Publications | Diamond News - Spring 2009

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Lightsources.org “Casting New Light on Ancient Secrets” symposium

Bronze Egyptian statue, Copyright Trustees of the British Museum

Dr Jen Hiller, Diamond’s in-house archaeologist, joined scientists from five other synchrotrons - the Advanced Photon Source (APS) in Illinois; Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (CHESS) in New York; the European Synchrotron Radiation Source (ESRF) in Grenoble; the National Synchrotron Light Source (NSLS) in New York; and Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory (SSRL) at SLAC in California - to update the AAAS on exciting results and developments relating to cultural heritage studies.

arrow iconSee also: Leading edge facility to strip history bare

The latest findings on ancient manuscripts such as the Archimedes Palimpsest, early Chinese bronzes, and the stunning imaging of previously undetectable fossils all captivated the audience. As did Dr Hiller’s announcement that, for the first time ever, cultural heritage scientists will be able to scan and image large relics and artefacts up to two tonnes in weight in incredible precision description when the larger experimental area of Diamond’s Joint Engineering, Environmental and Processing (JEEP) beamline comes online in Spring 2010. Dr Hiller explained, “Heritage scientists across the world are able to apply to use this unique beamline to delve deep inside precious ancient artefacts to unravel their secrets in a non-invasive way. Never before has it been possible to scan and image such large relics with such precision. Now is the time for researchers in this field to maximise this unique opportunity and consider how JEEP can help to advance their studies.

Left: Bronze Egyptian statue, Copyright Trustees of the British Museum

“Thanks to the intensity of the X-rays produced by JEEP and its flexible space, researchers will be able to obtain a much higher resolution image, down to the scale of a few microns (less than the width of a human hair), and in significantly less time than the existing methods; we are talking about a matter of minutes as opposed to a number of hours. This finely detailed picture will enable scientists to see right inside an artefact, helping them to obtain crucial information to piece together the story of its origin and history.”

Dr Jen Hiller, Diamond Light Source

Dr Michael Drakopoulos, the Principal Beamline Scientist for JEEP, says, “It’s fantastic that JEEP can help not only towards major advances in the environmental sciences and the world of engineering but also can have an extremely positive impact within the field of world heritage science.”

Eagerly awaiting the arrival of JEEP is Dr Janet Ambers, a scientist from the Conservation and Scientific Research Department at the British Museum. Along with her team Dr Ambers is currently studying a group of half life-sized Egyptian bronze statues. Until now they have only been able to examine them in a limited amount of detail leaving many questions unanswered. Diamond’s JEEP beamline is set to change that.

“We know that these statues are made up of a number of different parts that have been joined together. The joins are so dense that it is only by using JEEP’s intense X-rays that we will be able to penetrate them and see how the statues were made. This will help to answer questions about the technology and materials used to originally produce the statues as well as provide information on how they were modified during 19th century restoration work. We are very excited about having access to this innovative tool because it will allow us to look at our artefacts in a completely new way.”

Dr Janet Ambers, British Museum

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