Ticca M A Ogilvie

Unprocessed vegetable products such as spices are increasingly being introduced into museum displays that seek to provide a more accessible and not solely visual sense of other cultures and historical periods. Because of their aromatic nature, there is always the suspicion that such materials may emit damaging volatile organic compounds. This creates a quandary for the museum conservator in advising on the design of exhibitions; little experimental or other empirical evidence is available to clarify whether such materials actually do emit volatile compounds of a kind which would endanger other exhibits. One of each of the morphological categories of plant spice was tested by ambient temperature and heat-accelerated corrosion tests with metal tokens, but this provides only limited indications of how the substance might affect organic materials. To clarify the potential threat to a wider spectrum of museum objects, emissions from spices, generated both from simulated aging experiments and from museum displays, were analyzed by headspace desorption-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry using Tenax cartridges to trap the chemical components of the volatiles emitted. This report discusses the potential for these components to initiate deterioration in other museum objects and the effectiveness of various palliative measures.

The Lamont and Queen Mary harps of National Museums Scotland are two of the oldest surviving examples of the harp of Ireland and the Highlands of Scotland. Growing interest in these iconic instruments has led to a need for new research into their materials and construction. With recent advances in imaging and analytical tools, these instruments can now be examined and understood to a much greater degree than previously possible. With this in mind, the authors have undertaken a research project to study the Lamont and Queen Mary harps. Each harp underwent CT-scanning, and a visual and photographic survey, with x-ray fluorescence and scanning electron microscopy – energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy of selected areas of interest. The CT scanning was conducted at the Clinical Research Imaging Centre of Queen’s Medical Research Institute, and the survey and laboratory analysis were conducted at the National Museums Scotland Collection Centre. This paper presents the initial findings of this project. The interior construction of the harps, hidden internal damage and repairs, pattern of the wood grain, and current state of the wood are discussed. Results of the visual and photographic survey and analysis of the composition of pigments and metal parts are also presented and discussed in the context of the findings from the CT scans. Additionally, contour maps of the soundboard thickness generated from the CT scanning data for each harp are presented.

Identifying the wood of the surviving historical wire-strung harps of Ireland and Highland Scotland has long been an important goal of researchers and instrument-builders. In 1969, microscopic examination of the anatomical features of the wood of two of the earliest surviving harps of this type, the Queen Mary and Lamont of National Museums Scotland, identified all parts of both as European hornbeam (Carpinus betulus). Due to the importance of these two harps as early exemplars, this identification has had far-reaching implications for understanding the construction practices for this type of historical harp.

Questions about the identification of the woods of the Queen Mary and Lamont harps have prompted a re-evaluation. In this article, we discuss the observations and evidence that led to our decision to reidentify the wood of both harps, including the use of X-ray computed tomography to test the earlier identification of all wooden members as the same species.

A rigorous new identification has been undertaken that addresses the fragile state of the wood and the need to minimize the impact on these important musical artefacts by revising the sampling method and utilizing scanning electron microscopy as an alternative to conventional microscopic examination. The results of our work to date are presented, and the implications for these two harps and for other harps of this type are discussed.

With the decision of the 1997 Montreal Amendment to the Montreal Protocol to phase out the use of methyl bromide in developed countries by 2005, interest has been renewed in reappraising thermal methods for eradicating museum pests. Though a quantity of literature exists which investigates the effects of heat and cold on insect mortality, very little research has been published