The coffin lining was discovered in 1999 at the St Swithuns' Yard site on Walcot Street, Bath. The original excavation and conservation work was undertaken by the Museum of London and the project was filmed as part of the BBC series ‘Meet the Ancestors’ with Julian Richards.

Two coffins were found at the site. They were buried by the side of an alley way in the late 4th century. One coffin belonged to a male, 45 years of age and a height of 5”8. He was buried next to a female who was local to the area. She was approximately 25 years old and had been buried in a wooden coffin. Unfortunately the female skeleton was not well preserved.

Coffin lining before treatment

The coffin lining and the skeleton were taken to the Museum of London where a number of tests were carried out. Analysis revealed that there was no obvious cause of death. DNA results showed that his maternal ancestors came from the eastern Mediterranean and further analysis of his bones and teeth suggested he had probably spent his youth in Syria.  Please 'read more' to find out about the conservation work taking place...
 

The man’s skull had been found in many pieces. As part of the BBC meet the ancestors programme, the fragmented skull was adhered together temporarily with wax. From the completed skull, a reconstruction of the man’s face could then be created from clay. The skull is currently under conservation at the Objects Conservation Laboratory at the Wiltshire & Swindon History Centre. The conservators are working to remove the wax and shall then adhere the fragments together ready for exhibition.

The conservation of the coffin lining and skull are part of the museum’s a 5 year development plan to redisplay and reinterpret the collection. These items, along with many others in the exhibition are currently being conserved at the History Centre.

The coffin lining was too heavy to transport safely to the conservation laboratory at the History Centre and so space was made available at the museum to accommodate all the conservation equipment. Planning for the conservation of the coffin lining at the museum began early June 2009.

A conservator removing the concreted areas of soil from the surface of the coffin lining

Precautions had to be taken to protect the conservator from exposure to the hazardous particles of lead which could have been released into the atmosphere as a result of the cleaning process. The space was covered in plastic sheeting to protect the surrounding objects and masks, overalls, goggles and gloves had to be worn.

 The coffin lining measures 2173mm x 673mm x 290mm approximately and has been distorted during burial. The weight of the burial had forced the sides of the coffin to face inwards and this had damaged the male skeleton inside. The Museum of London, who worked on the coffin after excavation, removed one length of it in order to gain access to the crushed skeleton inside. Fragments of charcoal and two sections of bone were found during the cleaning of the coffin lining, located under one of the crushed sides. 

A conservator is brushing away loose soil, dirt and debris from the surface of the coffin lining

Digital images were taken of the coffin before, during and after the conservation treatment. The surface soil, dirt and debris were removed from the coffin with a stiff bristled brush and vacuum cleaner to remove the loose particles. The surface was then brushed clean with a solvent which was absorbed by paper towel. This procedure was carried out repeatedly until the paper towel wiped clean.

Front of the coffin lining after treatment

Reverse of the coffin lining after treatment         

The skeleton, coffin lining and reconstructed clay head will be in a new display entitled ‘Death’ which opens Easter 2010 at the Roman Baths Museum.

Kelly Abbott

With thanks to Sue Fox, Curator, Roman Baths Museum.