Our Network

The artworks, artefacts and structures inherited from the past have a powerful impact on our society, so the conservation of our cultural heritage is fundamental for future generations. This shared cultural heritage requires intervention to stabilise and prevent further degradation of often unique artefacts. This degradation results from use, ageing, unpredicted events, environmental conditions, and poorly chosen previous restoration treatments whose details are often unknown. Scientists and engineers can assist greatly by identifying the changes in the materials, the mechanisms of degradation, and predicting how the object will respond to conservation and display. This knowledge enables conservators to make informed choices about suitable treatments, so the conservation of cultural heritage is truly interdisciplinary. 

Our Expertise

The development of conservation techniques is a significant challenge due to the cultural and financial value of the artefacts, and the requirements for the reversibility of the treatments used. The varied and challenging nature of conservation has attracted significant interest at Imperial. There is significant cultural heritage work across all faculties and many departments. In addition, there is much research being undertaken which is highly relevant to conservation but which has not yet been applied, such as the development of advanced characterisation and imaging techniques, smart interfaces, immortal materials and corrosion monitoring, to name just a few. 

Purpose & Scope

The aim of the Network is to generate and foster collaborations. We will bring scientists and engineers together with conservators and curators. We will further heritage science through this collaborative work, to help conserve cultural heritage. We will also assist early-career academics and researchers to generate impact, network more effectively and enrich their research portfolio.