Determining the impact of elemental composition on the long‐term survival of vegetable‐tanned leather in archaeological environments

Abstract This research paper investigated whether elemental analysis can differentiate leather manufacturing from soil contamination and whether soil hydrology and elemental composition impact degradation of leather. Portable X‐ray fluorescence (pXRF) is a quick method for monitoring large‐scale changes and groupings of aggregate inorganic elemental signatures, as well as influx of soil‐based elements into the leather samples. Soil elements appeared to leach into vegetable‐tanned leather within 2 months of burial, following pathways that are primarily dictated by soil hydrology (acidity, redox and saturation). Leather stability was also traced to elemental concentrations prior to burial, most likely introduced through the tanning liquid, and via a contributory factor of perimineralisation in the soil.