Conservation Organisations in Europe ARP - Professional Association of Conservators-Restorers of Portugal by André Varela Remígio   - Established in 1995 - 13 specialisations - 165 members - 5 membership categories - Access to university graduates only - Member of E.C.C.O. One of the first records of a restoration intervention in Portugal dates back to 1890 when the painter Manuel de Moura restored the XVIth century Flemish panel Fons Vitae. In 1896, the chemical engineer Charles Lepierre examined some cloth fragments found on a bishop tomb located on the Saint Mary Cathedral at Coimbra, starting in this way the scientific study of works of art in Portugal.

Material Studies and Characterisation Materials Used in the Chinese Textiles from the National Museum of Art of Romania by Ileana Cretu and Mihai I. A. Lupu This paper presents concisely the results of the microchemical analyses made on Chinese embroideries and costumes, dated 18th–19th century, from the collections of the National Museum of Art of Romania, conserved in the last 40 years. Chinese textiles, historically well known, raise many problems due to the materials they are made of: very fine dyed or undyed silk, adhesive of unknown nature, paper metallic threads of different qualities, a different way of weaving and pigments used for decoration of tissues. These kind of items were sometimes decorated with pigments used without a protective coating. This caused important damages: the decorations depicted with blue, brown or violet pigments were lost together with the tissue.

Articles Conservation of Archeological Objects Preservation and Conservation of Mummies and Sarcophagi by Gian Luigi Nicola, Marco Nicola and Alessandro Nicola     In Italy, and particularly in the collection held by the Egyptian Museum of Turin, there are many archaeological findings representing a challenge, in terms of conservation. Most of them were unearthed during the archaeological excavation campaigns carried out in Egypt during the XIXth and XXth century whilst some of them are donations received from private collections formerly belonging to wealthy personality and noblemen of the XIXth century, when it was fashionable to own Egyptian artefacts or even mummies. In many cases these collectors or their heirs donated such items to the museums for patronage or when they were no longer willing to possess them.

Education Education in Portugal Portugal is a small country in south-western Europe. Being one of the oldest European countries (1128) and having led the World Discovery throughout the 15th and 16th centuries, Portugal is a rich country in Cultural Heritage. Higher education in Portugal is structured in two systems: the university and the polytechnic system. Until very recently, the university granted an initial 5-years long course denominated "Licenciatura".

Documentation Modern Heritage Documentation for Conservation and Cultural Development in the Mediterranean Region an Interdisciplinary Approach and Postcolonial Perspective by Annarita Lamberti   This article deals with approach to Documentation for Conservation, involving cultural and political aspects. In my argumentation the awareness of historical meanings of Urban Heritage is the basis for a culturally sustainable development. It occurs when urban communities are able to understand the meanings of all historical components of their townscapes and to "mettre en valeur" culturally and economically their urban "patrimoines", realizing an integrated cultural landscape.