Pre-Protection Analysis of Unearthed Water-Saturated Lacquered Woodware -- With Lacquered Woodware Unearthed from the Zeng Guo Cemetery of Guojiamiao, Hubei Province as Examples

Abstract Wooden lacquerware cultural relics are very characteristic cultural relics in China. Ancient wooden lacquerware excavated underground has relatively intact paint cover, but its bodies are mostly decayed, generally with a moisture content of 100-400%, and in some cases going as high as 700%. Therefore, dehydration and reinforcement of water-saturated bamboo, wood, and lacquer artifacts is the most critical step for restoration and protection. In order to protect the unearthed wooden lacquerware in a targeted manner, it is necessary to conduct a detailed pre-protection analysis of the cultural relics. In 2014 and 2015, the Hubei Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology worked with Jingzhou Cultural Relics Conservation Center and many other organizations to respectively carried out a more comprehensive excavation of the Caomenwan and Guojiamiao Cemeteries, and cleared more than 110 tombs. The tomb in question was inscribed on the list of China's Ten Major Archaeological Discoveries in 2014. From the tomb 186 water-saturated pieces of lacquered woodware were unearthed. Due to the biological and microbial corrosion in the buried environment, the lacquered woodware urgently needed protective dehydration. In order to better protect the cultural relics and retain as much of the original information as possible, it is necessary to analyze this batch of lacquered woodware before placing them under protection.