News

Laura Sbordoni Mora, famed paintings and mural paintings conservator, has died in Rome. She was 92 years old. A frequent collaborator and permanent consultant of ICCROM, she was a chief restorer at the Italian Istituto Centrale del Restauro (ICR), active in restoration over a period of more than 50 years, and was also my mentor, colleague and friend.

The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, has condemned the airstrikes on the ancient city of Marib in Yemen and is calling on all parties involved in the conflict to refrain from targeting the country’s unique cultural heritage. UNESCO has received information on damage caused to the Great Dam of Marib by an airstrike during the night of 31 May

Are you from Latin America or the Caribbean? Take part in the SOY LATAM contest and win a set of ICCROM publications in Spanish*! This is your chance to touch base with other “LATAMeros” by sharing a photo of yourself in your workplace.

Under the Patronage of HH Dr Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Sharjah, and in collaboration with UCL-Qatar, a one-week introductory training course on Oral History for Cultural Heritage Preservation concluded at the ICCROM-ATHAR Regional Conservation Centre in Sharjah, UAE. This course is part of a short course series...

As we move into the seventh week of the International Course on Stone Conservation, participants are spending more time together, extending their knowledge and strengthening new friendships. They are currently travelling through Italy, visiting the World Heritage sites of Florence, Pisa, Parma and Venice. They have studied traditional carving techniques at a sculpture studio in Carrara and visited...

Stefano De Caro, Director-General of ICCROM met with His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah at the Ruler’s Office. The two parties exchanged views on multiple issues regarding ICCROM’s international and regional projects, especially programmes related to the Arab region to be implemented through its ICCROM-ATHAR Regional Conservation...

As the news of a massive earthquake in Nepal broke out, ICCROM, ICOMOS-ICORP and their combined network of heritage professionals joined forces to produce the Kathmandu Cultural Emergency Crowdmap to gather on-the-ground reports on damaged heritage in order to provide a consistent situation overview. The preliminary results have now been summarized into a report available for download.

A group of 20 cultural heritage professionals – archaeologists, archivists, and architects – arrived on the scene to assess the damage to a World Heritage Site. Tensions between the two countries that border the site had escalated into a violent protest and a bomb blast had gone off directly next to the historic structure. Artifacts of all kinds were scattered under rubble and ash.

I was both privileged and deeply saddened to spend time with Ron, just before his tragic death on 28 April 2015. We were both on a World Heritage Reactive Monitoring Mission, in the city of Lhasa in China. His sudden departure was a shocking experience to me as much as to all of you.

A series of devastating earthquakes have struck Nepal over the weekend, causing loss of more than 7000 lives. The initial 7.8 magnitude quake, along with aftershocks as high as 6.7 magnitude, caused destruction and severe damage to the historic centre of Kathmandu and other heritage sites throughout the Kathmandu Valley. Quake-related damage has been reported throughout the region.