For those of us with a non-existant budget for reference materials,
there are several good sources of artifact conservation on the web. 
Try:

Conservation OnLine (GREAT links page)
http://palimpsest.stanford.edu/

Methods for Conserving Archaeological material from Underwater Sites
http://nautarch.tamu.edu/class/anth605/File0.htm#Conservation%20Files

Smoke.


On 2/21/06, Mark Branstner <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> Hi,
>
> As you all know, lots of leather is recovered from nineteenth and
> earlyt twentieth century sites e.g., shoe leather, harness, etc.  OK,
> generally speaking, if its just fragments or scraps, I have just  put
> it in paper bags and let it dry for later processing or curation.
> However, let's say I recover a leather or cloth artifact that  seems
> worthy of more extensive long-term storage, curation, restoration or
> whatever.  What are reocmmendations for short to medium-term storage
> of something like a damp or waterlogged shoe.  Sealed container?
> Refrigeration? Freezing?  Thinking about coming out of the field,
> stabilizing, and holding for further work ...  Comments or
> suggestions.   Thanks in advance.
>
> --
>
>
> Mark C. Branstner
>
> Illinois Transportation
> Archaeological Research Program
> 209 Nuclear Physics Lab, MC-571
> 23 East Stadium Drive
> Champaign, IL 61820
>
> Phone: 217.244.0892
> Fax: 217.244.7458
> Cell: 517.927.4556
> [log in to unmask]
>


--
Smoke Pfeiffer
845 Cagle Rock Road
Russellville, Ar. 72802

"A fear of weapons is a sign of retarded sexual and emotional maturity."
---Sigmund Freud, General Introduction to Psychoanalysis---