A Corroded Egyptian Bronze: Cleaning and Discoveries

A very heavily corroded Egyptian bronze statuette of Amon was cleaned by handpicking and found to be composed of six separately cast parts: two elements of head, two arms, the torso with legs, and the beard. Such cases do not seem to be unusual but are rarely observed because of beautifully concealed joins. Technical details of the mechanical methods of cleaning are given and some critical comments included on chemical and electrolytic methods: it has to be remembered that cleaning is an irreversible process. Attention is also given to analytical problems in heterogeneous objects such as this.