Conserving Bog Bodies: The Key Questions

ABSTRACT The conservation of a bog body is complex and a challenge for all those involved. A substantial list of requirements needs to be pulled together by the conservator in designing an effective and appropriate conservation strategy for these rare and important finds. Past treatments have often been reactive and constrained by lack of research and testing. Bog body materials are not yet sufficiently characterized and the level of access for which we are designing conservation treatments has not been comprehensively anticipated. This paper examines some of the questions conservators will need answered before they can design more successful long-term strategies for the conservation of bog bodies, and makes an attempt to answer them. In doing so, it places in context past treatments and hopes to stimulate future research that may aid in improving the preservation of bog bodies for the future.