Conservation and restoration of feathers shaft and the vane. The shaft is composed of the calamus and the rachis. The calamus can also be called the quill and is the hollow portion of the shaft that enters the skin follicle. While the rachis is the solid portion of the shaft where the barbs attach. The vane extends to either side of the rachis and is made up of interconnecting barbs. This is considered the most substantial portion of the feather. Removing debris and organic matter from feathers is a key step in the conservation process. Here are several of the ways that feathers are typically
Calamus rotang Calamus rotang Calamus rotang is a plant species native to India, Sri Lanka and Myanmar (Burma). It one of the scandent (climbing) rattan palms used to make Malacca cane furniture, baskets, walking-sticks, umbrellas, tables and general wickerwork, and is found in Southwest Asia. The basal section of the plant grows vertically for 10 metres or so, after which the slender, tough stem of a few centimetres in diameter, grows horizontally for 200 metres or more. It is extremely flexible and uniform in thickness, and frequently has sheaths and petioles armed with backward-facing spines which enable it to scramble over other