ABSTRACT
When treating historical beeswax seals, it seems a natural choice to use materials as similar to the original as possible. The properties of analogous recent materials, however, differ from those of the aged ones, not to mention the fact that the exact composition of the particular sealing wax is usually uncertain. In order to obtain the material of desired properties, recent beeswax is often combined with various additives, including petroleum waxes, or even replaced by mixtures based solely on these products. Within this study, the relevant properties of Permulgin 3274, a ceresin-type wax, were compared with the characteristics of recent and historical beeswaxes. The aim was to evaluate its advantages and limitations, in terms of its possible use for the conservation of beeswax seals. The properties studied were comprised of the chemical composition, thermal properties, mechanical properties, possibilities of colour adjustment and ageing properties. Permulgin 3274's workability was evaluated by conservators from the National Archives in Prague. The results indicate that, from the technological point of view, Permulgin 3274 could be considered a welcome alternative to the use of traditional conservation mixtures.
ABSTRACT
Historical beeswax seals are unique cultural heritage objects. Unfortunately, a number of historical sealing waxes show a porous structure with a strong tendency to stratification and embrittlement, which makes these objects extremely prone to mechanical damage. The understanding of beeswax degradation processes therefore plays an important role in the preservation and consequent treatment of these objects. Conventional methods applied for the investigation of beeswax materials (e.g. gas chromatography) are of a destructive nature or bring only limited information about the sample surface (microscopic techniques). Considering practical limitations of conventional methods and ethical difficulties connected with the sampling of the historical material, radiation imaging methods such as X-ray micro-tomography presents a promising non-destructive tool for the onward scientific research in this field. In this contribution, we present the application of high-contrast X-ray micro-radiography and micro-tomography for the investigation of beeswax seal fragments. The method is based on the application of the large area photon-counting detector recently developed at our institute. The detector combines the advantages of single-photon counting technology with a large field of view. The method, consequently, enables imaging of relatively large objects with high geometrical magnification. In the reconstructed micro-tomographies of investigated historical beeswax seals, we are able to reveal morphological structures such as stratification, micro-cavities and micro-fractures with spatial resolution down to 5µm non-destructively and with high imaging quality. The presented work therefore demonstrates that a combination of state-of-the-art hybrid pixel semiconductor detectors and currently available micro-focus x-ray sources makes it possible to apply X-ray micro-radiography and micro-tomography as a valuable non-destructive tool for volumetric beeswax seal morphological studies.
