First Aid for the Excavation of Archaeological Textiles

By C. Gillis and Marie-Louise Nosch

This small booklet is an important conservation guide. It deals with the special care required in order to deal with these delicate fabrics during their excavation and recording. It is included as an appendix in Ancient Textiles: Production, Crafts and Society

• Language: English
• Publisher: Oxbow Books
• Release date: Mar 10, 2007
• ISBN: 9781782974420

Book preview

Introduction

Carole Gillis and Marie-Louise B. Nosch

In 2003, textile specialists from all over the world gathered in Lund, Sweden, and Copenhagen, Denmark, for an international, interdisciplinary conference on ancient textiles. The aim of the conference was for experts in a variety of areas–conservation, excavation, archaeology, ethnology, philology, history, and textile crafts, to name some–to meet, exchange information and advance the fund of knowledge in textile research. Too often, even in a specialized field like ancient textiles and clothing, the specialists from the various disciplines rarely or never meet, thus hindering the possibility of a fruitful exchange and growth through interdisciplinary contact. Often we deal with the same questions but approach them from different angles.

Our modern world necessitates modern procedures and methods. Textiles should be one of the many areas where modern students of archaeology, history and technology have insights and knowledge, and, preferably, experience. One of the fields where enormous progress has been made is that of conservation and fiber analysis. Another is the understanding of the importance of textiles in and for ancient societies and the role of the textile craft in both the private and the public spheres. The overall result of the conference was the increased knowledge, awareness and understanding of the various factors involved in ancient textiles that were gained by the participants there. Further, they realized the need to share this knowledge with a larger group of colleagues and to widen the sphere of understanding and knowledge in general: hence, the publication of the proceedings of the conference.¹

An additional, unexpected result was the conception and creation of this booklet. It is designed as a primer for dealing with archaeological textiles–in the field, in the laboratory, and in the museum. The booklet contains very practical information of immediate use to excavators and conservators who have not yet had experience with archaeological textiles and are suddenly confronted with the necessity of taking instant action. It is an up-to-date account of textile conservation today, its methods and perspectives. The authors repeatedly make the point that what should be done is to maintain a non-destructive environment, stabilize the textile, make a ‘first round’ of documentation, and ideally call in the