“1H NMR study and multivariate data analysis of reindeer skin tanning methods” by Zhu et al (2017)

Zhu, L.; Ilott, A. J.; Del Federico, E.; Kehlet, C.; Klokkernes, T.; Jerschow, A.; “1H NMR study and multivariate data analysis of reindeer skin tanning methods”, Magnetic Resonance in Chemistry 55(4) (2017) pp.312–317.
Doi:10.1002/mrc.4529 (Wiley Online Library, restricted access) 

Abstract:

Reindeer skin clothing has been an essential component in the lives of indigenous people of the arctic and sub-arctic regions, keeping them warm during harsh winters. However, the skin processing technology, which often conveys the history and tradition of the indigenous group, has not been well documented. In this study, NMR spectra and relaxation behaviors of reindeer skin samples treated with a variety of vegetable tannin extracts, oils and fatty substances are studied and compared. With the assistance of principal component analysis (PCA), one can recognize patterns and identify groupings of differently treated samples. These methods could be important aids in efforts to conserve museum leather artifacts with unknown treatment methods and in the analysis of reindeer skin tanning processes.

Skin Costumes Online

In October 2014 The Danish National Museum, in collaboration with the National Museum of Greenland and the Museum of Cultural History, Oslo, published the website Skin Costumes Online at http://skinddragter.natmus.dk/. This website is available both in Danish and in English.
 

Skin Costumes Online shows high-resolution photos and detailed information of outstanding and historic skin costumes from the indigenous peoples in Greenland, North America, North Scandinavia and Siberia.

Through the website easy access will be given to this rich cultural heritage, from museums' collections. 

This project was supported by The Nordic Culture Fund, Augustinus Fonden, Knud Rasmussen Fonden and the National Museum of Denmark through the research program Northern Worlds 2009-2013.​

“Skin-Covered Masks from the Cross River Region of Nigeria and Cameroon at the National Museum of African Art: A Technical Study” by Owczarek (2014)

Owczarek, Nina, “Skin-Covered Masks from the Cross River Region of Nigeria and Cameroon at the National Museum of African Art: A Technical Study”, Journal of the American Institute for Conservation 53(3) (2014) pp. 182–197.

DOI:10.1179/1945233014Y.0000000025 (Taylor & Francis Online, restricted access)

Abstract:

Nineteen skin-covered masks from the Cross River region of Nigeria and Cameroon were studied at the National Museum of African Art. The construction of the masks are documented and compared against existing field literature. Results of analyses of the wood, skin, and surface applications are included, as well as detail images of construction features. In addition to visual examination, x-radiography, thin section, deoxyribonucleic acid, portable x-ray fluorescence, x-ray diffraction, and Fourier transform infrared analysis techniques were employed in the examination. For the most part, this study showed the skin-covered masks in the NMAfA collection support the basics of the field literature descriptions while also illustrating a wider variety in techniques and materials.

Crest mask, Cross River region of Nigeria, 19th-20th century, Smithsonian National Museum of African Art

“Saving our skins: long-term care of masks from the Cross River Region” by Julien (2000)

Julien, Sophie, “Saving our skins: long-term care of masks from the Cross River Region”, Journal of Museum Ethnography 12 (2000) pp. 115–124.
URL (JSTOR, restricted access)

Abstract:
This paper gives a conservation perspective on collecting and conserving ethnographic material in the museum context, using the example of the Horniman Museum's collection of skin-covered masks from the Cross River Area of Nigeria.

“Proteins in Art, Archaeology, and Paleontology: from detection to identification” by Dallongeville et al (2016)

Dallongeville, Sophie; Garnier, Nicolas; Rolando, Christian; Tokarski, Caroline, “Proteins in Art, Archaeology, and Paleontology: from detection to identification”, Chemical Reviews 116(1) (2016) pp. 2–79.

DOI:10.1021/acs.chemrev.5b00037 (ACS Publications, restricted access)

“MRI and Unilateral NMR study of reindeer skin tanning processes” by Zhu et al (2015)

Zhu, Lizheng; Del Federico, Eleonora; Ilott, Andrew J.; Klokkernes, Torunn; Kehlet, Cindie; Jerschow, Alexej, “MRI and Unilateral NMR study of reindeer skin tanning processes”, Analytical Chemistry 87(7) (2015) 3820–3825.

DOI:10.1021/ac504474e (ACS Publications, restricted access)

Abstract:

The study of arctic or subarctic indigenous skin clothing material, known for its design and ability to keep the body warm, provides information about the tanning materials and techniques. The study also provides clues about the culture that created it, since tanning processes are often specific to certain indigenous groups. Untreated skin samples and samples treated with willow (Salix sp) bark extract and cod liver oil are compared in this study using both MRI and unilateral NMR techniques. The two types of samples show different proton spatial distributions and different relaxation times, which may also provide information about the tanning technique and aging behavior.

Evaluation of Consolidants for the Treatment of Red Rot on Vegetable Tanned Leather by Mahony (2014)

Caitlin Carol Mahony, Evaluation of Consolidants for the Treatment of Red Rot on Vegetable Tanned Leather: The Search for a Natural Material Alternative, Master of Arts Thesis in Conservation of Archaeological and Ethnographic Materials, Los Angeles, University of California, 2014.

URL / PDF

Abstract: 

Inspired by an interest in finding both a natural material alternative as well as a successful treatment approach to powdering leather surfaces on a Native American object, a comparative study of two novel treatment materials and two established consolidants for leather with red rot was undertaken. Natural material consolidants have been demonstrated to be preferred by tribal members for use on materials other than leather. One of the materials tested as a potential consolidant was neri, an aqueous mucilage most commonly extracted from the roots of the aibika plant that is used in the traditional production of Japanese paper. The other material selected was chitosan, the main derivative of the natural polymer chitin, which has recently been applied in treatments of archaeological silk and paper. The performance of these potential materials as leather consolidants was compared against the performance of established modified organic consolidants, i.e. mixtures of Cellugel and Klucel G with the acrylic wax SC6000. The study focused on evaluating each material's consolidation performance, the visual and physical changes observed on the leather, and the chemical stability of the consolidant following heat and light aging. Although neri proved to have excellent chemical stability, it is not recommended for leather due to unavoidable water content and unsatisfactory working properties. Though chitosan had no adverse effects towards the appearance and feel of the leather, it is not recommended as a consolidant until further research is conducted on its chemical stability. The Klucel G with SC6000 mixture had great application properties but the wax component is questionable due to the opacity change of the aged wax. Cellugel demonstrated the most desirable properties in performance and chemical stability; therefore it was selected as the consolidant for the treatment on the Native American object. Experimental results indicate that the natural materials evaluated may be recommended as alternatives to synthetic consolidants following additional research.

“Boîtes en peau non tannée”, dans Encyclopédie berbère, par Dudot (1991)

Dudot, B., “Boîtes en peau non tannée”, in Gabriel Camps (ed.), Encyclopédie berbère 10, Aix-en-Provence, Éditions Édisud (1991) pp. 1559–1563.

URL (Revues.org)  

“Les boîtes en cuir moulé du Soudan” par Zeltner (1932)

Zeltner, F. de, “Les boîtes en cuir moulé du Soudan”, Journal de la Société des Africanistes 2 (1-2) (1932) pp. 23–34.

Doi:10.3406/jafr.1932.1520 (Persée)

"Cuirs et peaux", dans Encyclopédie berbère, par Gast (1994)

Gast, M., “Cuirs et peaux”, in Gabriel Camps (ed.), Encyclopédie berbère 14, Aix-en-Provence, Éditions Édisud (1994) pp. 2144–2153.

URL (Revues.org)

Museu de l'Art de la Pell, Vic (España)

Museu de l'Art de la Pell (MAP)
http://www.museuartpellvic.cat/

El MAP acull una magnífica col·lecció d’objectes elaborats amb pell. Les peces de gran riquesa artística, mostren una gran varietat de tècniques del treball de la pell (gravat, ferratjat, gofrat, calat, repujat, emmotllat, brodat, etc). Destaquen les realitzades amb la tècnica del guadamassil (pell de moltó daurada i policromada) utilitzada per a la confecció de revestiments murals, frontals d’altar, paravents, etc… També cal remarcar l’aplicació del cordovà (pell de cabra de gran qualitat) en el recobriment d’arquetes i caixes.

“La préparation de la peau du renne chez les Lapons de Kautokeino” par Roué et Delaporte (1978)

Roué, Michèle; Delaporte, Yves; “La préparation de la peau du renne chez les Lapons de Kautokeino”, Journal d’agriculture traditionnelle et de botanique appliquée 25(4) (1978), pp. 219–244.
URL / PDF (Persée)

Skin Clothing from the North, edited by Schmidt & Pedersen (2010)

Anne Lisbeth Schmidt and Karen Brynjolf Pedersen (ed.); Skin Clothing from the North, Abstracts from the seminar held at the National Museum of Denmark, November 26-27, 2009, Copenhagen, National Museum of Denmark (2010)

PDF

A brief description about the "Skin Clothing from the North" Project (2009-2012) can be read here.

“An unusual decorated skin coat from Canada: aspects of conservation and identification” by Cruickshank et al (2013)

Cruickshank, Pippa; Cartwright, Caroline; King, Jonathan C.H.; Simpson, Antony; “An unusual decorated skin coat from Canada: aspects of conservation and identification”, British Museum Technical Research Bulletin 7 (2013) pp. 95–104.
PDF

Summary:

A skin coat (Am1949,22.175), which has recently been examined and conserved, belongs to a group of about perhaps 30 surviving within museum collections and made around James Bay and Hudson Bay in northern Canada. They date to around 1760–1860 and were made by the Cree people, with possible additions by the Ojibwe/Anishaabeg in the region of the northern Great Lakes. As this group of coats is poorly understood and the coat stimulated some discussion while undergoing treatment in the conservation studio, further investigation was carried out on the materials of which it is composed. Fibre samples were identified using variable pressure scanning electron microscopy. The coat is thought to be made of moose skin but as it has been de-haired no moose hairs survived for identification. The few hairs remaining in situ on the collar and cuffs were identified as wolverine and river otter respectively. Conservation treatment enabled the cuffs to be gently folded back outside the sleeves. As the coat would originally have looked very different, before almost total loss of hair on the collar and cuffs due to past insect attack, a digital reconstruction was made to give an idea of its original appearance. The epaulettes have been quite roughly attached to the shoulders of the coat with coarse thread, suggesting that they may well have been added later, possibly from an older garment, as evidenced by the very fine but faded loom-woven quillwork and the presence of clear glass beads. The fur collar and cuffs could also have been added to the coat at this time.

"The repair of an Alaskan Inupiaq sealskin mat with Lascaux 360 HV and 498 HV" by Lukezic (2014)

Francis Lukezic, "The repair of an Alaskan Inupiaq sealskin mat with Lascaux 360 HV and 498 HV", in Current Solutions for Mutual Issues: postprints from the Book and Paper Group’s sessions at the Icon Positive Futures conference, 10-12 April 2013, Glasgow (2014) pp. 53-55.
PDF (The Book & Paper Gathering)

Why Leather? The Material and Cultural Dimensions of Leather by AA.VV. (2014)

Veldmeijer, A. J.; Harris, S. (eds.), Why Leather? The Material and Cultural Dimensions of Leather, Proceedings of the Archaeological Leather Group conference held in 2011, Leiden, Sidestone Press (2014).

URL

"Identification of collagen-based materials in cultural heritage" by Kirby et al (2013)

Kirby, D. P.; Buckley, M.; Promise, E.; Trauger, S. A.; Holdcraft, T. R.; “Identification of collagen-based materials in cultural heritage”, Analyst 138(17) (2013) 4849–4858.

DOI:10.1039/C3AN00925D (restricted access)

Abstract:

All stakeholders in cultural heritage share an interest in fabrication methods and material technology. Until now methods for analysis of organic materials, particularly proteins, have not been widely available to researchers at cultural institutions. This paper will describe an analytical method for the identification of collagen-based materials from soft tissue sources and show examples of its application to diverse museum objects. The method, peptide mass fingerprinting (PMF), uses enzymatic digestion of extracted proteins to produce a mixture of peptides. The mass spectrum of the mixture contains characteristic marker ions—a peptide mass fingerprint—which are compared to species-specific markers from references as the basis of identification. Preliminary results indicate that analysis of materials from aged samples, several different tissue types, and tanned or untanned materials yields comparable PMF results. Significantly, PMF is simple, rapid, sensitive and specific, has been implemented in a museum laboratory, and is being practiced successfully by non-specialists.

Identification of Mammalian Sources of Cultural Materials Project

Identification of Mammalian Sources of Cultural Materials Project
URL

About the Project:

The identification of materials from Native American cultural objects to the species level contributes significantly to the documentation of museum collections, academic research, and self-determined, indigenous, and descendent community study.  Recently, the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology has collaborated with other museums and indigenous groups to study the mammalian materials that are represented in museum collections.  These collaborations have contributed not only to a greater understanding of the objects being studied but also to cultural revitalization efforts.  Currently, the Peabody Museum is engaged in developing a new application of an analytical technique called Peptide Mass Fingerprinting (PMF).  This effort is partially supported by the National Center for Preservation Technology and Training, a unit of the National Park Service.

"Internal supports for buckskin clothing storage", Conserve O Gram 5/3 (2011)

"Internal supports for buckskin clothing storage", Conserve O Gram 5/3, National Park Service (2011)
PDF

Introduction:

Buckskin clothing created and worn by Native Americans is often heavily adorned with beadwork, jingles, furs, quillwork, and other attached elements. Due to the weight of these adornments and the nature of buckskin, buckskin clothing should be stored flat. Folded or hanging storage does not provide adequate support. 
To prevent sharp creasing when buckskin clothing is stored flat, the interior needs adequate support. This Conserve O Gram provides guidance on how to create two kinds of customized internal supports or padded forms for flat storage of buckskin clothing using polyester batting, polyethylene foam and Tyvek sheeting.