Estimating artefact loss: A comparison of metal artefact loss rates through in-situ decay and loss of ancient monument sites in England

Rimmer, Melanie and Caple, Chris 2008. Estimating artefact loss: A comparison of metal artefact loss rates through in-situ decay and loss of ancient monument sites in England. Presented at: 'Preserving archaeological remains in situ', 3rd Conference, Amsterdam, Netherlands, 7-9 December 2006. Published in: Kars, Henk and van Heeringen, Robert M. eds. Preserving archaeological remains in situ: Proceedings of the 3rd conference 7 - 9 December 2006, Amsterdam. Geoarchaeological and Bioarchaeological Studies (10) Amsterdam: vrije Universiteit, pp. 65-73.

Full text not available from this repository.

Abstract

Using data from the 1995 Monuments at Risk Survey of England (MARS) and estimates of artefact densities from published excavation reports, it has been possible to calculate the number of metal (iron and copper alloy) objects buried in ancient monuments (archaeological sites with discernible physical presence in the landscape, though not necessarily legally protected i.e. scheduled) in England. MARS data also enabled the loss rate of objects due to monument destruction to be calculated. The loss of objects due to corrosion was calculated using estimates based on published data of object size and corrosion rate. These figures indicate that between 1945 and 1995 object loss through monument destruction was three times that of corrosion. The appreciable rates of metal object loss (19 million objects per annum) demonstrate that not all metal artefacts, which are buried in situ, are preserved.

Item Type:	Conference or Workshop Item (Paper)
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	History, Archaeology and Religion
Subjects:	A General Works > AM Museums (General). Collectors and collecting (General) C Auxiliary Sciences of History > CC Archaeology
Uncontrolled Keywords:	corrosion, loss rate, estimate, MARS, Monuments at Risk Survey, England
Publisher:	vrije Universiteit
ISBN:	9789077456101
Related URLs:	Publisher
Last Modified:	04 Jun 2017 04:28
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/39643

Actions (repository staff only)

Edit Item