/ Jelica Novakovic, Olga Papadopoulou, Michalis Delagrammatikas, Panayota Vassiliou !"#$% & ’ ()%*+!%*##+*)%,) *’ -. Eleni Filippaki, Constantine Xaplanteris, Yannis Bassiakos / 0 1234 & ’ *5 6 5 - 5 *5 - 7 6 5 8 5 5 9 8 9 5 5 -5 5 - 7 9 5 55 9 65 8 :;/ / 2 <* 2= >5 9 5 - 9 5 5 6 5 5 5 5 -5 - 5 - 9 5 - 9 5 9 *5 The conservation of archaeological Cu&based artifacts, due to their uniqueness and artistic value, comprises a great challenge and raises numerous difficulties. As ancient objects are witnesses of the past, they cannot be sampled to perform adequate characterization procedures for conservation, even after an extended pre&evaluation [1]. On the other hand, the use of commercially produced copper alloys as test samples for the above mentioned evaluation does not cover the peculiarities of the alloying elements, the metallurgical features attributed to the casting technique and the nature and microstructure of the corrosion products. The study of a large number of ancient bronzes led to the production of reference Cu&based alloys, whose chemical composition and micro&chemical structure are similar to that of ancient ones, in order to accomplish the simulation of an ancient patina [2]. A broad category of archaeological objects, are those which have been buried for centuries or even millennia. During a long burial period, extended redistribution of material takes place. The mechanism of these transformations is under the control of mass transport phenomena. Metal ions move outwards and chloride ions together with impurities of the soil diffuse inwards, resulting in the production of a variety of corrosion products, sometimes rather complex [1]. Previous studies revealed that the main corrosive agent in a burial environment is chloride containing species that induce the formation of dangerous copper chlorides and oxy&chlorides at the interface between the alloy and the external corrosion layers. Specifically, cuprous chloride (CuCl) is considered the principal agent for the outbreak of the “bronze disease”, the deterioration process occurring after the interaction of chloride&containing species within the bronze patina with moisture and air. This is a cyclic reaction which induces the formation of Cu2(OH)3Cl in various crystalline structures and accelerates the corrosion of the sound metal. These compounds react further with copper to form cuprous chloride and water. The final products are light green, powdery basic copper chlorides and the procedure is accompanied by an important volume expansion, which may result in the fragmentation of the object [3]. “Bronze disease” in antiquities can be prevented by a number of methods. The application of