A vital piece of Broome's World War II history has been restored after spending nearly three decades exposed to the harsh elements of northern WA.
The Dornier flying boat engine has been on display at the Broome Historical Museum since the late 1970s, after it was retrieved from wrecks off the coast of Broome.
It is one of five Dorniers wrecked off the coast of the North West during the air raid of 1942, an attack on the port city that left 88 dead.
The engine at the museum is only one of two that have been retrieved, but years buried in the depths of Broome's turquoise waters left it worse for wear.
Kimberley king tides and mudflats caused severe erosion over its years at sea, leaving its metal engine rusted and flaking apart.
Last week, the museum was paid a visit by a team specialising in industrial repair and metal restoration to bring the piece of Broome history back to life.
Metals conservator Vanessa Roth travelled hundreds of kilometres to take part, and she initially had concerns about how well the conservation would work due to the level of degradation.
"When things go into the water, there's a period where deterioration happens very quickly," she said.
"A calcium carbonate crust starts to help things settle ... but if you disturb it again, then it starts to deteriorate quite quickly."
The race was on to save the engine, but Ms Roth was careful to keep its authenticity.
"We are trying to preserve the significant qualities of an artefact and its history, we don't necessarily try and make it look brand new," she said.
Michael Lake is a member of the Broome Historical Society, and he said displaying the engine outside has had some benefits to the artefact's preservation.
"The blessing is that every wet season, the engine gets doused with nice, fresh rainwater," he said.
"The thing is ...we needed to do something to preserve it in a better condition."
Method of conservation
Typical methods of conservation were going to be difficult in the harsh climate of Broome, with remoteness being the biggest issue but Ms Roth was open to trying new treatments for the engine.
"A lot of things taken out from the ocean undergo a process of electrolysis, where it's put into a particular solution and then attached to an electric current," she said.
"There was a big risk that it could all fall apart in a solution, so we looked to what other methods could be used."
Sponge-blasting was recommended, which could potentially take out chlorides from the metals and remove corrosion, so the team pushed on.
Exposing historic details
When the clean-up was done, it revealed a previously hidden serial numbers buried under layers of rust.
"I'm really thrilled that the sponge-blasting has been able to preserve and reveal a lot of detail," Ms Roth said.
"Now that we have markings on the engine components, we can get a specialist in to do lot more research."
The serial numbers will open the door for further research into the Broome air raid and the World War II era.
Conservation treatment has been on the agenda for more than a decade.
Various grants, including support from the Netherlands Embassy and the Consulate General in Australia, have aided the museum to tick it off the list.
Mr Lake said he was glad the historic artefact can be appreciated as a vital part of the Broome air raid collection.
“It’s a very visual reminder for those who walk through the museum of our history,” he said.
The engine is one of five Dorniers wrecked off the coast of the north-west, only 2 of which have been retrieved. The other is on display at the Broome airport.
With regular lanolin coatings and protection from the elements, the engine is expected to stay in good condition for another 40 years.
