Conservation and Management Strategies Applied to Post-Recovery Analysis of the American Civil War SubmarineH. L. Hunley(1864)

Abstract

The 12-m long submarine H. L. [Horace Lawson] Hunley was successfully recovered from the Atlantic in August 2000 after nearly 140 years of immersion, and immediately brought to the Warren Lasch Conservation Center to be excavated in a controlled environment. In 2001 a multi-disciplinary team excavated the crew compartment and uncovered numerous fragile artefacts and human remains. This paper describes the conduct of the excavation and technological advancements developed to work with this complex and unstable iron vessel. Impressed current technologies, automated tank controls and water monitoring systems; laser mapping; fibre-optics; database management; in situ x and gamma rays; moulding and protection of fragile archaeological features; and protocols for moving artefacts to the laboratory will also be discussed.

The use of subcritical fluids for the stabilisation of archaeological iron: an overview

“…Prior to their removal from the submarine, the blocks had been exposed to air during excavation but never dried out for more than a few hours. The blocks also benefi ted from an impressed current used to protect the submarine while submerged in fresh water in its holding tank [16]. Shortly after removal from the submarine, the blocks were partially deconcreted by project archaeologists during a search for skeletal remains of the crew members that may have been embedded in the concretion.…”

“…As part of a collaboration with Clemson University during the development of a long-term conservation plan for the stabilisation treatment of the H.L. Hunley (1864) submarine at the Warren Lasch Conservation Center (WLCC) in Charleston, South Carolina, a new technique for the treatment of chloride-ridden iron was evaluated and compared to the traditional techniques of immersion in sodium hydroxide with and without electrolysis [14][15][16][17][18]. This new technique, known as subcritical water extraction (SWE) or pressurised hot water extraction, was based on prior research carried out with sub-and supercritical fl uids for waste water oxidation and the analysis of extractable material from textile yarns and fabrics [19][20][21].…”

The Mechanism and Kinetics ofIn SituConservation of Iron Cannon on Shipwreck Sites

“…Although the SS Xantho was periodically buried and exposed, all the pre‐disturbance values relate to the extended aerobic micro‐environment with a CI value of −3.3 for the historic Penn of Greenwich engine (MacLeod, ; McCarthy, ). Data listed in Table from the H. L. Hunley submarine was provided courtesy of Paul Mardikian, conservator in charge of the project at the Clemson University conservation laboratory in Charleston, South Carolina (Mardikian, ). Information pertaining to the conditions on the USS Monitor (1862) site came from a combination of studies by the NOAA team and from laboratory‐based measurements on recovered artefacts (Arnold et al ., ; MacLeod et al ., ).…”

A Minimum-Impact Method for Measuring Corrosion Rate of Steel-Hulled Shipwrecks in Seawater

“…Concretion samples for the current study were obtained in 2003 and 2004 by using a 76‐mm (3‐in) hole saw bit with a pneumatic drill. After concretion samples were removed, each location was sealed with a pH‐neutral marine epoxy—others have recommended hydraulic cement (see Mardikian, 2004: 147). Data from Arizona concretion analysis reveals that the specific weight of the concretion per unit area (density × thickness) and total iron in concretion in weight percent (%Fe) decreases with water‐depth.…”