The tabernacle arrived in bad condition, with the centuries-old hide glue dried and degraded. This meant dozens of moldings were loose, cracked, or completely detached. The stones and brass were oxidized and heavily soiled as well. This piece had never been restored, meaning it still contained all of its original materials. This included ebony, which is especially hard to work with, as it is dense like a stone. In order to recreate some of the structure, which was degraded, we used casting, taking ebony powder and creating a mold in the shape­ of certain areas that could not be done with wood.