Preventive Conservation as Part of Archaeology Education in Turkey (original) (raw)

2009, Proceedings of the XII Symposium on Mediterranean Archaeology, Eastern Mediterranean Universtiy, Famagusta, Nort Cyprus, 5-8 March 2008

Conservation is a wide-ranging discipline concerned with the care and preservation of cultural heritage including archaeological finds, works of art and other collectable objects, all of which may be in private collections or stored and exhibited in museums. At the core of Conservation is an understanding of the science of the materials that comprise cultural objects and the investigating how these materials react with the environment around them. As ICON describes “Diagnostic examination (of an artifact) consists of the identification, the determination of the composition and the assessment of the condition of cultural heritage; the identification, nature and extent of alterations; the evaluation of the causes of deterioration and the determination of the type and extent of treatment needed.” Conservation has two major fields of application, so called “interventive” and “preventive” conservation. Interventive conservation is about repairing damage or decay through investigation, cleaning, stabilising, restoring and recording based on the results of the diagnostic examination of the object. It consists mainly of direct action carried out on cultural heritage with the aim of stabilising condition and retarding further deterioration. Restoration is considered as a succeeding process which consists of direct action carried out on damaged or deteriorated cultural heritage with the aim of facilitating its perception, appreciation and understanding, while respecting as far as possible its aesthetic, historic and physical properties. Due to the specific scientific content of the profession, all conservation related issues should be studied, evaluated and applied by well educated and trained conservators, especially when interventive conservation is required. Otherwise, interferance with the cultural property by individuals who are incompetent and untrained to undertake conservation treatments will result in the destruction of the object