Introductory course on conservation and restoration of underwater archaeological finds for ASEAN countries
In South-East Asia, the protection of underwater heritage is of high importance, due to their cultural richness and the complex history of the region. Underwater cultural heritage holds a vast potential for sustainable development, it is a very interesting and attractive form of heritage, appreciated by the public. However, the region is facing challenges for fully realizing the potentials of their submerged heritage. Many underwater cultural sites are still threatened by treasure-hunting and industrial activities. Urgent training is especially needed in the field of conservation and restoration of artefacts recovered from water. This field of scientific knowledge and skill is not sufficiently developed in the region with few skilled professionals.
Therefore, the UNESCO Office in Bankok, Regional Centre for Archaeology and Fine Arts (Seameo-SPFA), Thailand’s Fine Arts Department of the Ministry of culture in cooperation with the International Centre for Underwater Archaeology in Zadar set up a South-East Asian Sub-regional Introductory Course on Conservation and Restoration of Underwater Archaeological Finds for ASEAN countries (Association of Southeast Asian Nations).
The course officially began on June 19, 2023 with the opening ceremony held at Seameo-SPFA in Bangkok, lasted eleven days was attended by twenty-six participants from all over the Southeast Asia (Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Timor Leste, Thailand, Vietnam).
The course participants, including conservators and underwater archaeologists, gathered in Thailand to learn during the educational program about conservation and restoration procedures and techniques for preserving underwater archaeological finds, such as those commonly carried out on shipwrecks. The main objective of the course was to introduce the candidates with conservation and restoration principles and techniques that serve as a method of protecting archaeological finds and giving insight into specific skills when dealing with archaeological finds extracted from underwater environments.
The course consisted of a theoretical and practical segment, and was held at the National Museum Warehouse (Kanchanapisek Museum) in Pathum Thani province, Thailand. The trainees had the opportunity to get acquainted with practical approaches and methods of conservation and restoration works and to apply them in work on various smaller underwater finds made of ceramics and glass, metal, wood and other organic materials.
They also paid a visit to the National Maritime Museum in Chanthaburi province as part of the programme, went to see the offices of the Department of Underwater Archaeology and learned about the in situ preservation technique applied to the Samed Ngam shipwreck. In addition to the above, the trainees understood the importance of planning the entire project from the very moment of finding underwater sites, through in situ protection of sites, conducting archaeological research and conservation-restoration procedures, to exhibiting or safe storage of treated finds. During the course, trainees from all participating countries presented their underwater cultural heritage and current conservation practices.
The successfully completed task in which the trainees devised a research strategy and methodology of a conservation-restoration plan at a fictional underwater archaeological site is a reliable indicator of knowledge acquired during the course as well as trainees' skills to implement the proper preservation and protection of the rich underwater cultural heritage of the SE Asian region for the present and future generations.
With the ceremonial awarding of certificates to all course participants and the closing ceremony held on June 29, 2023 at the UNESCO Bangkok offices, the course South-East Asian Sub-regional Introductory Course on Conservation and Restoration of Underwater Archaeological Finds was brought to an end.
In addition to the international experts guests who participated in the course, the lectures and the practical part were also held by Ms Anita Jelić as a representative of ICUA Zadar, Conservation and Restoration Department.
The International Centre for Underwater Archaeology in Zadar - by participating in this project as UNESCO category 2 centre - implements one of its strategic goals which is training underwater archaeologists and conservation specialists nationally and internationally, thus contributing to the UNESCO's programme objectives.
