The wood fibers of the richly decorated ceremonial
wagon are disintegrated because of the preservation method. Credit: ©
Museum of Cultural History, University of Oslo / Eirik Irgens Johnsen
Researchers from the Museum of Cultural History in Oslo,
working closely with Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin, have been studying
ancient wooden Viking artefacts at the synchrotron radiation source
BESSY II. The conservators expect this non-destructive method will yield
crucial insights into the degradation of these unique works of art. The
wooden artefacts come from a Viking grave found in 1904 at Oseberg near
the Oslo fjords.
