Textile finds from the Senaatintori excavation finds after conservation

Archaeological excavations were carried out in Helsinki City Center in the late fall of 2012. Part of the Senaatintori square used to be a graveyard in the 17th and 18th centuries.

The excavated area was situated in the left hand corner of this panorama picture.

The excavations were rescue excavations conducted because of a break in the pipe system underneath the square. The textile fragments found during the excavation are now out of the conservation laboratory. The textiles date to around 1600-1700 AD. Below is a link to a short article about the conservation process of the textiles (in Finnish). All the pictures below by courtesy of Helsinki City Museum.

http://www.hel.fi/hki/Museo/fi/Kokoelmat+ja+tutkimus/Ty_n_alla/Hautaloytoja