Restaurointi

Restaurointi, or restoration and conservation, is the discipline dedicated to preserving cultural heritage objects and sites from decay and damage. Its aim is to maintain material integrity, ensure continued access for study and display, and, when appropriate, restore legibility of the object's original appearance and historical significance. The field covers works of art, manuscripts, textiles, furniture, photographs, archival materials, and built heritage such as monuments and historical interiors.

Conservation and restoration are distinct but overlapping activities. Conservation focuses on stabilization, prevention, and minimal intervention to arrest deterioration, while restoration may involve reconstruction or reinstatement of missing features in a way that is guided by evidence and provenance. Ethical practice emphasizes honesty about what was changed, reversibility when feasible, and compatibility with the original materials.

Work proceeds through assessment, documentary recording, and plan development, followed by treatment, material stabilization, cleaning, repair, and sometimes consolidation or inpainting. All interventions should be documented comprehensively, and decisions are guided by scientific analyses, historical understanding, and curatorial goals. Reversibility and compatibility of materials are standard criteria.

Restaurointi is governed by national heritage laws and international guidelines, including professional codes of ethics from organizations such as ICOM and ICOM-CC, which stress transparency, public accountability, and the long-term preservation of cultural memory. Practitioners typically specialize by material or setting and work in museums, archives, libraries, or preservation departments of cultural institutions, often collaborating with researchers, restorers, and conservators.