Plaster cast of a retable by Jean Pouzadoux & Sons in about 1890 depicting the Crucifixion in the centre which is flanked by saints. The original was made by an unknown artist in 1259-1267.

Plaster cast of a retable showing the Crucifixion in the centre, with on either side, Mary and John, Ecclesia and Synagogue, Peter and Paul, and the Annunciation and Visitation. The retable also illustrates scenes from the life of Christ, and St. Germer.

Cast of a retable created in plaster in about 1890 by Jean Pouzadoux & Sons and purchased from Messrs Jean Pouzadoux in 1890 for £14 (350 francs). The cast is of the Crucifixion which is flanked by saints and scenes from the life of Christ and St. Germer. The original was sculpted by an unknown artist in stone in 1259-1267, and was originally in the Chapel of the Virgin of the Abbey of Saint-Germer-de-Fly, France.

Making plaster copies is a centuries-old tradition that reached the height of its popularity during the 19th century. The V&A's casts are of large-scale architectural and sculptural works as well as small scale, jewelled book covers and ivory plaques, these last known as fictile ivories.

The Museum commissioned casts directly from makers and acquired others in exchange. Oronzio Lelli, of Florence was a key overseas supplier while, in London, Giovanni Franchi and Domenico Brucciani upheld a strong Italian tradition as highly-skilled mould-makers, or formatori.

Some casts are highly accurate depictions of original works, whilst others are more selective, replicating the outer surface of the original work, rather than its whole structure. Like a photograph, they record the moment the cast was taken: alterations, repairs and the wear and tear of age are all reproduced in the copies. The plasters can also be re-worked, so that their appearance differs slightly from the original from which they were taken.

To make a plaster cast, a negative mould has to be taken of the original object. The initial mould could be made from one of several ways. A flexible mould could be made by mixing wax with gutta-percha, a rubbery latex product taken from tropical trees. These two substances formed a mould that had a slightly elastic quality, so that it could easily be removed from the original object. Moulds were also made from gelatine, plaster or clay, and could then be used to create a plaster mould to use for casting.
When mixed with water, plaster can be poured into a prepared mould, allowed to set, and can be removed to produce a finished solid form. The moulds are coated with a separating or paring agent to prevent the newly poured plaster sticking to them. The smooth liquid state and slight expansion while setting allowed the quick drying plaster to infill even the most intricate contours of a mould.
Flatter, smaller objects in low relief usually require only one mould to cast the object. For more complex objects, with a raised surface, the mould would have to be made from a number of sections, known as piece-moulds. These pieces are held together in the so-called mother-mould, in order to create a mould of the whole object. Once the object has been cast from this mother-mould, the piece-moulds can be easily removed one by one, to create a cast of the three-dimensional object.

The original retable, or altar stone, was displayed in the private oratory of the Abbey of Saint-Germer-de-Fly. It housed the relics of St Germer, the founder of the abbey. The Crucifixion is shown in the centre of the retable, flanked on either side by depictions of St Peter and St Paul, the saints to whom the abbey is dedicated. The retable also illustrates scenes from the life of Christ, and St Germer.

REPRO.1890-79