Test cleaning
- Description:
- Test cleaning
- Physical Description:
- 25 photographs
- Author:
- Brock, Edwin
- Date Created:
- July 2001 - July 2002
- Collection:
- Ramesses VI (KV9) Sarcophagus Conservation
- Series:
- Conservation work in progress
- Location:
- Kings, Valley of the, Luxor, Egypt, and Al Uqşur
- Time Period:
- New Kingdom and 20th Dynasty
- Topic:
- Ramesses VI, King of Egypt
- Cultural Object:
- Sarcophagi, stain (coating), Sarcophagi, stain (coating), Sarcophagi, and stain (coating)
- Fieldwork activities:
- cleaning, conservation (process), work site, personnel, assembling (additive and joining process), cleaning, conservation (process), work site, personnel, assembling (additive and joining process), cleaning, conservation (process), work site, personnel, and assembling (additive and joining process)
- Genre:
- black-and-white photographs
- Creative Commons License:
- https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
- Rights Statement:
- Users must agree to abide by the terms and conditions of the CC BY NC SA license before using ARCE materials and must provide the following credit line: "Reproduction courtesy of the American Research Center in Egypt, Inc. (ARCE). This project was funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)."
- Project History:
- Located in the Valley of the Kings, Luxor, Ramesses VI’s tomb once held hundreds of stone sarcophagus fragments, the result of the demolition of its sarcophagi in antiquity. Decorated on the exterior with painted figures and text, the mummiform inner stone sarcophagus fragments were reassembled by project director Dr. Edwin C. Brock and his team under the auspices of the American Research Center in Egypt (ARCE). The face of the lid, taken from the tomb in the 19th century and currently in the British Museum, was replicated and incorporated into the sarcophagus reassembly, thereby ensuring its preservation within its original context. Conservation work was made possible with the support of the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities (formerly the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities).
- Funding Agency:
- Ramesses VI (KV9) Sarcophagus Conservation project was made possible with funding by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Grant No. 263-G-00-93-0089-00 (formerly 263-0000-G-00-3089-00) and administered by the Egyptian Antiquities Project (EAP) of the American Research Center in Egypt (ARCE).
- Abstract:
- The test cleanings revealed that different results can be obtained, depending on the present condition of the surface of the fragment as well as its past history. In extreme cases, as visible on the right side of the box, one fragment may be coated with the resinous material while an adjacent fragment, found outside the tomb has lost this coating, as well as some of the painted decoration. It is recommended that if any future cleaning activities are undertaken, they should be confined to only the painted figures and not the background. Additional cleaning of the sarcophagus box and lid to remove dirt is desirable. Any more removal of the resinous coating should be undertaken only in areas where it may be possible to make the decoration clearer and should be carried out there on the painted decoration using mechanical means of removal, mainly the use of fine picks. Painted decoration was consolidated after cleaning, using a diluted paraloid solution. and A resinous substance was poured over the box and lid probably at the time of burial. This substance now formed a glossy dark brown coating that obscures the painted decoration. In addition, dirt had covered the fragments further obscuring the decoration. Since the resinous substance was actually an ancient artifact, it might not be desirable to remove it.