In order to responsibly social distance and prevent the spread of COVID-19, we were unable to gather together in Krakow. Rather, we conducted a mid-term meeting of the SyMBoL project partners via video conferencing. During three days of talks, we summarized the progress of all partners to date, including the Getty Conservation Institute (GCI), the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), the Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research (NIKU) and our own work at IKiFP PAS.
Our contributions to the project are long-term measurements of acoustic emissions (AE) in two Norwegian stave churches and the modeling of moisture gradients in massive wooden elements. Through this work we seek to understand how environmental fluctuations and moisture movement impact their risk of cracking. Dr Marcin Strojecki presented the AE signals recorded in the first period of the measurement campaign and their preliminary interpretation. Magdalena Soboń reported on her model development for wooden sculptures. Going forward, these simulations will be validated against experimental data collected by partners at NTNU.
The obstacles facing the world right now do not stop us in our search for answers about how to best protect our cultural heritage!