1 INTRODUCTION

THE USE OF FREEZE-DRYING in the preservation of archaeological materials is a technology still being developed. Newly modified treatments have been used with initial success at the Maine State Museum Regional Conservation Center (MSMRCC) for a variety of organic materials recovered from the underwater site of an American privateer, the DEFENCE.1 Among the materials being treated are wood, leather, and textiles. Some wood is being stabilized using a freeze-drying treatment proposed by Ambrose.2 Leather and textile treatments also use freeze-drying and some methods and materials proposed by Rosenquist3,4 and Geijer.5 The treatments for leather and textiles now in use at the MSMRCC are outlined here, and in each instance, case studies are presented.