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Cauldron
The cauldron was exposed at the southern end of a pile of anchors due
to the prop wash deflectors used during the theft of the cannons. Because
of its exposure and delicate condition archaeologists sampled its contents
in situ on the sea floor and then recovered for conservation and analysis.
The cauldron was recovered by attaching a webbed cradle around the outside.
It was raised to the surface with a lift bag. Previous experience has
shown that fragile cast iron objects often disintegrate during electrolytic
reduction. This suggested that the prudent course of conservation would
be to clean the exterior of the kettle only, which would allow the object
to evolve during electrolysis while the marine growth on the interior
helped to maintain the integrity of the object. This also allowed careful
documentation of the cauldron before electrolytic treatment was begun.
(the above photo shows the cauldron after conservation was completed).
Once at the lab, it was measured, drawn, and recorded by still and video
photography. After a mechanical cleaning, the cauldron was placed into
electrolysis. It measures 39 cm high, 41 cm in diameter, and 0.5 cm thick
at the rim. It has two remaining legs and three reinforcement rings. There
are signs that a third leg was once attached, but was at some point broken
off.
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