call for papers

[Paul Wyeth <P.<Wyeth@xxxxxxxxxxx>>]

Call For Papers

AHRB Research Centre for Textile Conservation and Textile Studies
First Annual Conference, 13-15 July 2004

Scientific Analysis of Ancient and Historic Textiles: Informing
Preservation, Display and Interpretation

Textile Conservation Centre, Winchester Campus, University of Southampton, UK

Extant historic textiles represent an important part of material culture;
they provide rich evidence of social history, international trade,
agricultural development, artistic trends and technological progress.
Analytical science can play a major role in ensuring the appropriate
interpretation, essential preservation and continued enjoyment of such
cultural heritage.

The overarching theme of this international conference is the
characterisation of ancient and historic textile materials for informed
conservation and display, and enhanced understanding. Contributions should
engage an audience of archaeologists, archaeological scientists,
conservators, conservation scientists, custodians and curators, and will
span the following topics, with an emphasis on natural fibre-based
textiles: identification of textile materials, assessment of textile
deterioration, characterisation of fibre behaviour, diagnostic virtual
libraries, non-destructive monitoring of ageing, evaluating risks of
conservation and display, setting limits through accelerated ageing, and
archaeological textiles. Papers will encompass instrumental analytical
methodology and its application to heritage preservation. The invited
keynote overviews, will be complemented by shorter contributions of 15 to
20 minutes.

Besides the four conference sessions, one each on the Tuesday afternoon,
Wednesday morning and afternoon and on the Thursday morning of the meeting,
encompassing the main themes, there will be a reception on the Tuesday
evening and a tour of Winchester Cathedral with its historic vestments at
the end of the conference, on the Thursday afternoon.

Deadline for abstract submission:       15th December 2003

Notification of acceptance to authors:  15th February 2004

Deadline for registration:              15th May 2004

Proffered contributions including a provisional title, the names and
affiliations of the authors, the contact address, phone number and email
address for the principal author, and an abstract of up to 300 words should
be emailed to contex@xxxxxxxxxxx by 15th December, 2003. Submissions will
be considered by the programme committee and authors informed of the
outcome by 15th February, 2004. If deemed appropriate, some papers may be
considered for poster rather than oral presentation. Accepted abstracts
will be collated for distribution at the meeting and will be available for
consultation on-line after February 2004. The Conference Proceedings will
be published, and instructions to authors for preparation of full papers
will be available in February 2004.

Offers of sponsorship are invited. Sponsors will be acknowledged in the
conference programme and will be able to include their logo in the
published Conference Proceedings, due out Spring 2005. If there is
sufficient interest, there will also be an opportunity to present displays
at a complementary technical exhibition for suppliers of conservation
materials, fabrics and scientific equipment. Interested companies should
email jbennett@xxxxxxxxxxx for further details.

The conference will be held at the University of Southampton Winchester
Campus. Travel and accommodation information will be linked from the
conference Web pages: www.soton.ac.uk/~contex,  where the full conference
programme and other details will also be posted. Meanwhile, to be placed on
the emailing list please contact the Conference Secretariat, email:
contex@xxxxxxxxxxx .


Dr Paul Wyeth
Textile Conservation Centre
University of Southampton Winchester Campus
Winchester  SO23 8DL
U.K.

Tel:     +44 (0)2380 597122
Fax:     +44 (0)2380 597101