Wooden Objects Research Articles

Imaging and Assessment of the Microstructure of Conserved Archaeological Pine

Impressive wooden objects from past cultures can last for centuries or millennia in waterlogged soil. The aim of conservation is to bring the more or less degraded waterlogged archaeological wooden (WAW) finds to a stable state without altering the wood structure through shrinkage, collapse, and deformation. In this study, the most used methods in the conservation practice, such as the alcohol-ether resin method, conservation with the melamine formaldehyde resin Kauramin 800, a mixture of lactitol and trehalose, saccharose, silicone oil, and three different conservation methods with polyethylene glycol followed by freeze-drying were tested. The effects of the conservation agents on the structure of archaeological pine were investigated using optical light microscopy (reflected light microscopy, RLM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-ray computed tomography (XCT). Through the examinations, most conservation agents could be identified in the structure and their impact on conservation could be analyzed. In particular, it was possible to trace the incorporation of the conservation agents in the lumen, which was influenced by factors, such as wood anatomy, degree of degradation, and drying process. Differences in the mode of action of the conservation processes could also be identified in the composition of the cell wall tracheids.

Durability of model degraded wood treated with organosilicon compounds against fungal decay

Conservation agents used to preserve heavily degraded wooden artefacts typically act as consolidants that restore the structural integrity of an object. However, treatments that can provide both dimensional stability and improved resistance to wood-decaying organisms are desirable because even degraded wood is still susceptible to further biodegradation. Some organosilicon compounds proved effective at stabilising waterlogged wood dimensions and could serve as potential multi-purpose conservation agents. To assess whether these chemicals can also impart decay and resistance to filamentous fungi, degraded model Scots pine wood was impregnated with three different organosilicon compounds: Methyltrimethoxysilane – MTMS, (3-Mercaptopropyl) trimethoxysilane – MPTMS, and Bis(diethylamino)-3-propoxypropanol)-1,1,3,3-tetramethyldisiloxane – DEAPTMDS), and moisture properties and durability of the treated wood were measured. All three organosilicons reduced treated pine hygroscopicity and provided various degrees of protection against brown-rot and white-rot fungi. However, only DEAPTMDS completely inhibited the growth of filamentous fungi after four weeks of incubation. The results show that tested organosilicons are suitable multi-purpose conservation agents for degraded wooden objects such as waterlogged archaeological wood because they can both consolidate and protect degraded wood from further biodeterioration.

The epidemiology of blunt ocular trauma in a tertiary health care institution in Serbia - a four-year-long retrospective study

Introduction/Objective. Ocular trauma is a globally important cause of visual impairment. The aim of our study was to analyses demographic, epidemiological, and clinical characteristics of blunt ocular trauma. Methods. The retrospective study enrolled patients with blunt ocular trauma, hospitalized at the Eye Clinic, University Clinical Centre of Serbia in Belgrade during a four-year period (2018?2022). Demographic characteristics, mechanism of injury, best corrected visual acuity on admission and discharge and injured eye structure were analyzed. Results. Out of 283 patients, the majority (n = 233, 82%) were men. People aged 61 and over (n = 82, 29%) were at greatest risk for blunt ocular trauma. Injuries from splitting wood (n = 78, 28%) and various blunt tools and objects (n = 70, 25%) were the most common mechanism in the entire study group, both in men and in women. Visual acuity on admission was better than 0.6 in 147 (52%) patients and at discharge in 185 (65%). The most common eye structure affected are pathological findings in anterior chamber (n = 160, 56%), which are mainly related to hyphemia. Conclusion. Present study showed that blunt ocular trauma affects all age groups, but most often elderly and children. Men are injured more often than women. Splitting wood and manipulating blunt tools and objects are activities with the highest risk of blunt ocular trauma.

Laboratories for Organizing People: Selected Essays on Art and Byt

Laboratories for Organizing People: Selected Essays on Art and <i>Byt</i>

Скандинавские рунические надписи из раскопок Немецкого двора в Великом Новгороде в 2022 г. (предварительное сообще-ние)

During archaeological excavations of the Teutonic merchant court in Novgorod five objects with Scandinavian runic inscriptions were found, two wooden tags (No. 1 and 2), two frag-ments of animal bones (No. 3 and 5) and a wooden object of unknown purpose (No. 4). Objects No. 1, 3, and 5 come from the layer of the late 12th century, but they are to be dated to the time a little later than the oldest buildings of the Teutonic court which started, according to dendrochronology, to the 1160s – 1170s. The object No. 4 was found in a pit with mixed filling but it can belong to the same time. The tag 1 has the form of a sword and bears the personal name hæiluatr (Hæil(h)vatr), an exclusively Gotlandic name. The tag 2 (stratigrafically dated to the first half of the 14th century) is a typical for the Bergen collection rectangular plate with a jag on one side. It has two runes ba carved on the plate which is the beginning of a personal name like Ba[gge], Ba[lli], Ba[rðr] or the like. Bone 3 bears the first ætt of the runic alphabet fuþork which is repeated further but the second row was partially cut off. A part of fuþork is also carved on the object No. 4. Вone 5 is badly damaged, so that only several runes are partially visible.

Study of epidemiology, clinical profile, visual outcome and prognostic factors of blunt ocular trauma in a teaching hospital

To describe the epidemiology, patterns of ocular trauma, clinical presentation, visual outcome and prognostic factors of blunt ocular trauma.A teaching hospital based prospective observational study was conducted over a period of 4 years from March 2012 to Feb 2016. 226 patients of all age group fulfilling the various inclusion and exclusion criteria were included in the study. All patients underwent detailed protocol based workup including a comprehensive ocular examination along with relevant radiological tests. Data regarding demographic profile, etiology, circumstances of the injury, traumatic agents, mode and mechanism of injury, extent and severity of injury, clinical features, management and visual outcome was analyzed and prognostic factors including ocular trauma score were evaluated.Out of 402 total cases of ocular trauma, 226 caused by blunt objects were included in this study. 181 (80.1%) were male rest 45(19.9%) were female. The mean age was 42.6 ± 18.8 years. Blunt trauma was more prevalent in age group 16-25yrs (24.3%) followed by 26-35 years (23.9%). Majority (68.6%) of victims belonged to rural background. Most of the patients sustained trauma at road /street (30.5%) and home (27.9%). The most common cause of blunt trauma was road traffic accident (26.5%) followed by sports related injury (22.6%) and physical assault (21.7%). The most frequent traumatic agent was wooden object (26.0%) followed by stone / brick (25.2%) and metallic object (23.1%). Only 32.3% of patients had isolated ocular injuries, rest had associated polytrauma. 93.3% victims had unilateral ocular injury. Left eye (52.3%) was predominantly involved. Majority of injured eyes had more than 3 ocular structure involvement. Out of 241 injured eye 14.0% eyes had only globe injury while 61.4% eyes had simultaneous globe and adnexal injuries. 55.6% eyes had closed globe injury while 19.9% eyes had globe rupture. 20.7% eyes had purely posterior segment injury, while 23.2% eyes had both anterior and posterior segment injury. Most common clinical finding was corneal abrasion (45.6% eyes) followed by hyphema (44.0% eyes), traumatic mydriasis (35.7%), vitreous hemorrhage (33.2%) retinal detachment (20.3%), lens dislocation (22.8%) and traumatic cataract (17.4%). At the time of initial presentation 33.2% eyes had visual impairment and 35.7% eyes had blindness. 14.5% eyes with closed globe injury and 5.0% eyes with open globe injury had zone III injury. Ocular trauma score was in Category I in 14.9% injured eyes and in category II in 7.1% eyes. After 6 months 14.5% of the right eye and 24.2% of the left eye showed blinding outcome.Blunt trauma is the commonest mode of ocular injury. Young adult males are more vulnerable. Intraocular hemorrhage, zone III injury, posterior segment involvement and low ocular trauma score are poor prognostic factors.

AKURASI MESIN CNC ROUTER LOW BUDGET BERBASIS MACH 3

This paper discusses the building of a low-cost CNC router machine. In designing a CNC machine using an electrical actuator as the driving force, we use a nema 23 stepper motor combined with a pitch 2 mm timing belt to drive the machine on the x and y axes. On the z-axis, we use a stepper motor and a linear screw to drive the machine. This machine is often used to cut and engrave wood, acrylic, and PCB objects. The design drawing that has been made on the PC is sent to the microcontroller using serial communication, then the CNC performs work on the thing according to the coordinates. The spindle will create a pattern on the thing automatically according to the design drawing. Measurement was made using a caliper with an accuracy of 0.05 mm. This CNC machine is performing duly as ordered by the mach3 micro controller. The machine test results show an accuracy value of 99.85% on the x-axis, 99.74% on the y-axis, and 99.12% on the z-axis.

WHAT MAKES A STONE A SIEIDI, OR HOW TO RECOGNIZE A HOLY PLACE?

A sieidi is an offering site of the Sámi that usually consisted of a wooden object or a stone unmodified by human hand. Because of their natural form they are hard to recognize in the landscape. Usually just one indicator might not be enough to distinguish a sieidi from just another stone. Written sources and oral tradition have preserved memories of the use of sieidi, but not all sieidi sites are still remembered. Sometimes just a place-name has survived. Bones or meat were a common form of offering at a sieidi, and there were rules re- stricting the handling of the bones. Some sources mention that offered bones were not to be broken. Nevertheless, there have been differences in these prac- tices. Also, other finds, including coins, metal objects, and glass, can be recov- ered at various sites. Phosphate analysis is one way to recognize a sieidi when no visual signs of the offerings are left. One or more indicators may survive, telling us about the use of a sieidi.

Developing tree ring chronologies from New Zealand matai (Prumnopitys taxifolia (D.Don) Laub.) for archaeological dating: Stable isotope dendrochronology

Aotearoa New Zealand has a rich cultural heritage but dating wooden objects using classic dendrochronology is challenging due to a paucity of master tree-ring width chronologies for species commonly identified in the archaeological record. This paper explores the potential for using a stable isotopic approach to dendrochronology for matai (Prumnopitys taxifolia (D.Don) Laub.). A total of six annual stable oxygen isotope (δ18O) series for matai growing in the Pureora Forest Reserve, were analysed and their oxygen isotopes found to exhibit a level of coherence that enabled cross-dating. A provisional chronology covering the period 1930–2018 CE was developed and tested against a sample of matai from the Kauaeranga Valley (200 km to the north of Pureora) and a sample of miro (Prumnopitys ferruginea (D.Don) Laub.). Miro is another species common in the cultural archive, but also difficult to date using ring-width dendrochronology. Both the Kaueranga matai and Pureora miro samples cross matched against the site chronology at the correct position, but with weaker dating statistics (Student’s t: 4.26 and 4.11 respectively) compared to the results obtained for two (non-2019) sampled Pureora matai analysed in this study (Student's t: 6.80 and 5.66). These results nevertheless demonstrate the presence of a regional-scale dating signal which may be developed for future use as a precision dating tool.

Using Fire for Woodworking: An Experimental Exploration of Use-Wear on Lithic Tools

ABSTRACT Throughout prehistoric times, woodworking was an essential activity. We know this because of the existence of preserved wooden objects, as well as the use-wear traces recorded on lithic tools. In general terms, functional studies and experimental programs have aimed to analyze and understand the use-wear traces generated by green and dry wood. However, some of the wood remains preserved across time show signs of thermal alteration caused by fire. For this reason, we have carried out an experimental program in which green, dry and thermoaltered wood have been worked in order to study the traces generated on the lithic tools. The results show significant differences between the use-wear traces generated by green and dry woods, and thermally altered wood. This indicates that it would be possible to recognize signs of work with thermoaltered wood on archaeological lithic tools and, therefore, to better understand the working processes of past populations.

Ecological approach to the restoration and preservation of historical wood material: Natural mussel shell impregnation and combustion (TGA) analysis

The goal of this work was to evaluate the fire-protection attributes after treating wood with crude acidic carbonate solutions from a natural source. A broader aim of this project was to find ways to increase the period of usefulness of wooden objects, thus contributing to a sustainable society. In this context, samples of scotch pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) wood with insecticides, fungi, insects+fungi, samples were taken, and sea mussel (Chamelea gallina) powders were impregnated at different solution concentrations (1%, 3%, 5%) according to ASTM D 1413 76 principles. Thermogravimetric analyses (TGA) were carried out. Although there were no significant changes in the initial temperature, the turning point temperature, or the final temperature values compared to the control groups, the percent weight loss and percent residue amount increased in all the impregnated group periods. Although there was little change in some groups due to the heterogeneity and anatomical structure of the wood, the percentage of residue decreased as the percentage of weight loss increased. Compared to the control sample, the second highest adhesion was observed in 3% cork pine wood (0.81%), weight loss (65.7%), and the amount of residue was 22.0%. Based on the TGA results, mussel shell was found to delay the combustion.

Review of lignolytic fungi invading wood, and leather and control of selected fungi by using volatile essential oil of plant origin

Several cultural and historical objects are made up of wood and leather that are prone to the attack of wood- and leather-degrading microorganisms. Lignolytic fungi have a huge potential to degrade such historical objects that are made up of wood and leather. To protect these types of objects from lignolytic fungi, several chemical agents are being used which have a significant impact on the environment that necessitates sustainable approaches to control these microorganisms. In the present study, seven lignolytic fungi (four from wood and three from leather) were isolated and were identified as Colletotrichum capsici, Phoma spp., Aspergillus niger, Fusarium oxysporum, Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus paraciticus and Colletotrichum capsici-1. All these fungi were able to produce a significant quantity of lignin peroxidase enzyme which confirms that these do have the potential to degrade wood and leather objects. 1200 mg/L was found to be the minimum inhibitory concentration for Aspergillus flavus, Colletotrichum capsici, Fusarium oxysporum, Colletotrichum capsici-1 and Aspergillus parasiticus. However, growth of Aspergillus niger and Phoma spp. was invisible at a concentration of 1400 mg/L, which is the minimum inhibitory concentration of Eucalyptus oil for Aspergillus niger and Phoma spp. At a concentration of 1200 mg/L of Eucalyptus oil, growth of Aspergillus flavus, Colletotrichum capsici-1, Fusarium oxysporum, Colletotrichum capsici and Aspergillus parasiticus was completely inhibited, while 100% growth inhibition was found for Aspergillus niger and Phoma spp. at 1400 mg/L of Eucalyptus oil. This study revealed that these lignolytic fungi may causes degradation of wood and leather made historical objects due to the presence of several organic compounds in Eucalyptus oil that have high anti-fungal activity. It was found that Eucalyptus oil has huge potential to control growth of lignolytic fungi including C. capsici, Phoma spp., A. niger, F. oxysporum, A. flavus, A. paraciticus and C. capsici-1 to protect wood and leather made historical objects in a sustainable and environmentally friendly way.

THE PERISHABLE MATERIAL CULTURE OF THE PONTIC STEPPE SCYTHIANS: SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATION OF A FOURTH‐CENTURY BC KURGAN BURIAL AT BULHAKOVO, UKRAINE

SummaryUsing the organic artefacts from the fourth‐century BC grave at Bulhakovo in southern Ukraine, this article discusses the economics of the perishable material culture of the Scythians of the Pontic Steppe region. Thanks to the survival of organic materials (wood, leather, textiles), the burial provides important information about the complex networks of production and exchange that existed in European Scythia. Scientific analyses produced new data regarding materials and techniques used for the production of wooden, leather and textile objects, providing an opportunity for a more nuanced discussion of their production and consumption.

Model-Free Adaptive Impedance Control for Autonomous Robotic Sanding

Sanding is a common yet important task in the manufacturing of many wooden objects (e.g. furniture, decoration box), where the coated layer attached on objects is removed after the interaction with sanding belts. Existing sanding operation is heavily dependent on manual works, which is highly labor-intensive and with the low consistency of quality, and the issues of safety and health also arise after continuous working in the noisy and dusty environment. To deal with the aforementioned, this paper presents the development of a new autonomous sanding robot. The autonomous capability of the developed robot is reflected in the whole procedure of sanding. In particular, the CAD model of the target object is automatically constructed with the structured-light technology, and the sanding behavior on the target surface is self-regulated under the desired impedance model. Such feature makes the robot capable of working towards uncertain objects with minimum human involvement. The proposed impedance controller has the model-free advantage, by using the adaptive neural networks (NNs) to compensate the uncertain dynamics and the unknown disturbances online. The stability of the closed-loop system is rigorously proved with Lyapunov methods, and experimental results on different objects are presented to validate the performance of the developed robot. The implementation of the developed robot can systematically address the problems associated with manual works. Note to Practitioners—The current working environment of sanding is not healthy or safe to humans, due to the nature of noise, dust, high-speed sanding belt. By controlling the robot to autonomously perform sanding tasks can keep humans away from such environment and hence systematically address the issues of health and safety. This paper presents a new impedance control method for sanding robot. In impedance control, the control goal is specified as a dynamic relationship between the contact position and the interaction force. In this paper, the contact position is determined by using the 3D vision sensor, while the interaction force is regulated by referring to the human experience. In addition, the influence caused by unmodeled factors (e.g. unknown dynamics of the sanded object) is also dealt with by using the techniques of NNs. Such setting can effectively guarantee the sanding quality and also avoid the physical damage to the sanded object. Therefore, it lays the foundation for the autonomous robotic sanding.

Дослідження фунгіцидної дії дезінфекційного препарату «Діолайд»

Nowadays it is important to develop new disinfectants for poultry which are simple in use, non-toxic if used in the presence of birds, with a broad bactericidal spectrum, not causing the resistance of microflora, maintaining the air environment, linking ammonia and deodorizing the air. One of the product effectiveness indicators comes from testing on micromycetes which are persistent on the indoor surfaces and require high fungicidal concentrations of active substances. Research results of the effect produced by the “Diolide” disinfectant with 42% sodium chlorite and 46% sodium chloride base showed fungicidal activity against the etalon strains of Candida albicans ATCC 10231 and Aspergillus niger ATCC 16404. By serial digestion method using paper disks on Chapek’s medium and on the malt agar in the presence of the “Diolide” disinfectant the effective concentration of 0.1% was established. “Diolide” disinfectant at 0.1% concentration at 60 min. exposure completely disinfected test objects of wood, iron, brick and plaster which were contaminated with micromycetes. It was found that the effectiveness of “Diolide” disinfectant depends directly on the time of exposure and it is therefore necessary to adhere to these conditions in the production process.

Eco-Friendly Solution Based on Rosmarinus officinalis Hydro-Alcoholic Extract to Prevent Biodeterioration of Cultural Heritage Objects and Buildings.

Biodeterioration of cultural heritage is caused by different organisms capable of inducing complex alteration processes. The present study aimed to evaluate the efficiency of Rosmarinus officinalis hydro-alcoholic extract to inhibit the growth of deteriogenic microbial strains. For this, the physico-chemical characterization of the vegetal extract by UHPLC–MS/MS, its antimicrobial and antibiofilm activity on a representative number of biodeteriogenic microbial strains, as well as the antioxidant activity determined by DPPH, CUPRAC, FRAP, TEAC methods, were performed. The extract had a total phenol content of 15.62 ± 0.97 mg GAE/mL of which approximately 8.53% were flavonoids. The polyphenolic profile included carnosic acid, carnosol, rosmarinic acid and hesperidin as major components. The extract exhibited good and wide spectrum antimicrobial activity, with low MIC (minimal inhibitory concentration) values against fungal strains such as Aspergillus clavatus (MIC = 1.2 mg/mL) and bacterial strains such as Arthrobacter globiformis (MIC = 0.78 mg/mL) or Bacillus cereus (MIC = 1.56 mg/mL). The rosemary extract inhibited the adherence capacity to the inert substrate of Penicillium chrysogenum strains isolated from wooden objects or textiles and B. thuringiensis strains. A potential mechanism of R. officinalis antimicrobial activity could be represented by the release of nitric oxide (NO), a universal signalling molecule for stress management. Moreover, the treatment of microbial cultures with subinhibitory concentrations has modulated the production of microbial enzymes and organic acids involved in biodeterioration, with the effect depending on the studied microbial strain, isolation source and the tested soluble factor. This paper reports for the first time the potential of R. officinalis hydro-alcoholic extract for the development of eco-friendly solutions dedicated to the conservation/safeguarding of tangible cultural heritage.

Microbes for Archaeological Wood Conservation

This project focuses on innovative biological methods of extraction for the preservation of waterlogged wood suffering from salt precipitation and acidification. The principal investigator and her team proposed to exploit biomineralization capacities of some bacteria for anticipating the extraction of iron and sulfur compounds when wood is still wet. A comprehensive assessment of the extraction performances achieved on wood objects from lake and marine environments will allow a versatile extraction method to be proposed to end-users.

On the Old Uyghur Wooden Nameplates from the West Zone of the Tuyoq Grottoes in Turfan and the Wooden Objects with Old Uyghur Writing

Amongst the finds of the Chinese archaeologists at the centre portion of the West Zone of the Tuyoq Grottoes in the Turfan region of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, People’s Republic of China, there are three wooden plates with Old Uyghur writing, which I identify as nameplates. They have some similarities to the nameplates preserved in the Berlin Turfan collection of the Museum für Asiatische Kunst. However, the two nameplates from Tuyoq also show clear divergences from the known wooden nameplates in the Berlin Turfan collection of the Museum für Asiatische Kunst in regards to their form and content. They are unique, and it is the first time such wooden nameplates were discovered in the Tuyoq Grottoes. This article begins with a short survey of research of recent Old Uyghur materials discovered in the Tuyoq Grottoes. Then, it presents a philological investigation of the three wooden nameplates which is followed by a classification of the wooden objects with Old Uyghur writing. At the end, the article discusses the function of wooden objects with Old Uyghur writing in the Old Uyghur society, focusing on the function of the wooden nameplates.

New data on relevant ancient Egyptian wooden artifacts: Identification of wooden species and study of the state of conservation with multidisciplinary analyses

AbstractWood species identification and characterization of its weathering processes are crucial steps in the scientific approach of conservation of wooden cultural heritage. Many precious wooden objects of ancient Egypt are largely present in museums, nevertheless relatively little information is available concerning the nature of timber used and on their status of conservation. To address this gap, the wooden species of three relevant archaeological wood objects (statue, box, and coffin) arising from different Egyptian archaeological sites dated from the Old Kingdom (2,686–2,181 BC) to New Kingdom (1,550–1,069 BC) were deeply studied. Five hardwood and softwood species were identified belonging toTamarix mannifera,T. gennessarensis,Ficus sycomorus,Vachellia nilotica, andCedrussp. Such data confirmed the recurrence ofVachelliaandTamarixamong the most common timbers found in ancient Egypt. Scanning electron microscope, Fourier transform spectroscopy, and synchrotron x‐ray radiation diffraction were conducted to evaluate the archaeological wood deterioration. The formation of microcracks, biological degradation patterns (fungal colonization), or chemical characterization (accumulation of salts on and in‐between wooden cells) were detected. SEM micrographs showed the presence of fungal hyphae and conidial spores on the wooden cells. Significant changes in the chemical wood composition and decrease in the crystallinity index were detected.

Beyond the main function: An experimental study of the use of hardwood boomerangs in retouching activities.

Retouched lithic tools result from the functional modification of their edges following knapping operations. The study of the later stages of the reduction sequence is fundamental to understanding the techno-functional features of any toolkit. In Australia, a gap exists in the study of the chaîne opératoire of lithic tools shaped or re-shaped through percussion retouching. In our previous works (Martellotta EF., 2021, Martellotta EF., 2022), we have presented evidence for the use of hardwood boomerangs for retouching purposes in Australian Aboriginal communities. Through a detailed experimental protocol, the present study demonstrates how boomerangs can function as retouchers. We found that the use-wear generated on the boomerang's surface during retouch activity is comparable to retouch-induced impact traces observed on Palaeolithic bone retouchers, as well as to experimental bone retouchers generated in our replication experiments. Finally, we explore the role that microscopic lithic chips embedded in the retouchers' surface play in the formation process of retouching marks. Our results address the need for a deeper investigation of percussion retouching techniques in Australian contexts, opening the possibility that uncommon objects-such as boomerangs-could be used for this task. This concept also highlights the broader topic of the highly diverse multipurpose application of many Indigenous tools throughout Australia. At the same time, the study reveals a deep functional connection between osseous and wooden objects-a topic rarely investigated in archaeological contexts.