ABSTRACT
Despite the importance of maize stem lightweight sculptures, in the conservation field little is known about the maize stem ageing and its degradation by relative humidity and temperature. Therefore, were evaluated the effects of the temperature and relative humidity on maize stem samples from the lower (INF) and upper (SUP) parts of the plant. In addition, dissociated maize stems of a New Spain Sculpture (NSS) were characterized and the results were compared with those of the samples. The morphological and histochemical characterization indicate that the less lignified tissues, such as the parenchyma and metaphloem, are the most susceptible to deformations and ruptures. Besides, the structural sugars characterization suggests that the hemicellulose is the most susceptible compound to thermal damage, followed by cellulose, whose degradation is accelerated by the high relative humidity.
