News

It is particularly challenging in these times to find words of encouragement for the conservation world. News arrives day after day from Syria, news of ongoing destruction of millennial monuments – glorious remnants of past civilizations – or of the brutal killings of scholars, such as Khaled al-Asaad, who dedicate their lives to caring for this heritage.

The ICCROM-ATHAR Regional Conservation Centre organised, in collaboration with the UNESCO Cairo Office and the Institute National du Patrimoine in Tunisia, an activity titled “Training of Trainers: Preventive Conservation and Risk Preparedness for Movable and Immovable Cultural Heritage”. This seven-day course took place in Tunis, Tunisia, from 29 October to 5 November 2015.

Is it possible to safeguard cultural heritage while humanitarian aid and security operations are underway? When is the right time to intervene? How could we ensure that cultural recovery becomes a force for stabilization and building back better? The training on First Aid to Cultural Heritage in Times of Crisis aims to equip participants with necessary skills and knowledge to provide timely...

The sad news of the passing of Dr Nobuo Ito, at the age of 90, has reached ICCROM. Dr Ito was a distinguished professional, whose contribution to the Japanese conservation field as well as to development of international conservation concepts has been well recognized. Indeed, one of Ito’s particular merits could be seen in his keen working towards improved communication between East and West.

On 27 October 2015, ICCROM and the Government of the United Arab Emirates signed a Headquarters Agreement which lays the foundation for the establishment and operation of the ICCROM-ATHAR Regional Conservation Centre in Sharjah, UAE. This agreement confers upon the Centre its legal status, enabling it to execute its functions and achieve its objectives as an intergovernmental institution in the...

Last September in Brussels, over 200 delegates from around the world attended the 1st international “Unlocking Sound and Image Heritage”, to jointly define a 10-year vision for audiovisual archives. To celebrate World Day for Audiovisual Heritage, the SOIMA community invites colleagues from the audiovisual archive field to provide feedback on our vision and how to reach it.

The LATAM International Course on Stone Conservation: Observation, Documentation and Diagnosis recently concluded in Mexico. During the three-week course, eleven participants from Colombia, Guatemala, Honduras, Paraguay, Peru and Mexico had practical and theoretical sessions at the archaeological site of Tula and in Mexico City.

“Rovine. La forza delle rovine” (“Ruins: the power of ruins”), is the title of a wonderful exhibition that has recently opened at Palazzo Altemps, Roman National Museums. Curated by Marcello Barbanera, who also edited the exhibition catalogue (Electa, 2015) with Alessandra Capodiferro, the exhibition portrays the fascination aroused by physical remains of past civilization, whether sculpture...

The Italian association Incontro di Civiltà has drafted an appeal to counter the destruction of cultural heritage in Syria and Iraq and to support its preservation and restoration.The appeal is the result of considerable reflection which has brought together scholars, archaeologists, legal experts and cultural representatives in order to arrive at a set of challenging, but achievable proposals...

Paper and Water: A Guide for Conservators, the handbook published by Gerhard Banik and Irene Brückle in 2011, after a decade of close cooperation with ICCROM, has been re-published under the title Papier und Wasser – Ein Lehrbuch für Restauratoren, Konservierungswissenschaftler und Papiermacher. The handbook, which was honoured with an Institute for Conservation award in 2013, has also been made...