Heritage Conservation

An airborne LiDAR survey of the Nan Madol World Heritage Site and adjacent Temwen Island revealed a complex, irrigated cultivation system, the first found in the Central and Eastern Caroline Islands. This informs the goals of the sustainable conservation project, funded by the U.S. Department of State Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation, that inspired the survey, and expands understanding of Nan Madol and its place in the network of Pacific island interaction and trade. Fieldwork verified the presence, across Temwen, of low, wet, cultivable areas, many of which are connected by water channels or separated by earthen berms. The berms themselves may also have been cultivated. In complexity, labor investment, and organization, the system is comparable to Nan Madol itself, the largest archaeological site in Micronesia, with structures on about 100 artificial islets built of stone and coral on a reef flat. Constructed over a millennium, Nan Madol was the seat of the Saudeleur Dyna...

Working within established boundaries is comfortable, predictable, justifiable. Expertise can be honed and built upon, and the path is assured and clear. However, it is when practitioners step outside boundaries that the human experience is enriched and can be better shared. This paper presents the preliminary findings and experiences related to the development of a conservation and management plan for the Uganda National Museum funded by the Getty Foundation’s  Keeping it Modern initiative. 

The development of the first Conservation Management Plan for a Museum in Kampala, Uganda, introduces a new form of practice in a context where protection of built heritage, particularly for modern buildings, is not a common practice. The project led by the Uganda Museum brings together a multidisciplinary, international team made up of conservators, historians, engineers, and (conservation) architects. This paper focuses on the development of the Conservation Management Plan and International Workshop held at the Museum in January 2020, which brought together participants from diverse backgrounds to discuss the importance of conservation and the challenges of protecting modern buildings. A public seminar and press conference also raised awareness of the significance of the Uganda National Museum.

The measurement of indoor climate in heritage buildings can provide valuable sources of data needed for an optimal use and management of the works of art exhibited inside. It is a fundamental technique to evaluate environmental damage and degradation processes, to support the protection, conservation and preservation of works of art, improving the quality of museum environments. This is particularly important when the old buildings have special architectural and historical value. In most cases, the buildings themselves are works of art ...

An airborne LiDAR survey of the Nan Madol World Heritage Site and adjacent Temwen Island revealed a complex, irrigated cultivation system, the first found in the Central and Eastern Caroline Islands. This informs the goals of the sustainable conservation project, funded by the U.S. Department of State Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation, that inspired the survey, and expands understanding of Nan Madol and its place in the network of Pacific island interaction and trade. Fieldwork verified the presence, across Temwen, of low, wet, cultivable areas, many of which are connected by water channels or separated by earthen berms. The berms themselves may also have been cultivated. In complexity, labor investment, and organization, the system is comparable to Nan Madol itself, the largest archaeological site in Micronesia, with structures on about 100 artificial islets built of stone and coral on a reef flat. Constructed over a millennium, Nan Madol was the seat of the Saudeleur Dyna...

Preventive underwater archaeological surveying in the bed of the Ljubljanica River, conducted at Sinja Gorica in 2008, revealed the remains of an Early Roman wooden barge from the beginning of the 1st century AD. Detailed documentation of the 4.5m long and 2.8m wide section of the boat followed in October 2012 and included photogrammetric three-dimensional modelling. The construction characteristics and size revealed a boat of the Mediterranean shipbuilding tradition, with an elongated oval shape and a flat bottom and vertical sides, constructed using the shell-first technique and planks fastened with iron clamps, while the hull was reinforced with floor-timbers in a manner not yet published in the relevant literature. The barge, made mostly of beech wood, was built soon after AD 3 according to the dendrochronological analysis. The wood is very poorly preserved. The barge was presumably used to transport cargo between Nauportus and Emona.