CLEANING STRATEGIES OF POTTERY OBJECTS EXCAVATED FROM KHIRBET EDH‐DHARIH AND HAYYAN AL‐MUSHREF, JORDAN: FOUR CASE STUDIES

Abstract

Any cleaning process for pottery objects has to consider not only the effectiveness of the treatment but also the potential damage for the art object. Cleaning is one of the most common of the treatment processes used on pottery conservation. A variety of mechanical and chemical methods is currently used in restoration practice. Unfortunately, pottery objects are subjected to various deterioration factors, starting in manufacturing process and passing through burial and excavation stages. This study aims to present and explain an application of already established cleaning methods to four pottery pots excavated from the archaeological sites of Khirbet edh-Dharih and Hayyan al‐Mushref in Jordan. It also tackles the decision making problems about which methods should be applied to which pots, according to the conservation state and the technological features. Addition to the visual examination, SEM was used to investigate the surface morphology of each object. XRD was used to determine accurately the mineralogical composition of pottery objects as well as the different kinds of dirt which deposited on their surfaces. It could be concluded that the selected pottery objects were very dirty and covered with dust, soil particles, soot and calcareous crusts. The selected pottery objects were cleaned using refiring, mechanical, wet and chemical cleaning methods according to the type of dirt and nature of each object. Finally, objects were consolidated and strengthened to ensure their safety in the condition of storage or display, and to prevent them against the various environmental conditions.