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Massive Preservation of War-Damaged Cultural Heritage Objects in Croatia by Irradiation

The chapter describes Croatian experience of successful application of irradiation treatment to the protection of cultural heritage (CH) objects jeopardized by massive biodegradation as a consequence of war in Croatia (1991 – 1995). Although a large fraction of evacuated CH - mostly wooden objects - escaped direct damage, they faced another serious problem related to storage: biodeterioration. Thanks to the panoramic gamma irradiation facility operated by the Radiation Chemistry and Dosimetry Laboratory of the Ruđer Bošković Institute in Zagreb, it was feasible to quickly treat a large quantity of CH objects. Under the supervision of the Croatian Conservation Institute, one third of 5, 000 evacuated objects, mostly polychromic wooden sculptures, were irradiated for desinsection and disinfection. In addition to stopping degradation, irradiation was used as the first step of conservation to enable safe storage of objects without the risk of cross-contamination before final conservation. Some examples of CH objects rescued by irradiation treatment include: The Holy Cross altar from the church of St. Mary, Pauline monastery in Kamensko ; Polychromic sculptures from the destroyed church of St. Mary in Gora near Petrinja ; Polyptych of the Virgin Mary from the Franciscan church in Pula. This contribution of irradiation method to the massive preservation of CH objects endangered by the war in Croatia has been recognized internationally as a specially significant and successful case of the application of irradiation to cultural heritage.

cultural heritage artefacts, war damage, biodeterioration, conservation by gamma irradiation, Croatia

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