Conservation of Artifacts

Artifacts recovered after long immersion in salt or freshwater require conservation treatment if they are to last. On exposure to high concentrations of oxygen in the air, iron artifacts will bloom into piles of rust. Wood will crack and split if dried out improperly. Organic materials will crumble to dust.

The manual below details conservation methods for many types of materials and artifacts.


Type:
shipwreck, sailing ships
Sunk:
Sunday April 16, 1854
foundered in storm
Depth:
35 ft

The packet ship Manhattan sank with eight of her nine crew. In the same storm, the 200 ft schooner Powhattan was also lost nearby, with over 350 immigrants on board and no survivors. Neither wreck has been positively identified, although there are several candidates, including one old wooden hull buried up to the gunwales in the sand.