Chemical study of degradation processes in ancient metallic materials rescued from underwater medium

Estalayo, Estefania; Aramendia, Julene; Luque, José Manuel Matés; Madariaga, Juan Manuel

doi:10.1002/jrs.5553

Cited by 13 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 26 publications

(32 reference statements)

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“…Small components, such as gears or pins, can substantially increase the time and effort required for the task (Stanco, Battiato, & Gallo, 2011; Rojas-Sola & de la Morena-de la Fuente, 2018). Some components may be missing or degraded, requiring either primary source consultation or experimental reconstruction (Hsiao & Yan, 2012;Estalayo, Aramendia, Matés Luque, & Madariaga, 2019). Such sources, however, may not be available for all artifacts.…”

Section: Digital Reconstructionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A functional analysis of two 3D-scanned antique pistols from New Zealand

LaRocco

Paeng

2020

Virtual archaeol. rev.

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Preservation of historical weapons requires continual and careful maintenance. Digital three-dimensional (3D) scanning can assist in preservation and analysis by generating a 3D computer model. New Zealand presents a special case for historical preservation, owing to the rapid import of European goods in a culture previously unexposed to metalworking. This, and the subsequent British colonization, led to upheaval and war. The most intense conflict between British and Maori forces was in the New Zealand Land Wars of the mid-19th century. The primary handheld firearms used in this period were black-powder muzzle-loaders, and the variety of armed factions involved in the war resulted in an eclectic range of weapons used. Two antique muzzle-loading pistols from this period were scanned and analyzed. Insights were gained into the history of double-barreled muzzle-loading pistols and transitional revolvers. The double-barreled pistol was determined to have been a flintlock pistol from a century prior to the Land Wars, later converted to percussion cap ignition. The transitional revolver was an intermediate step between the multi-barrel pepperbox pistol and the “true” revolver, but it remained in use throughout the Victorian era. Both types of firearms were effectively obsolete elsewhere in the world by the time of the Land Wars, but the conflict created a demand for a variety of weapons. While the pistols analyzed in this study are decommissioned and no longer in working order, the 3D models made from the samples afforded a unique glimpse into New Zealand’s history. The methodology detailed over the course of the study can be applied to other historical firearms in order to facilitate preservation, investigation, and experimentation.Highlights:<ul><li>Preservation of historical machines requires continual maintenance, including replacement of worn or missing parts.</li><li>A combination of 3D scanning and digital models was used to analyze two antique pistols from New Zealand: a converted flintlock pistol and a transitional revolver.</li><li>The method of making and analyzing digital models detailed in this study offers a way to facilitate historical preservation, experimental archaeology, and functional analysis.</li></ul>

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Section: Digital Reconstructionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A functional analysis of two 3D-scanned antique pistols from New Zealand

LaRocco

Paeng

2020

Virtual archaeol. rev.

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“…In addition, it has been possible to observe how in the vast majority of the researches focused on this aim, only a few ones uses Raman spectroscopy for its analyses, despite the great advantages it presents. [6,8,14,15] For that reason, and because of the availability of this technique in the laboratory, it was decided to use Raman spectroscopy as the main technique for the molecular analysis of this type of pieces.…”

Section: Buried Environmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The spectral data acquisition and treatment was performed using the M4 TORNADO software. [6] The chemical and thermodynamic modeling of the iron nails' degradation process was carried out using MEDUSA software (Make Equilibrium Diagrams Using Sophisticated Algorithms). [20] 3 | RESULTS AND DISCUSSION…”

Section: Instrumentationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The main consequences of the corrosion are the transformation of the metals in oxides, sulfates, carbonates, or other compounds that may result in substantial modifications in their morphology or the total mineralization. [ 6 ] In most of the archeological emplacements, possibly, it can be said that most of the metallic archeological artifacts were already suffering this natural deterioration process, even before the period of time that they were remained buried. This means that metallic archeological artifacts usually undergo a process of natural deterioration due to handling; however, this deterioration is intensified if the artifact remains in an improper environment for a long time, such as buried or submerged, depending on the chemical and physical properties of the soil or surrounding water.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The interaction of sediments with the archeological iron remains from the recovery shipwreck of Urbieta (Gernika, North of Spain)

Estalayo

Aramendia

Bellot‐Gurlet

et al. 2020

J Raman Spectroscopy

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Cultural heritage often brings to mind elements like sculptures, paintings, monuments, and buildings as well as archeological objects. Today, underwater heritage and its surrounding environment are also considered part of cultural heritage because communities identify themselves with the natural landscape. This study is focused on a shipwreck belonging to the second half of the 15th century that was discovered in 1998 by chance in the sediments of the Urdaibai estuary, in Urbieta (Gernika, Basque Country), at 4 m underground. A scientific study presented in this work was performed, as this archeological site was absolutely out of context and in need of a preservation and conservation procedure. Therefore, our aim was to shed light on the origin of the shipwreck and to assess the conservation state to develop a precise conservation plan. Pursuing this objective, a first analysis on three selected groups of iron nails was performed, looking at the raw materials and degradation patterns through the knowledge of the alteration compounds. By means of nondestructive analytical techniques such as Raman spectroscopy and X‐ray fluorescence, the presence of iron, zinc, and silicon was detected in the outer layer of the iron samples. The analysis of the nails and wood of the shipwreck confirmed that the presence of zinc in the pieces indicates an important impact of the contaminated sediments deposited in the last 80 years on the upper part of the burial in which the shipwreck was located.

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“…Underwater Cultural Heritage understands all traces of human existence having a cultural, historical, or archaeological character, which have been partially or totally underwater, in periodic or continuous forms for at least 100 years, according to UNESCO. This last work of the special issue devoted to RAA2017 was performed by Estalayo et al [23] on two pieces recovered in 1999 from a sunken English shipwreck of the XVII century, located in Bakio (Basque Country, Northern Spain). The two analyzed pieces were an iron anchor and a swivel gun, both exposed in Bakios Town Hall after their restoration in 2005.…”

Section: Raman Applications In Archaeology and Forensics With Authementioning

confidence: 99%