Читать книгу Monument Future - Siegfried Siegesmund - Страница 9

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FOREWORD

Our built cultural heritage is a great source of inspiration. It provides us with a sense of belonging and identity in a complex world. And much of this heritage – from buildings to monuments and sculptures – is made of stone. Therefore, it is key for preserving our cultural heritage for future generations to better understand, manage and mitigate the deterioration processes that affect stone-based structures and thus rob us of our past.

Preserving stone requires a deep understanding of the various environmental factors that affect the material and innovative approaches to counter the decay they cause. This is why the German Federal Environmental Foundation (Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt DBU) has been a funding partner for research in this field for many years. With our funding programme “Environment and Cultural Heritage” we are supporting pioneering projects at the intersection of environmental science and cultural heritage protection. Since the foundation began its work in 1990, we have provided funding for nearly 830 cultural heritage projects. Special emphasis is placed on problems caused by anthropogenic environmental factors such as sulfur dioxide, nitrogen, or climatic changes.

The contributions in this anthology present an inspiring overview of cutting-edge endeavours in the field of stone conservation. Every four years, the International Council on Monuments and Sights (ICOMOS) brings together experts from a variety of disciplines, ranging from conservators and restoration specialists to engineers and geoscientist to engage in discussion. The topics of exchange cover all relevant aspects from novel modelling and simulation techniques, to better understand environmental impacts on different stones, to original approaches in damage assessment and mitigation. Best-practice examples offer valuable insights into state-of-the-art conservation and restoration procedures and techniques.

Among the participants are several experts working in DBU-funded projects. It fills us with pride to be able to contribute to this important field of research and witness how our support furthers the discussion and understanding of stone conservation and decay.

The DBU thanks the Georg August University Göttingen (Geoscientific Center) and the University of Kassel (Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering) as well as the International Scientific Committee for Stone (ISCS) of ICOMOS for compiling these proceedings.

And we would like to express our gratitude towards all participating experts and researchers for their contribution to the preservation of our collective cultural heritage.

Sincerely yours,

Alexander Bonde Secretary General, German Federal Environmental Foundation (DBU)