Exfoliation

Egyptian bronze
MFA Acc. #: 72.4417

Description

The irreversible loss of scales, flakes, or layers from a surface. Exfoliation may occur on exterior stones due to weathering, deterioration from salts, or freeze-thaw action. Exfoliation also occurs in audio and video media when the surface coating flakes from the supporting tape or disc.

See also Efflorescence, scaling, Subflorescence.

Exfoliation
Photo: B. Fitzner

Synonyms and Related Terms

Exfoliation (Deut.); esfoliação (Port.)

Resources and Citations

• Dictionary of Building Preservation, Ward Bucher, ed., John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York City, 1996

• Pam Hatchfield, Pollutants in the Museum Environment, Archetype Press, London, 2002

• Random House, Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language, Grammercy Book, New York, 1997

• The American Heritage Dictionary or Encarta, via Microsoft Bookshelf 98, Microsoft Corp., 1998