Deterioration processes affecting prehistoric rock art engravings in granite in NW Spain |
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| Authors: | JS Pozo‐Antonio T Rivas F Carrera L García |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Departamento de Enxe?aría dos Recursos Naturais e Medio Ambiente, Escola de Enxe?aría de Minas e Enerxía, Universidade de Vigo, Vigo, Spain;2. Escola Superior de Conservación e Restauración de Bens Culturais de Galicia, Pontevedra, Spain |
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| Abstract: | Prehistoric rock art sites are endangered despite conservation efforts. The lack of scientific documentation regarding weathering agents affecting rock art and the absence of specific diagnostic protocols hinder the development of conservation strategies. The aim of this research was to investigate active deterioration processes in a granite petroglyph site located in Mougás (Galicia, NW Spain) by characterizing the granite, conducting a geotechnical study of the outcrop and describing and analysing the main weathering processes. Two main deterioration factors were identified. First, water favours block disjunction at the massif scale and causes pitting and surface erosion at the millimetre scale that affects the readability of the engravings. Second, high temperatures associated with wildfires cause mineral transformations that increase the susceptibility of the rock to weathering. Identifying deterioration factors is a first step in developing appropriate preventive conservation measures, which should aim to reduce rock contact time with water (technically affordable in the short term) and to reduce the probability of wildfire occurrence (technically more complex and possibly with longer‐term results). Copyright © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. |
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| Keywords: | petroglyph granite conservation weathering stone deterioration |
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