Month: May 2025

Scanning Electron Microscope

Published on by Gillian

In one of our laboratories we have access to the TM4000III scanning electron microscope. It is the perfect instrument to take a closer look at artefacts, not only a scanning electron microscope but can also conduct elemental analysis – EDX. The system has 4 acceleration voltages, 5, 10, 15 and 20kV, viewing to 10× – 100,000× (Photographic magnification) and 25× – 250,000× (monitor display magnification).

We have recently been investigating collagen in archaeological leather..the image below shows the bundles of collagen strands seen in a modern leather sample.

New paper: Determining the impact of elemental composition on the long-term survival of vegetable-tanned leather in archaeological environments

Published on by Gillian

Very pleased that a paper that took an enormous amount of setting up, monitoring and determination has finally been published in Archaeometry.

The rather  long title is ‘Determining the impact of elemental composition on the long-term survival of vegetable-tanned leather in archaeological environments.‘

This paper started as what do we understand about leather degradation, to how we can look at this in the laboratory into a full scale microcosm set up in the laboratory. Helga set up and monitored these systems, each having a different variable, coupled with multiple variables of leather types.. it was a spreadsheet nightmare..

Abstract

This research paper investigated whether elemental analysis can differentiate leather manufacturing from soil contamination and whether soil hydrology and elemental composition impact degradation of leather. Portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) is a quick method for monitoring large-scale changes and groupings of aggregate inorganic elemental signatures, as well as influx of soil-based elements into the leather samples. Soil elements appeared to leach into vegetable-tanned leather within 2 months of burial, following pathways that are primarily dictated by soil hydrology (acidity, redox and saturation). Leather stability was also traced to elemental concentrations prior to burial, most likely introduced through the tanning liquid, and via a contributory factor of perimineralisation in the soil.

Pint of Science 2025

Published on by Gillian

I really enjoy public outreach and there is no better way than the pint of science events, held in May every year.

This year, I was asked to do a talk for the Darlington Pint of Science event and I dreamt up the title of ‘Leather – the plastic of the roman era’. Firstly, I love archaeological leather and second, I love the romans! I am not quite sure what I was thinking when i dreamt up the title, but I think my thoughts were around the the large amount of leather which still survives today, and thinking about how romans used leather, then linking that to what will people find from us in 2000 years!

We went on a rollercoaster during the talk, from different shoes, to what you would take camping, and then explored how you could differentiate leather species using mass spectrometry.. that is alot in 20 mins!

Pleasure to be on the stage with Dr Caroline Orr and Dr Zoe Bell