Diamond synchrotron preserves Tudor war ship

Cutting edge synchrotron technology generating light beams 10 billion times brighter than the sun are being used to probe the Tudor war ship, the Mary Rose.

A workman inside the Mary Rose. Credit Mary Rose Trust.

Scientists at the Diamond Light Source in Oxfordshire are working with the Mary Rose Trust and researchers from the National Museum of Scoland, Daresbury Laboratory and the University of Kent. The team are using Diamond’s intense X-rays to enhance their knowledge of the conservation process to preserve the timbers of the ship.

Diamond scientist, Dr Fred Mosselmans said: “Our beamline has the potential to address a wide variety of conservation issues – not just the preservation of wood, but also bone, metal and stone artefacts. We are very excited about the opportunities for Diamond in the area of cultural heritage.”

The ship capsized in the waters of the solent in 1545. The ship settled on the soft silts of the old solent rivers which washed into her, eventually filling almost half the hull with a protective anaerobic covering. The lack of oxygen preserved the timbers of the starboard side, whilst the exposed port side and mats slowly rotted away. Over 400 years later, on 11 October 1982, archaeologists raised her remains from the seabed.

The research team are now investigating the structure of the ship’s timber in microscopic detail using one of Diamond’s microfocus spectroscopy beamlines. Mirrors focus the beam down to about 1/80th the width of a human hair, allowing the sample to be probed in fine detail. The team will investigate how sulphur and iron compounds are distributed in the individual wood cells allowing them to take precautions to assure the ships long term stability.

Dr Mark Jones from the Mary Rose Trust said: “This has been a fascinating journey for us and now thanks to research at Diamond Light Source and the help of our collaborators, we have great confidence of the safe preservation of the Mary Rose and other historic ships for the enjoyment of futire generations.”