Connecting to Collections Care

We have an iron meteorite on display, not in a case. The lender has asked us to put a protective coating on to prevent rust. The fusion crust is mostly intact. Unfortunately, we cannot use the recommended coating due to safety concerns. Are there any recommendations for products that are safe to use for both the meteorite, staff and guests? My initial idea is to use mineral oil.

Thanks!

I strongly advise you not to coat your meteorite specimen, despite the lender's request. And certainly mineral oil should not be used. Coatings will not form an adequate barrier to protect the surface of the specimen from ambient relative humidity and will interfere with analysis and future treatment. Oils over time attract dust which is hygroscopic i.e. attracts dust and thus humidity, so in particular oil coatings are counterproductive. If the piece is too large for a microclimate with a desiccant like silica gel, then focusing on keeping the ambient relative humidity low would be the best course of action. There are lots of good resources online for the care of mineral collections including:

C2CCare Webinar Rock On! Storing Your Geological Materials

NATSCA handout on the Care and conservation of geological specimens 

Western Australian Museum Preventive Conservation for Stone and Geological Collections

Best,

Rachael

We have an iron meteorite on display, not in a case. The lender has asked us to put a protective coating on to prevent rust. The fusion crust is mostly intact. Unfortunately, we cannot use the recommended coating due to safety concerns. Are there any recommendations for products that are safe to use for both the meteorite, staff and guests? My initial idea is to use mineral oil.

Thanks!