EXAMINATION & CLEANING

Visual examination of a find can help to identify its material, form, function and condition. Cleaning finds to make examination easier is tempting but some finds should not be cleaned without the advice of a conservator. This page offers guidance on which finds can be cleaned safely to aid examination and how to do this.

General Advice

Do not clean finds on site to assist with this examination unless advised by a conservator. Inappropriate cleaning by a non-specialist can lead to loss of important archaeological evidence that may be associated with fragile surfaces or included within soil and corrosion products on a find, including:

Original surfaces of finds.
Tool marks.
Use-wear marks.
Surface treatments (pigments, gilding, shelter coats).
Mineral preserved organics within corrosion products.
Organic residues on ceramics.
DNA on stone weapons.

Micro-excavation and cleaning of a find to preserve this evidence should be carried out by a conservator with access to the necessary tools and techniques to do this safely. This will potentially reveal details of deposition, composition, morphology, function, structure and condition of a find.

On occasion, it may be appropriate to clean a find on site or in a post-excavation finds processing facility, ideally following advice from a conservator, specialist or experienced personnel. Examples include:

High-fired ceramics confirmed to have no organic residue.
Low-fired ceramics if dry, not friable and confirmed to have no organic residues.
Stone (e.g. building masonry) confirmed to have no shelter coatings or pigments.
Bulk finds of bone and antler following advice from an osteologist.

Cleaning by a non-specialist will never be acceptable for some finds. Examples of finds that should not be cleaned on site include:

Metal registered finds.
Coins and tokens.
Textiles.
Waterlogged leather registered finds.
Finds with analysis potential (e.g. organic residues).

This page offers advice on the examination and cleaning of inorganic (Table 7.1), metal (Table 7.2) and organic (Table 7.3) finds. If in doubt about the appropriate actions, consult a conservator.

Inorganic Materials

The following table (7.1) provides advice on what to look for when examining inorganic finds and whether it is possible to clean the find with or without the advice of a specialist or conservator. It also offers general advice on how cleaning can be achieved if it is advised.

Table 7.1 Recommendations for the examination and cleaning of inorganic finds on site, including whether cleaning is possible following the advice of a conservator or specialist

Metals

The following table (7.2) provides advice on what to look for when examining metal finds and whether it is possible to clean the find with or without the advice of a specialist or conservator. It also offers general advice on how cleaning can be achieved if it is advised.

Recommendations for examination and cleaning of metal finds on site

Table 7.2 Recommendations for the examination and cleaning of metal finds on site, including whether cleaning is possible following the advice of a conservator or specialist

Organic Materials

The following table (7.3) provides advice on what to look for when examining organic finds and whether it is possible to clean the find with or without the advice of a specialist or conservator. It also offers general advice on how cleaning can be achieved if it is advised.

Table 7.3 Recommendations for the examination and cleaning of organic finds on site, including whether cleaning is possible following the advice of a conservator or specialist

Further Information

Alpaslan-Roodenberg, S. et al. 2021. Ethics of DNA Research on Human Remains: Five Globally Applicable Guidelines. Nature 599: 41-46. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-021-04008-x

Archaeological Ceramic Building Materials Group (ACBMG). 2002. Ceramic Building Material Minimum Standards for Recovery, Curation, Analysis and Publication.

Cameron, E., Spriggs, J. and Wills, B. 2005. The Conservation of Archaeological Leather. Routledge, London, UK.

Caple, C., and Garlick, V. 2018. Identification and valuation of archaeological artefacts: developments using digital X-radiography. Journal of the Institute of Conservation, 41(2): 128-141.
DOI: 10.1080/19455224.2018.1464487

Casey, P. J. 1985. Understanding Ancient Coins. An Introduction for Archaeologists and Historians. Batsford Ltd, London, UK.

Cofield, S. and Doub, N. 2020. An Archaeologist’s Guide to X-radiography at the Maryland Archaeological Conservation Lab.

Davis, S. and Chemello, C. 2014. Glass: Conservation and Preservation. Encyclopaedia of Global Archaeology. Springer, London, UK.

Doehne, E. and Price, C. A. 2010. Stone Conservation: An Overview of Current Research (2nd edition). The Getty Conservation Institute, Los Angeles, USA

Gillis, C and Nosch, M.-L. B. 2007. First Aid for the Excavation of Archaeological Textiles. Oxbow Books, Oxford, UK.

Goodburn Brown, D. and Jones, J. (Editors). 1998. Look after the Pennies: Numismatics and Conservation in the 1990s. Archetype, London, UK.

Historic England.

2006. Guidelines on the X-radiography of archaeological metalwork.

2008. Guidelines for the Curation of Waterlogged Macroscopic Plant and Invertebrate Remains.

2018. Waterlogged Organic Artefacts: Guidelines on their Recovery, Analysis and Conservation.

2018. Guidelines on the Recording, Sampling, Conservation and Curation of Waterlogged Wood.

2020. Care and Conservation of Historic Architectural Tiles.

Jensen, P. and Gregory, D. J. 2006. Selected Physical Parameters to Characterize the State of Preservation of Waterlogged Archaeological Wood: a Practical Guide for their Determination. Journal of Archaeological Science 33(4):551-559.

Koob, S. P. 2006. Conservation and Care of Glass Objects. Archetype, London, UK.

Meehan, P. 2002. Aluminium and its Alloys: Current Approaches to Conservation. In H. Moody (Editor). Back to Basics Selected Papers from Series of Conferences organised by the Metals Section of UKIC, 1999-2000, pp. 13-15.

Oakley, V. L. and Jain, K. K. 2002. Essentials in the Care and Conservation of Historical Ceramic Objects. Archetype, London, UK

O’Connor, S. and Brooks, M. 2007. X-radiography of Textiles, Dress and Related Objects. Routledge, London, UK.

Squires, K., Errickson, D. and Márquez-Grant, N. (Editors). 2019. Ethical Challenges of Working with Human Remains. Springer, London, UK.

Walton, P and Eastwood, G. 1989. A Brief Guide to the Cataloguing of Archaeological Textiles, 4 ed. London: Institute of Archaeology Publications 1989[A9]

Wills, B. (Editor). 2001. Leather wet and dry: current treatments in the conservation of waterlogged and desiccated archaeological leather. Archetype, London, UK.