through extreme temperature changes, causing deterioration of the natural binders that kept the silica sand intact. With no fastener the sand fell apart, continuing to this day to be a cause of great loss of colonial sculptural art to the historic community.

The next distinct period of interest began when the technology of plastics and resins became available. Beginning in the 1950s and up into the 1970s, Beij, Williams & Zito undertook several restorations that are still in good shape today considering the incompatibility of the materials that were then used. As with the DAR in the 1890s, we did not consider the interaction of the foreign material with the substrate over the years. Now, because of extensive laboratory research, we know that resins, polymers and low pH cements can cause more damage than good over the years when used as a filler or binder of brownstone in restoration attempts.

To date, Beij, Williams & Zito, Inc., has completed many notable restorations including the Civil War Memorial and the Governor Pitkin Tabletomb at Center Cemetery, East Hartford; the Ancient Burying Ground at Gold Street, Hartford, including the reproduction of the Founders of Hartford Obelisk; as well as various other restoration projects in ancient burying grounds in East Granby, Farmington, Rocky Hill, East Hartland, Norfolk, Suffield, Wethersfield, Simsbury, Tarriffville, East Haddam, Hartford, Middletown, Glastonbury, Manchester and West Thompson among others.

Fine Art Sculpture, Memorials & Restorations in Stone & Bronze in Connecticut since 1870

Beij, Williams & Zito, Inc.
PO Box 270409
West Hartford, CT 06127
860-983-1036

John T. Zito III works with fresh color matched mortar that has been laid into substantial areas of loss on a deteriorated brownstone tablet (dark areas of stone). The wet areas are carefully cut back to the original height, then covered and cured for a week before any recarving of the missing original design takes place.
This 18th century brownstone tablet was virtually destroyed by a well-intentioned prior restoration using Portland Cement. The low pH of the repair mortar likely did more damage than good over the last 100 years. Reversibility of any conservation or restoration work is paramount; it is now understood that the repair material should do no harm and it’s ability to be removed for replacement without damaging the original stone with better future material is a must.
This photograph illustrates a typical face delamination of a shaft section of a brownstone obelisk. With the right tools and materials, this large fragment can be reattached and the seams can be patched with color matched restoration mortar for decades of longevity.