Leipzig: F. A. BROCKHAUS.
New York: THE MACMILLAN COMPANY.
Bombay and Calcutta: MACMILLAN AND CO., Ltd.
[All Rights reserved.]
AUTHOR’S PREFACE.
The increasing recognition of the importance of the preservation of antiquities justifies the publication of a handbook dealing with this subject. As far as I can ascertain, with the exception of a short article[1] for which I am myself responsible, only one work has appeared which covers the whole field—the “Merkbuch[2]” prepared by Dr Voss at the request of the Government. But as this book only gives a selection of the known methods of preservation, the need of a more comprehensive publication will scarcely be denied.
In spite of my ten years’ experience in the special Laboratory of the Royal Museums and the frequent opportunities of learning the methods in use elsewhere, which the journeys and correspondence arising out of my duties have given me during this period, I do not feel competent to produce a review of these various methods which will be at once exhaustive and sufficiently critical. There are several reasons for this. In the first place the individual methods have been but rarely published, and even then through the most varied literary media; often they are only casually mentioned in articles dealing with anthropological or historical subjects. On the other hand, the value of an object to be dealt with may prohibit an attempt at treatment, the success of which is not assured. My own experience has been gained by trials with objects chiefly from the Egyptian section, but also to some extent from the Antiquarian and Numismatic departments of the Royal Museums.
This deficiency can only be remedied by a work such as that now offered to the public, and it is to be hoped that this handbook will stimulate the Curators of State, Municipal and Societies’ Collections, as well as private collectors and others interested in the subject, to make public their further experiences in this field of archaeology. I take this opportunity, therefore, of expressing the hope that I may receive other communications bearing upon the subject and may thus perhaps at some future date be able to produce a more complete work.