Conservation of Rock Art

In 1987, the Institute held its first short-term course on rock art conservation. Topics of this and the subsequent short-term rock art courses included the examination and documentation of sites; causes of deterioration; protective measures; and site interpretation with an emphasis on site protection. Site visits in California to Painted Rock—an important rock art site 150 miles northwest of Los Angeles—provided an overview of the conservation of rock art with attention to dating, documentation, interpretation, and treatment to address site and surface deterioration.

In 1989, the Conservation Institute and the Canberra College of Advanced Education (now the University of Canberra) in Australia collaborated on a one-year graduate diploma course on the subject. The course focused on understanding rock art as an element of material culture found around the world; methods of producing rock art; theory and practice of recording and conserving rock art; management requirements for rock art sites; and identifying and planning for applied research in the field of rock art conservation. The graduates of the program subsequently participated in a month-long conservation project at the site of Painted Rock.