Natural Sources in Preventive Conservation of Naturally Aged Textiles

Abstract

Natural antimicrobials can eliminate fungi and prevent the aging of cotton fabrics. While fungi can cause severe infections to the fabric user etc, natural antimicrobials have the advantage of not being toxic to humans. The present study showed that the essential oils of lemon (Citrus limon), lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) and mint (Mentha piperita) have inhibitory effects on yeast and mould spores on a piece of textile from Romanian cultural heritage, “ie”, stored in a space within an ethnographic museum., inhibitory action against Botrytis sp., the inhibitory effect of lemon essential oil on Cladosporium sp. and that of peppermint essential oil on yeast species Rhododtorula mucilaginosa were demonstrated, respectively. Being environmentally friendly, these sources, can be tested on a large scale.