A study of enamels: conservation and history of global transfer of technology
This project is a collaboration between Imaging and Sensing for Archaeology, Art history and Conservation (ISAAC) Lab at Nottingham Trent University, the British Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum. The museums have a broad range of enamelled objects from around the world. Enamels are thin layers of coloured glass bound to a substrate. They have been traded around the world for centuries. While various cultures have developed their own enamelling technology throughout history, there are also exchanges in the technology across geographic locations from East Asia to Europe.
The deterioration of enamels is also very complex and poorly understood. Recent research has shown that there is a very good correlation between the level of hydration of the glass surface and structural damage within enamels, making it possible to rapidly assess the level of deterioration of enamels using hyperspectral imaging. Enamels from different manufacturing centres and stored in different environments will be characterised using a suite of complementary non-invasive imaging and spectroscopic modalities from optical coherence tomography, hyperspectral imaging, X-ray fluorescence mapping to Raman spectroscopy. This will allow an understanding of the effects of material composition, manufacturing techniques and storage environment on the deterioration of enamels, as well as a study of the global link between the different manufacturing centres through a comparison of material composition and manufacturing techniques of enamels in the early modern period.
The student will spend some time collecting data at the two museums in London using the ISAAC Mobile Lab with the support of staff from the museums and ISAAC Lab. A large number of objects will be imaged and machine learning techniques will be employed to analyse the data. The student will also gain interdisciplinary research skills.
Both Museums and the University will provide additional opportunities for training and career development including the opportunity to present research results at international conferences. There will also be an opportunity for the student to spend a period of time at an overseas organisation.
The deadline is Monday 21st June 2021. Interviews will take place from Monday 28th June 2021.
The start date for this project is October 2021.
Further information and the registration form HERE