The Chemical Composition and Microstructure of Linen

The fibres possess a complex hierarchical microstructure, in which regions of well-ordered crystalline cellulose are interspersed with areas of random 

The cell walls are organised in layers, of which the secondary wall is the thickest (several microns), possessing the greatest degree of crystallinity and making the dominant contribution to the physical properties of the fibre. Within these walls the macrofibrils are wound around the fibre axis, with a sense and angle characteristic of the fibre species - for flax, the secondary cell wall is S (i.e. anticlockwise) wound at about 6.5°. 

Hemicelluloses (polysaccharides composed primarily of xylose and mannose) are much shorter in length than cellulose and are extensively branched these species may act to cross-link cellulose and other polymers, and also form the amorphous matrix of the interfibrillar space, in which cellulose microfibrils are embedded. Pectins are jelly-like, acidic polymers composed 

The remainder of the fibre is composed of waxes, which are generally found on the fibre surface pigments, primarily chlorophyll, xanthophyll and carotene, along with other coloured material and residual protein. 

The linen fibres of the Victory sailcloth and, in particular, the cellulose chains are bound to have aged in the intervening 200 years. This could have progressed to the point at which the sail cannot even support its own weight. An appreciation of the sail s current condition is therefore crucial in deciding how it should be handled and may even influence the choice of display. With this in mind, we set about the mechanical testing of the cloth. However, since 

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