<\/div>\n\n\n\n
Madeline McLeod<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n
Waterlogged treenails (Newport Medieval Ship)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nThe treenails (right), cleaned, measured and labelled; ready for the next stage of treatment <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nThe oak treenails form part of the ship assemblage that was excavated from the River Usk, Newport in 2002. The treatment aims to remove water in the structure, replacing it with polyethylene glycol (PEG) 400 and 4000, a chemical that acts as a bulking agent within the cells. The water is then removed using the vacuum freeze dryer. This will enable them to be used for handling and possibly within the reconstruction of the ship\u2019s timbers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
To date, the treenails that we are working on have been measured and visual observations recorded using photography and spreadsheets. Paintbrushes were then used to remove loosely attached dirt while the treenails were immersed in water. In order to make sure the correct amount of PEG is used, they are weighed and the PEGCON software used to calculate the concentrations required. In November 2019, I visited the current project site and spoke with the volunteers about the future use of the treenails. This insight has helped guide my treatment plan. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n
Katherine List<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n
St Tydfil statue (Cyfarthfa Castle)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nKongqing laser cleaning the statue<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n The statue of St. Tydfil from Cyfarthfa Castle Museum and Art Gallery was originally placed outside of the museum. Due to weathering and pest infestation, the wood statue had suffered woodworm damage, structure distortion and paint loss. A previous project conducted by the Cardiff conservation students in 2014 studied the wood substrate and paint layer, and tested several consolidation and cleaning method. The statue was treated with pesticide and the paint consolidated. The unexpected finding of a new wormhole triggered a new round of studies in 2018. The new project aims to monitor storage conditions, figure out the possible cause of pest infestation and terminate it. Laser cleaning is also conducted to the paint surface in order to achieve an uniform look of the mottled statue. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n
Kongqing Ji<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n
Archaeological stained glass (Dominican Blackfriary in Trim, Co. Meath) <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nPatterned pieces before treatment<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nThis year, I took over the project management of Irish archaeological stained glass from the Dominican Blackfriary in Trim, Co. Meath. The Friary was founded by Geoffrey de Geneville in 1263. In 1291 the Friary was used as a meeting place for Irish bishops and in 1446 as a location for Parliamentary meetings which indicates the high status of the Friary. The Friary was suppressed by Henry VIII in 1542 but it was during the 1750\u2019s that the stone was taken down for building works. The glass itself is one of the more significant finds from the excavation, with some pieces still within their lead cames. They feature both cross-hatching patterns, indicative of the 13th<\/sup> century and floral patterns, of the 15th<\/sup> century. This project has been ongoing over several years and still won\u2019t be completed this year! The glass comes from a waterlogged environment and so the previous treatment had been to place the glass fragments into increasing concentrations of IMS and then consolidate with 5% Paraloid B72 in acetone. However, after testing, the glass was found to be stable enough that it can be air-dried with a small percentage of pieces needing consolidation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
Ellie Sweetnam<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n
Cannon (Porthcawl Museum)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nOlivia and Angelo topping up the solution<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n Our swivel cannon from Porthcawl, Wales has been in treatment with us for a few years now and recently myself and my team member Angelo have taken a large step in its ongoing treatment. Currently the cannon is in desalination, an Alkaline Sulphite solution specifically, to remove corrosion causing chlorides in the cannon\u2019s structure from its time in the saltwater. The solution was recently topped up to keep the cannon covered while we work on preparing to neutralize and replace the solution in the spring. Alongside the swivel cannon are a cannon muzzle and swivel cannon handle which are also in desalination. These are much further along and could be finished up within the next year or two. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n
Olivia Haslam<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n
Egyptian textile (Cyfarthfa Castle)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nKatie sewing the textile to the support fabric<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n A group of five students are currently working on an ancient Egyptian textile from Cyfarthfa Castle under the guidance of a second year masters student. The linen is thought to be a mummy cloth created 2000-4000 years ago and has forged hieroglyphs from the late 19th or early 20th century meant to increase its value. The textile has been carefully vacuumed and humidified, and the project team is currently sewing the textile to a support fabric using an almost invisible thread called Stablitex to help prevent further damage and loss. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n
Katie Linder<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n
I hope you’ve enjoyed this short update on this year’s group projects. We’re looking forward to being able to resume work sometime later on in the year.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Some objects that arrive at the university lab are too large or complex for a single person to work on, so their responsibility is given to a 'project manager', usually […]","protected":false},"author":1682,"featured_media":1668,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1,6],"tags":[58,175,16,239,10,376,375,48,374,128,31,378,377,17],"class_list":["post-1661","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-about-cu-conservation","category-objects-and-treatments","tag-archaeological-conservation","tag-black-friary","tag-cannon","tag-cardiff-story","tag-conservation","tag-cyfartha-castle","tag-egypt-centre","tag-egyptian-sarcophagus","tag-george","tag-newport-medieval-ship","tag-objects","tag-porthcawl-museum","tag-stained-glass","tag-waterlogged-wood"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4fDDX-qN","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1050,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/alumni-spotlight-jessica-lafrance-hwang\/","url_meta":{"origin":1661,"position":0},"title":"Alumni Spotlight: Jessica Lafrance-Hwang","author":"Stephanie Whitehead","date":"July 3, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Welcome to Alumni Spotlight, a blog series focused on our alums - where they've been and where they are now. For this installment we interviewed Jessica Lafrance-Hwang. \u00a0 What degree did you complete at Cardiff? Did you pursue more education after you left, in any field? \u00a0 I completed the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Alumni Spotlight"","block_context":{"text":"Alumni Spotlight","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/category\/alumni-spotlight\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/228\/2018\/06\/jlh.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/228\/2018\/06\/jlh.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/228\/2018\/06\/jlh.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/hello-world\/","url_meta":{"origin":1661,"position":1},"title":"Welcome to Conservation@Cardiff!","author":"Nerys Rudder","date":"January 8, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"If you're interested in conservation then you are part of a very special breed of people. \u00a0Part scientist, part artist, part project manager: conservators are the quintessential multi-tasker! \u00a0So what does it take to be a lab-coat wearing, scalpel wielding heritage warrior and what do you have to go through\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "About CU Conservation"","block_context":{"text":"About CU Conservation","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/category\/about-cu-conservation\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Photographing ongoing treatment of a sarcophagus at Cardiff University. Jerrod Seifert","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/228\/2014\/01\/jerrod-300x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":511,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/newport-ship-workshop\/","url_meta":{"origin":1661,"position":2},"title":"Newport Ship Workshop","author":"Aliza Taft","date":"June 12, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Recently,\u00a0four\u00a0conservation students from Cardiff and\u00a0three students from the University of Wales Trinity St. David (UWTSD) program in Nautical Archaeology met at the Newport Ship\u00a0Centre to conduct a collections assessment under the supervision of Cardiff lecturer Eric Nordgren and ship curator Toby Jones. The aim of the three-day workshop was to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Volunteering"","block_context":{"text":"Volunteering","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/category\/volunteering\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/228\/2017\/06\/imgID45278488.jpg.gallery.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/228\/2017\/06\/imgID45278488.jpg.gallery.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/228\/2017\/06\/imgID45278488.jpg.gallery.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/228\/2017\/06\/imgID45278488.jpg.gallery.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/228\/2017\/06\/imgID45278488.jpg.gallery.jpeg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":508,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/summer-placement-round-up\/","url_meta":{"origin":1661,"position":3},"title":"Summer Placement Round-up","author":"Aliza Taft","date":"June 16, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Conservation students, MSc and BSc, at Cardiff are required to do 8 weeks of\u00a0summer placement between years, supported by a stipend from the University. Luckily, the department has cultivated some amazing connections with museums around the UK,\u00a0 and even some in the US and Greece. Many of these connections come\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Internships and Placements"","block_context":{"text":"Internships and Placements","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/category\/internships-and-placements\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/228\/2016\/03\/cardiff-uni2.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":895,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/from-trenches-to-laboratories\/","url_meta":{"origin":1661,"position":4},"title":"From Archaeological Trenches to Conservation Laboratories","author":"Rafail Evzonas","date":"May 4, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"I still remember the moment last September when I shook the dust off my clothes in a trench for last time, somewhere in eastern Mediterranean, and packed my suitcases. A journey was begun, this time in a new world: the world of Conservation. Archaeology was my passion. For this reason,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Student's Stories"","block_context":{"text":"Student's Stories","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/category\/students-stories\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/228\/2018\/05\/coat-and-desk.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/228\/2018\/05\/coat-and-desk.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/228\/2018\/05\/coat-and-desk.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/228\/2018\/05\/coat-and-desk.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/228\/2018\/05\/coat-and-desk.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1351,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/conservation\/x-rays-galore-blackfriary-metal-finds\/","url_meta":{"origin":1661,"position":5},"title":"X-Rays Galore: Blackfriary Metal Finds","author":"Alice Blakely","date":"January 3, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Following excavations from 2010-2018, the Blackfriary metal finds travelled from Trim, Ireland to Cardiff University in January 2019 for conservation. I was assigned the objects at the beginning of this term and was tasked with their preliminary understanding. I will eventually devise a treatment plan for these objects. 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