Tripoli, 11 July 2013:
Those responsible for protecting the country’s archaeological treasures have had hands-on experience caring for small artefacts on a conservation and restoration course.
With a special focus on museum collections, the training included the restoration of museum pieces, including objects made of bronze, glass and ceramics. Items from the Bani Walid museum, damaged during the revolution, were among the conserved artefacts.
The five-week training programme, held at two of the country’s special treasures, Leptis Magna and Villa Silin, brought together 35 conservators and technicians working in offices of the Department of Antiquities around the country.
Exposed mosaics and wall paintings were restored during the course, along with three stone reliefs from the Septimius Severus arch at Leptis, that had long been stored in the site’s museum garden.
The course has also contributed to the setting-up of a conservation laboratory that, once up and running, will be used by local offices of the Department of Antiquities.
The training was organised by the Department of Antiquities, UNESCO and Italian conservation and restoration institute ISCR. [/restrict]
