The 2007 Conservation 'Oscars': Short-lists Announced Today

London, 5 June 2007

Three outstanding - and very different - survivors of Britain's heritage 
have been short-listed
for the prestigious Conservation Awards, the 'Oscars' of the conservation 
world, which are
supported by Sir Paul McCartney. Having made it through to the 21st century, 
their future has
been safeguarded thanks to the expertise of British conservators.

An elegant 400-year old doublet in pale golden silk has been meticulously 
conserved by The
Scottish Conservation Studio and put on display in Perth Museum for the 
first time ever,
together with a replica - for trying on - and a pair of matching breeches. 
Once an essential
part of a fashionable man's wardrobe, few garments of such quality have 
survived the
centuries. This Scottish treasure was in the hands of the McBain Menzies 
family for many
years and is thought to have come originally from the Stewarts of 
Killiecrankie, Perthshire.

An even earlier survival is a magnificent embroidered table cover made for 
Bess of Hardwick in
1579, now on show at Hardwick Hall, near Chesterfield. Reconstructing the 
Tobit table carpet
was a labour of love for the National Trust's textile conservators, who 
spent nearly 18 years
removing earlier defective restorations, restoring it to its former size and 
revealing the glory of
the original design with its riot of fruit, flowers, birds and animals. Now 
displayed at full length
in a custom-built case, the carpet bears witness to the splendour of 
Elizabethan banqueting.

Brunel's ss Great Britain, the world's first screw-propelled, iron-built 
passenger liner, rescued
from the Falklands in 1970 and towed across the Atlantic to her 'birthplace' 
at Bristol dry dock,
has been transformed by the innovative application of conservation research 
and technology
into a leading visitor attraction. By 1998, parts of the iron hull resembled 
lacework barely able
to support the ship's weight. The solution for this rampant corrosion was a 
giant climate-
controlled chamber sealed by a glass 'sea', upon which the ship appears to 
be afloat, while
allowing visitors on board via an airlock.

These three exceptional projects will compete to win the coveted Award for 
Conservation of
£15,000, one of five Awards offered this year. This Award celebrates 
excellence in the
conservation of the cultural heritage in the UK.


The short-listed finalists for the five Conservation Awards are:

AWARD FOR CONSERVATION 2007
Eura Conservation, Cardiff University and the ss Great Britain Trust
Brunel's ss Great Britain

The Scottish Conservation Studio for Perth Museum & Art Gallery
A rare silk early 17th-century doublet

National Trust Textile Conservation Studio
The Tobit Table Carpet

AWARD FOR CARE OF COLLECTIONS 2007
Durham University Library
The North East Collections Care Scheme

Book & Paper Conservation Studio, Dundee University Library, for The Linnean 
Society of London
The Linnaean Correspondence Project

Beamish Museum and Tyne & Wear Museums
The North East Regional Resource Centre

National Preservation Office
A national assessment of preservation need

STUDENT CONSERVATOR OF THE YEAR AWARD 2007
Rachel Morrison and the Courtauld Institute
Surface cleaning of unvarnished paintings

Sarah Maisey and Northumbria University
Materials and ageing of the miners' Cavell banner from Bowburn

Julie Eklund and the Institute of Archaeology, UCL
Effects of preparation and conservation treatments on DNA

ANNA PLOWDEN TRUST AWARD 2007
Professor Norman Tennent, Fyne Conservation Services, and Dr James Nobbs, 
University of Leeds
Colour-Matching for Ceramic Conservation

Dr James Tate, National Museums Scotland, and Dr Laurianne Robinet, The 
Universite, Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris
New Light on Ancient Glass: development of Raman spectroscopy

David Watkinson and Paul Lewis, Cardiff University
Dry storage of chloride-infested iron

DIGITAL PRESERVATION AWARD 2007
The British Library
LIFE (Lifecycle Information for E-Literature)

National Library of New Zealand & The British Library
Web Curator Tool software development project

The National Archives of the UK
Active Preservation at The National Archives: PRONOM Technical Registry and 
DROID file format identification tool

Bodleian Library, University of Oxford & John Rylands University Library, 
University of Manchester
PARADIGM (The Personal Archives Accessible in Digital Media)

CRL, RLG-OCLC, NARA, DCC, DPE and Nestor
Digital Repository Audit and Certification

For further details of the Digital Preservation Award short-list, please 
see: http://www.dpconline.org/graphics/advocacy/press/award2007.html

The Awards judges are now visiting all the short-listed projects and will 
choose the winners later in the summer. The winners will be announced at the 
British Museum on 27 September.

The Conservation Awards are the UK's leading awards for the preservation of 
cultural heritage. They are sponsored by Sir Paul McCartney and supported by 
key organisations in conservation and collections care: the
Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA), English Heritage, the 
Institute of Conservation (Icon) and the National Preservation Office. The 
Digital Preservation Coalition and the Anna Plowden Trust sponsor the awards
in their names. For more information visit the Awards website: 
www.conservationawards.org.uk, which includes links to information about the 
judges and the supporting partners and sponsors.

Contact: Susan Hughes
Tel: 020 7326 0995
E-mail: [log in to unmask]