Heritage science

Red rot on leather bindings was one of the first conservation issues to excite scientists.

The field still requires its literature canon and opinions on whether heritage science is a domain in its own right or a field of research diverge.[3] However, this appears a matter of academic recognition, rather than a matter of research practice.

Heritage science is an old field of research: in his Royal Institution Christmas Lecture in 1843, Michael Faraday already pointed out how pollution importantly contributes to book degradation. The following premises appear to be of defining importance:[4]

1. Heritage science is inherently biased, as scientists, by doing research on heritage, contribute to its value: they create and popularize heritage through their research.
2. Heritage science is neither fundamental nor experimental: work with actual heritage objects, building or sites cannot be repeatable because heritage is not an experiment. On the other hand, the scientific method and deductive reasoning is easily applied when working with models and model objects, which heritage scientists often do due to the high value of actual historic objects and consequentially, sampling restrictions.

Since the context of heritage is often unknown, there can be any number of variables affecting the heritage system under observation – inductive reasoning is therefore often applied in heritage science. In this aspect, the premise of heritage science comes close to social science. Heritage that is accessible, in its preserved authentic form or as a (digital) reproduction, is a "resource for economic growth, employment and social cohesion".[5] Through improved access, heritage science therefore contributes to well-being. Heritage science is proof that there is no world of 'Two Cultures'. A scientist, researching heritage defies the existence of the divide: there can be no scientific research of heritage without a contribution by humanities research. Heritage science also successfully bridges science and culture, because it provides an attractive vehicle to convey ideas and concepts related to technology and engineering, as well as culture and society. Heritage science can be considered an anthropogenic analog to environmental geography, which was defined by Halford Mackinder in 1887 as a discipline that aims to "bridge one of the greatest of all gaps" between "the natural sciences and the study of humanity".[6]

Publication trends in the heritage science field, 2005-2014.

Heritage science is an increasingly lively science domain. Materials and techniques of the past are often very difficult to study and state-of-the-art techniques and methods need to be employed. Discoveries new to science are often the result of such endeavours, e.g. new antibiotics from bacteria discovered in the Cave of Altamira, in Spain. With its wide definition, heritage science spans a significant variety of scientific activities. In order to support conservation, access, interpretation and management, heritage science must be based on an interdisciplinary palette of knowledge, from fundamental sciences (chemistry, physics, mathematics, biology) to arts and humanities (conservation, archaeology, philosophy, ethics, history, art history etc.), including economics, sociology, computer sciences and engineering.

In academia, heritage science is often performed by scientists spending a proportion of their time on heritage-related research. The academic field, judged by the number of academic outputs published annually, is steadily increasing. This could be taken to estimate the domain size – with the number of outputs in 2014 being 6,800 (Source: Web of Science[7]), it could be assumed that there are about 3,000 heritage scientists active in the field (publishing on average 2 academic publications per year). This goes against the generally held view that the field is small.

The proportion per country varies greatly, about 20% of researchers being active in the US, 15% in the UK, 10% in Italy, 5% France, and 5% in China (with a strong increase in the last decade).

Since 2013, the scientific domain has its own flagship journal, Heritage Science.[8]

In 2013, the Mind the Gap project,[9] funded by the UK EPSRC/AHRC Science and Heritage Programme,[10] reported on the drivers and impediments in cross-disciplinary research.[11] The project found that there is no gap between rigour and relevance in heritage science research but rather that there is a continuum of activity. However, there was less satisfaction with heritage science research in relation to its impact on practice, in comparison to its academic impact.[12]

The SEAHA Mobile Heritage Laboratory for field research and public engagement with science and heritage.

The heritage science career paths are various. Due to the cross-disciplinary nature of heritage science, any academic background is suitable, from formal sciences, natural sciences to social sciences. Most researchers have entered the field by carrying out doctoral research in the field, which is due to the fact that there is currently no undergraduate course in this domain. Since 2010, Master's degree courses in heritage science have become available at University College London[13] and Queens University Belfast.[14] In Italy, students can obtain undergraduate and/or graduate degrees in conservation science at the University of Florence,[15] University of Bologna,[16] and a recently created programme at the University of Venice.[17] Several other universities in Italy have faculty members whose primary research focus is in heritage science; these groups often accept international students who would like to obtain a PhD in the field.[18][19] Taught courses in heritage science programmes include elements of heritage science, e.g. technical art history is often part of art history courses, and natural sciences are often taught in conservation courses. Brandenburg University of Technology in Germany offers the international Master's programme World Heritage Studies [20] and PhD programme Heritage Studies.[21]

At UCL, University of Oxford and University of Brighton, the Centre for Doctoral Training in Science and Engineering in Arts, Heritage and Archaeology (SEAHA) was established in 2014.[22] A key aspect of the SEAHA scheme is the collaborative nature of projects, enabling partnerships between academic institutions, industry and national heritage agencies and giving an applied focus to the research training.

Since the field requires significant cross-disciplinary and transferable skills, graduates may be able to take jobs in industry and academia. To work within the field of heritage science (e.g. in a museum laboratory), a PhD in a field of science and significant experience in a heritage environment is typically required.

The Museum Conservation Institute of the Smithsonian Institution is part of its Museum Support Center in Suitland MD.

Many major heritage institutions have heritage science departments:

• Museum Conservation Institute of the Smithsonian Institution, USA
• Department of Conservation and Science of the British Museum, UK
• Centre for Conservation Research, France
• Getty Conservation Institute, USA
• Conservation Science Department of the V&A Museum, UK
• Science Laboratory of the Art Institute of Chicago, USA
• The Netherlands Institute for Conservation, Art and Science, The Netherlands
• Istituto Superiore per la Conservazione e il Restauro, Italy
• Opificio delle Pietre Dure, Italy
• Koninklijk Instituut voor het Kunstpatrimonium/Institut Royal du Patrimoine Artistique, Belgium
• University of Oxford - Resilient Buildings and Landscapes Lab (OxRBL), UK
• Instituto del Patrimonio Cultural de España, Spain

A UK body, the National Heritage Science Forum[23] was established to enable the 'users' and 'doers' of heritage science to access information on heritage science research, to exchange knowledge and increase collaboration. In 2016, the forum had 20 institutional members.

Several international professional associations have heritage science groups:

• Committee for Conservation, Working Group Scientific Research (International Council of Museums)[24]
• Institute for Conservation, Heritage Science Group (Institute for Conservation)[25]
• Royal Society of Chemistry, Heritage Science Expert Working Group (EWG),[26] which produces freely available Technical Briefs on a wide range of topics for conservators, scientists, and students

The Heritage Science Research Network[27] captures the current activity in the field in the UK. In Spain, the Spanish Network of Science and Technology for the Conservation of Cultural Heritage (TechnoHeritage) brings together more than 65 research groups working in heritage science, from the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), universities, conservation institutes and other cultural institutions.

The major heritage science events (conferences, symposia, meetings etc.) are:

• Science and Engineering in Arts, Heritage and Archaeology
• Gordon Research Conference Scientific Methods in Cultural Heritage Research
• Technart
• Eastern Analytical Symposium, Conservation Science session
• International Symposium on Archaeometry
• Lasers in the Conservation of Artworks
• Indoor Air Quality in Museums, libraries and Archives
• CMA4CH Biennial Meeting

In addition, conferences organised by the Institute of Conservation, American Institute for Conservation and International Institute for Conservation usually feature heritage science sessions and talks.

Journals often or exclusively publishing academic papers in heritage science:

• Heritage Science
• Heritage
• Archaeometry
• Journal of Cultural Heritage
• Studies in Conservation
• International Journal of Architectural Heritage
• International Biodeterioration & Biodegradation
• Journal of the American Institute for Conservation
• Journal of Architectural Conservation
• e-Preservation Science
• GE-Conservacion