New conservation breakthrough for Mary Rose remains
Novel X-ray technique identifies potentially harmful deposits in ship’s wooden hull.
Researchers at the University of Sheffield, UK, have used a new X-ray method to discover potentially harmful substances within the remains of the Mary Rose.
Henry VIII's warship spent over 400 years at the bottom of the sea, before it was salvaged in 1982 and kept in a purpose-built museum at Portsmouth historic dockyard, UK, where it is currently on display and under conservation.
The ship's time on the seabed meant its wooden hull collected harmful deposits from the degradation of metal fixtures and artefacts. The activity of anaerobic sulfur-reducing can lead to the formation of harmful acids.
The research team, led by Professor Serena Cusson, used an X-ray technique to discover the presence, location and structure of nanostructured bacterial by-products lodged in the ship's wood. The technique, which combines X-ray computed tomography with pair distribution function analysis (ctPDF), identified zinc-containing nanoparticles and the location of organic polymer deposits, both could produce degrading acids.
Professor Cusson says the project could help maintain the historical artefact for years to come and also help similar conservation projects. 'These developments mean that potential threats to the wood can be tracked - a vital step in developing conservation strategies for the future of the Mary Rose.
'With the insights we have gathered from this experiment we’ve been developing new magnetic nanoparticle-based treatments to target and remove these harmful species from the Mary Rose. This will help us preserve this priceless artefact for years to come. This x-ray method could also be used to inform strategies to preserve other important archaeological discoveries,' she said.
The European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) provided the x-ray method and the research centre in Grenoble, France is part of an international interdisciplinary team of researchers from including the University of Sheffield, the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, Columbia University, USA the Mary Rose Trust, UK.
