Report 1 - Conservation of ceramic firepot
Report 2 - Composite wood and iron artifacts - pole arms and partisans
Report 3 - Silicone oil and organic conservation
Report 4 - Conserving the human skeleton found aboard La Belle
Report 5 - Conservation of closed wood containers: a chest from La Belle
Report 6 - Conservation of the Fairfield Union field cannon
Report 7 - Conserving the hull of La Belle
Report 8 - A carpenter's tool from Port Royal, Jamaica
Report 10 - Site 8SJ3478, possibly the Industry: a British 18th-century shipwreck
Report 11 - Pass Cavallo project (Page currently down)
Report 12 - A chest from the Brother Jonathan shipwreck.
Conservation Research Laboratory Reports
Composite wood / iron objects: pole arms and partisans
La Salle Shipwreck Project
Texas Historical Commission
CONSERVATION OF A WOOD SHAFT
Throughout the conservation process, the wood shaft part of the partisan had been kept wet by wrapping it in damp rags. It was conserved only after the blade was cast. The encrustation around the wood was carefully removed using a mechanical air scribe. Silicone oil was used to treat the wood in this instance, although acetone-rosin would have been just as appropriate. Both are very good when the wood to be preserved is broken in several pieces and has to be repaired. PEG was not appropriate as conservation treatment in this case, since there was some metallic iron remaining on the blade. PEG attacks and can be potentially damaging to iron unless specific precautions are taken.
Once the partisan was cast and the wooden handle conserved, final photographs and drawings were made of the reconstructed complete piece. Observations, such as the success rate of the treatment used and the final appearance of the object, were also included in the conservation record. The notes made before, during, and after the conservation process aid in the analysis of artifacts.
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Last updated: Friday, 25-Sep-2009 18:30:34 Central Daylight Time