Laser for tomb raiders

A Fraunhofer physicist is using an adjustable mobile laser to remove the accumulated dirt of millennia from the walls of an ancient Egyptian tomb.

Dr. Michael Panzner of the Fraunhofer Institute for Material and Beam Technology IWS in Dresden is the first scientist to use a laser for cleaning Egyptian antiquities.

Adorned with wall paintings, stone sculptures and reliefs, his first cleansing project is the tomb of the senior scribe Neferhotep, who served in the temple of the god Amun and died 3,300 years ago.

"The paintings on the walls are immeasurably valuable, for they tell us a great deal about the life of a high-ranking official," said conservator Birte Graue. In this project sponsored by the Gerda Henkel Foundation, she and her colleagues Susanne Brinkmann and Christina Verbeek are seeking new techniques for cleaning the surfaces of ancient Egyptian tombs. The team is supported by Panzner.

Armed with a mobile laser supplied by Clean-Lasersysteme, the Fraunhofer researcher climbed into Neferhotep's burial chamber and started his pioneering work on a narrow strip of wall just a few millimeters wide.