Experimental Conservation of Rubber Gaskets from the CSS Georgia

Summary

This is an abstract from the session entitled "The Conservation and Preservation of Archaeological Materials", at the 2025 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

The conservation of modern materials is an ongoing issue within the field of archaeology. Despite rubber being used in everyday life, no standardized conservation treatment has been established for this type of archaeological material. This is partly due to the complexity of rubber which undergoes extensive processing that incorporates a variety of additives to enhance certain qualities. These additives create a compositional change affecting how the rubber degrades over time. This presents a challenge when developing treatment plans for rubber artifacts because known treatments for other organics will not necessarily prove effective on manufactured rubber. Waterlogged rubber gaskets from CSS Georgia (1862-1864) will undergo numerous analytical tests to understand their overall composition before conducting a series of experimental conservation methods. The experiments will be evaluated based on their effectiveness in removing iron corrosion, maintaining material flexibility, and preventing delamination and stress cracks on the artifacts.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for Historical Archaeology 2025   •
• The Conservation and Preservation of Archaeological Materials

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Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Nicole Haddow