Desalination of brick masonry and stone carvings in Capitullum hall of Riga Dome Cathedral

Abstract

The construction of Riga Dome Cathedral and its Capithullum hall were initiated in 1211. Through centuries they were damaged a lot due to migration of soluble salts and moisture. During the last restoration (1888-1891) a lot of mistakes were conceded and subsequently some of probable solutions for restoration were unsuccessful. In 2009 the new restoration stage in Capithullum hall was started. Two types of desalination methods were used in hall - desalination with lime-sand plaster and poultice of lignin. Both quantitative and semiquantitative chemical analyses were performed in order to appreciate the desalination process.