The corrosion of excavated archaeological iron with details on weeping and akaganéite

Abstract This review of information relevant to the corrosion processes on excavated archaeological iron is based on the current conservation and scientific literature. The first section summarizes the principal factors affecting the corrosion of iron during burial. These changes during burial are then used as a basis for discussion of the corrosion of excavated iron. Finally, two physical symptoms of active corrosion on excavated iron, ‘weeping’ and akaganeite formation, are described and illustrated with colour photographs and scanning electron micrographs.

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