22.05.2023
Bode-Museum
The Bode-Museum is organising the international conference kulturGUTerhalten. Rekonstruktion – Ergänzung – Retusche. Geschichte(n) der Restaurierung archäologischer Schätze (Reconstruction – Addition – Retouching; Histories of the Restoration of Archaeological Treasures), to be held on 29 to 31 May 2024. The call for papers (PDF, 256 KB) has now been released.
The rediscovery of the cultures of classical antiquity also marked the beginning of the history of restoring and conserving these previously hidden artefacts, a history that now stretches back almost 500 years. Quickly, a number of central aspects of this work emerged: piecing together fragments, the stylistic reconstruction of missing sections, speculative additions, as well as the preparation of surface treatments. Today, these objects are often seen as the product of outdated approaches to restoration, however they are also repositories of various forms of knowledge, providing information about reconstruction efforts situated between desire and reality, about the historically determined technical limitations and capacities of conservator-restorers, about materials and materiality, and about early and contemporary approaches to the traditions of restoration.
The international symposium kulturGUTerhalten will bring together current research from scholars in classical and ancient studies and archaeological studies, and from practicing conservator-restorers, facilitating an interdisciplinary dialogue focused on these issues.