In 2009 the Museum established a preventive conservation and restoration laboratory (PCRL) which currently has two headquarters, one in the Castell dels Tres Dragons building and the other in the Forum Park building. The purpose of this laboratory is to ensure the short-, medium- and long-term preservation of the Museum collections. Preventive conservation consists of ongoing, comprehensive maintenance procedures for safeguarding the collections –whether on display, in storage or on loan– in order to prevent their deterioration and delay their natural ageing process. Restoration, also called curative conservation, refers to the practice of mitigating any damage or alteration in the items, which adversely affects their integrity and/or prevents, hinders or modifies their observation.
The PCRL conservation-restoration experts perform cleaning, consolidation and reintegration treatments on deteriorated specimens to make them suitable for exhibition, handling or study, respecting their original value (historical, scientific, aesthetic, etc.) at all times.
Ascertaining exactly how and why the objects in the collections deteriorate is another of the challenges and objectives of the PCRL. The findings of this research are extremely useful when it comes to developing new procedures, preventing future degradation and treating long-lasting damage.
PCRL Report 2020 (PDF 1 Mb, in Catalan)
- Staff
- Projects
- Publications
- Services
- Resources
TXT
Museum staff
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Eulàlia Garcia : head of collections
Mail: egarciafr@bcn.cat Tel : 932562202
Orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7999-5244
Google Citation: https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=ca&as_sdt=0%2C5&q=eul%C3%A0lia+garcia-franquesa&oq=Eul%C3%A0lia+Garcia
Researchgate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Eulalia-Garcia-Franquesa
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Maria Vila : restoration and preventive conservation
The primary aim of the PCRL is to create a stable environment for the collection items and minimise any risks likely to trigger or accelerate their deterioration. The Museum’s preventive conservation experts address the following factors:
- Control of the environment (humidity, temperature, lighting and pollution)
- Prevention of pest infestation
- Handling of specimens
- Suitability of display and storage facilities
- Seeing to, and/or supervising, the packaging and transport of items on loan
Careful follow-up of the above factors largely avoids the need for direct intervention on specific items that have suffered some damage.
Statistical analysis of the environment follow-up data is performed periodically to facilitate decision-making regarding any improvements to be made.
Items on permanent display in the Museum, or in temporary exhibitions, are subject to meticulous follow-up in order to ensure they are appropriately conserved inside the cabinets and lose none of their aesthetic qualities.
From 2011 to 2014 the Gabinet Salvador collection underwent a thorough review. All items were subject to some form of intervention involving improvements in their packaging and presentation and different levels of restoration treatments.
Other projects undertaken at the PCRL are the study of the effect of vibrations on the items displayed, the effect of the packaging insulation on the environmental conditions, the review of the conservation and labelling systems of specimens in preserving liquid, and the systematic follow-up of certain infestations of insects.
Publications:
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Campeny, M., Pérez-Azcárate, M., Duque, S., Fernández-Lluch, D., Garcia-Franquesa, E., Aromí, J.R., Casalod, A., Rodríguez-Ferrer, A., 2019. Conservació i condicionament de la vitrina de sals del Museu Martorell (Museu de Ciències Naturals de Barcelona) 1921-2018. Treballs del Museu de Geologia de Barcelona, 24: 25-37.
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Pérez-Azcárate, M., Font-Rosselló, B., Garcia-Franquesa, E., 2019. Documenting a historic mounted fin whale skeleton in preparation for a move: a case study at the Museu de Ciències Naturals de Barcelona. Collection Forum, 32 (1): 47-58. (disponible a partir de novembre 2020).
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Garcia-Franquesa, E., 2018. A whale skeleton is moved. Journal of Natural Science Collections, 5; 115-124.
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Pérez, M., Garcia-Franquesa, E., 2017. Sistemas de embalaje permanente para colecciones osteológicas: incidencia de los materiales en el control ambiental pasivo, resultados preliminares. Actas de la XV Reunión Técnica de Conservación y Restauración: sistemas y materiales para el montaje, exhibición y almacenaje de bienes patrimoniales, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Barcelona (MACBA) 27 y 28 de noviembre de 2017.
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Pérez, M., Muñoz, O., Garcia-Franquesa, E., 2016. Conservación-restauración de modelos botánicos de frutas del Gabinete Salvador. Ge-conservación, 9: 83-95.
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Prieto, M., Pérez, M., 2016. Preventive conservation programme for managment of carpet beetles pests (Coleoptera: Dermestidae) at the Natural Sciences Museum of Barcelona. Actes del XVII Congresso Ibérico de Entomologia – Lisboa (Portugal), 5-8 setembro de 2016
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Rull, M., Pérez, M., Uribe, F., 2016. Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) shows undesirable effects of ultrasonic cleaning on recent mollusk shells. Journal of Paleontological Techniques, 15: 22-30.
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Pérez, M., Muñoz, O., Hervás, N., Ibáñez, N., Garcia-Franquesa, E., 2015. El Gabinete de Historia Natural Salvador: intervenciones de conservación preventiva y curativa e inventario preliminar. Boletín de la Real Sociedad Española de Historia Natural, Secc. Aula, Museos y Colecciones, 2: 87-99.
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Torres, R., Cardona, J., Garcia, E., Vila, M., 2014. Causas, efectos y soluciones de vibraciones en ejemplares de museos expuestos en vitrina. Actas del 45 Congreso Español de Acustica, Murcia.
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Vila, M., Pérez, M., Muñoz, O., Garcia-Franquesa, E., 2014. Two examples of preventive conservation actions in the Museu de Ciencies Naturals de Barcelona (MCNB): Inspection of specimens and substitution of packaging. Journal of Paleontological Techniques, 13: 65-69.
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Val, S., Garcia, E., Pérez, M., Valls, M., Cancelo, C., Guerrero, N., López, D., 2012. Restauració d’una Balaenoptera physalus. La balena emblemàtica del Museu de Ciències Naturals de Barcelona. UNICUM Paleontologia.
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Pérez, M., Font, B., Garcia, E., 2011. The mounted fin skeleton at the Museu de Ciències Naturals de Barcelona. Documentation and graphic record. II Conservation Workshop. Finding Global Solutions for Natural History Collections. From the site to the storage. Institut Català de Paleontologia, Sabadell.
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Pérez, M., Font, B., Garcia, E., Muñoz, O., Coll, C., 2011. Conservation treatments of old taxidermies at the ‘Museu de Ciències Naturals de Barcelona. II Conservation Workshop. Finding Global Solutions for Natural History Collections. From the site to the storage. Institut Català de Paleontologia, Sabadell.
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Quesada, J., Garcia, E., Díaz, A., Pérez, M., 2011. Preventive conservation in the Natural Sciences Museum of Barcelona: monitoring enviromental conditions of zoological collections. II Conservation Workshop. Finding Global Solutions for Natural History Collections. From the site to the storage. Institut Català de Paleontologia, Sabadell. (in press).
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Aurell, J., Pérez, M., 2010. Collecting conservation problems: first round towards preservation. I Conservation Workshop. Finding Global Solutions for Natural History Collections. From the site to the storage. Institut Català de Paleontologia, Sabadell. ISBN: 978-84-614-5858-5.
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Garcia-Franquesa, E., 2009. Biodiversity in storerooms. Paleontologia i Evolució. Memòria especial nº4 (2009): 89-100.
The laboratory serves all the Museum collections, which amount to over three million items. The conservation/restoration specialists resolve any conservation queries or issues detected by the curators.
The laboratory also handles queries from other museums or public entities that hold natural history heritage items or objects containing organic matter of animal or vegetable origin. It also provides information on the packaging, transport and storage of natural history collections, and on the materials and instruments used in conservation and restoration.
The laboratory takes in students enrolled on official courses in conservation and restoration, as imparted at the ESCRBCC (College for the Conservation and Restoration of the Cultural Heritage of Catalonia) and the Department of Fine Arts at Barcelona University. The laboratory conservation/restoration specialists also offer guided visits for schools and faculties, by appointment, when the subject concerns the conservation and restoration of cultural heritage.