Abstract

The rapid decay of a ship after the sinking is a process that can be on going unless anoxic conditions are put in place on the site to impede biological organisms as well as other physical and chemical processes, from attacking the wood provision available. Monitoring the degradation/preservation of archaeological wood is a fundamental step, which allows taking informative decisions on the management of the site. By monitoring how the wood reacts to all environmental processes, its cell collapse or decay, by understanding how fast is degrading and by which processes, by putting in place a thorough diagnosis on the archaeological wood, the right protective method or protection/preservation system can be chosen as a result.