Curation of the Historic England Zooarchaeology Reference Collection: Developing Strategies for Monitoring and Controlling Pests and Moulds

Eva Fairnell, Polydora Baker, Sophie Burgham, Claire Tsang and Fay Worley

Environmental Archaeology, 2024, vol. 29, issue 1, 97-107

Abstract: The Historic England Zooarchaeology Reference Collection includes more than 3470 mammal, bird, amphibian, reptile and fish specimens, the majority of which are complete skeletons. It comprises important research collections that support internal, national and international projects, and is being continuously developed, mainly through in-house specimen preparation. The collection is housed in different locations at Fort Cumberland, an eighteenth-century military monument, and is therefore subject to varying environmental conditions, requiring tailored curation. This paper reports on an audit of the collection carried out in December 2016, in response to a perceived increase in the presence of insects, mould and grease, and the subsequent actions taken. The audit involved visual assessment and condition recording of each accessioned specimen. New specialist storage solutions were then implemented as part of the on-going collection curation, within the context of an integrated pest management strategy.

Date: 2024
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DOI: 10.1080/14614103.2020.1713603

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