Ultrastructural observations of microbial succession and decay of wood buried at a Bronze Age archaeological site

Buried archaeological wood is subject to microbial decay by bacteria and fu ngi. Little is known of the environmental conditions that affect and contro l the distribution and rate of microbial decay. In the UK in situ preservat ion is the preferred option for managing the archaeological resource. An un derstanding of the factors that influence microbial decay is therefore requ ired. Samples of modern timbers were buried at a Bronze Age archaeological site for 550 days. Timbers were removed and investigated using light and el ectron microscopy. Decay was compared with environmental conditions of the burial environment. The decay types identified were soft rot, erosion and t unnelling bacteria. Bacterial decay occurred in samples buried under near a naerobic conditions. Soft rot decay was evident for samples buried under le ss anaerobic conditions. A combination of high water table, low pH, anaerob ic conditions and high organic matter content of the soil were found to pro long the preservation of the timbers. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All ri ghts reserved.