Case Study: Contaminated Museum Art

THE PROBLEM:

An antiquities expert working with an insurance company needed assistance on a claims project involving contamination of precious art by World Trade Center (WTC) Dust — The designation for the particulate matter resulting from the tragic events of September 11th, 2001.

Dust analysis by light microscopy

THE ANALYSES:

Utilizing a microvac sampler, MVA Scientific Consultants collected dust samples from around the artifacts. The dust was then characterized by light and electron microscopy.

THE OUTCOME:

The dust was determined to have constituents consistent with WTC dust.