Register for our webinar
Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry's standard dummy text ever since the 1500s, when an unknown printer took a galley of type and scrambled it to make a type specimen book.
Form Heading
Heading 2
Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry's standard dummy text ever since the 1500s, when an unknown printer took a galley of type and scrambled it to make a type specimen book.
Heading 3
Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry's standard dummy text ever since the 1500s, when an unknown printer took a galley of type and scrambled it to make a type specimen book.
Raman seminar: Cultural heritage and geoscience
The Natural History Museum | London, UK | 25th February 2025
Discover how the specificity of Raman spectroscopy reveals fakes and forgeries; how it enables conservation of historical artefacts, and how it identifies modern and historical materials. It answers the question ’where does this come from?’ – whether that be material from Stonehenge, the provenance of ivory or the composition of the surface of Mars.
Join us at our upcoming Raman seminar on cultural heritage and geoscience. We have an exciting lineup of confirmed speakers who are leading scientists in their field. Discover the captivating applications of Raman spectroscopy in art authentication, mineralogy, and provenance studies.
| Register now |
Our confirmed presentations include:
"Going where no Raman has gone before: Spectroscopy on Mars" - Joseph Razzell-Hollis, Postdoctoral Researcher, Natural History Museum, London
Raman spectroscopy, a vital tool for chemical analysis on Earth, has been utilized on Mars since July 2021. The SHERLOC instrument aboard NASA’s Perseverance rover employs deep-ultraviolet (DUV) Raman spectroscopy to identify minerals and organic compounds, aiding the search for evidence of past life and habitability on Mars. Joseph will summarize the mission’s findings from the first few years and discuss the unique challenges of conducting Raman spectroscopy on another planet.
"Discrimination of ivory from extant and extinct elephant species using Raman spectroscopy" - Rebecca Shepherd, Senior Lecturer, University of Bristol
This talk will discuss non-destructive technologies, such Raman spectroscopy, that can be used to quickly, relatively inexpensively and non-destructively identify samples unknown sources. These technologies are being developed for use worldwide by law enforcement to ensure that ivory being traded is compliant with any relevant laws and restrictions on ivory trade, but could also have a role in materials identification for object conservation.
"Raman Spectroscopy: a tool for teaching research-based cultural heritage" - Paul Garside, Lecturer, University of Glasgow
At the Kelvin Centre for Conservation and Cultural Heritage Research (University of Glasgow), Raman spectroscopy has an important role in both research and teaching. It is a particularly useful way of introducing students to complementary analysis (alongside techniques such as XRF and FORS), allowing them to explore strengths and limitations of analysis, in addition to sampling and interpretation. By doing so, they are also able to carry out their own research (recently on important manuscripts such as the Historia de Tlaxcala and the Margarita Philosophica), as well as appreciating staff-led research on materials including iron gall ink and parchment.
At the Kelvin Centre for Conservation and Cultural Heritage Research (University of Glasgow), Raman spectroscopy has an important role in both research and teaching. It is a particularly useful way of introducing students to complementary analysis (alongside techniques such as XRF and FORS), allowing them to explore strengths and limitations of analysis, in addition to sampling and interpretation. By doing so, they are also able to carry out their own research (recently on important manuscripts such as the Historia de Tlaxcala and the Margarita Philosophica), as well as appreciating staff-led research on materials including iron gall ink and parchment.
"Raman and Geoscience at University College Cork" - Richard Unitt, Research Fellow, University College Cork
A Raman spectrometer was purchased by the School of Biological Earth and Environmental Sciences, UCC in 2018 specifically for studying roadstone aggregates. Although this work continues the spectrometer has since been utilised for many and varied geoscience projects.
Raman is still an emerging technology in the field of geoscience/geology, and we have taken on projects where there are little or no previous studies to provide reference material. As such, we are often leading the way in publishing detailed petrographic Raman maps, sometimes in 3D, as well as developing new methodologies to examine exceptionally preserved fossils.
A Raman spectrometer was purchased by the School of Biological Earth and Environmental Sciences, UCC in 2018 specifically for studying roadstone aggregates. Although this work continues the spectrometer has since been utilised for many and varied geoscience projects.
Raman is still an emerging technology in the field of geoscience/geology, and we have taken on projects where there are little or no previous studies to provide reference material. As such, we are often leading the way in publishing detailed petrographic Raman maps, sometimes in 3D, as well as developing new methodologies to examine exceptionally preserved fossils.
"Old objects, new pigments: unexpected findings in cultural heritage collections" - Lucia Burgio, Lead Conservation Scientist, Victoria and Albert Museum, London
Occasionally, 'new' pigments can be found unexpectedly within museum collections, hiding in plain sight. In recent years, four of them have been discovered at the V&A on objects from different continents, spanning multiple centuries. Find out more about bismuth white, mercury white, bismuth grey and spherical copper resinate, and learn about the objects that are decorated with them.
| Register now |
Our speakers :
 |
 |
 |
 |
|||
|
Sergio Andò
Associate Professor, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Milano Bicocca
|
|
Denis Moiseev CEO and a co-founder, Hephaestus Analytical |
Lucia Burgio Lead Conservation Scientist, Victoria and Albert Museum, London |
Rebecca Shepherd Senior Lecturer, School of Anatomy, University of Bristol |
||
| Sergio’s research focuses on sedimentary petrography using innovative tools, such as Raman spectroscopy for heavy-mineral analysis. Sergio is an Associate Professor at the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences of Milano-Bicocca and he is the Director of the Departmental study centre called "Provenance". | Denis Moiseev is the CEO and a co-founder of Hephaestus Analytical, a leading art authenticator. At Hephaestus Analytical, scientific analysis is used to verify that the age, process, and materials of an artwork are consistent with the attribution. At Hephaestus Analytical, scientific analysis and AI is used to verify that the age, process, and materials of an artwork are consistent with the attribution. | Lucia leads the V&A's scientific examination of the collections, providing information on materials and techniques, methods of construction, date and provenance. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry and chairs the AMC Heritage Science Expert Working Group, RSC. Her main interests include pigments and American and Asian lacquer. | Rebecca's research, funded by grants from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and the Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office, focusses on developing non-destructive techniques, such as Raman spectroscopy, for use in identification and ageing of ivory from unknown samples | |||
|
|
||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
|||
| Paul Garside Lecturer, Kelvin Centre for Conservation and Cultural Heritage Science, University of Glasgow |
Joseph Razzell-Hollis Postdoctoral Researcher, Natural History Museum, London |
Richard Unitt Research Fellow, School of Biological Earth and Environmental Sciences, University College Cork |
Jorge Diniz
Senior Application Scientist, Renishaw
|
|||
| Paul has a particular interest in plant fibres, weighted silks and textile conservation. Paul has significant experience in the scientific analysis of materials, assessment of long-term properties and environmental responses, and development of risk-management strategies for collection items and projects. | Joseph is currently providing spectral data analysis to support Inuit researchers as they monitor environmental microplastic pollution around Nunatsiavut. Previously, Joseph worked at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California, USA to develop quantitative methodologies for using DUV Raman spectroscopy. His work helped to prepare the SHERLOC instrument for NASA’s Mars 2020 mission. | Richard specialises in petrography and mineralogy, with an interest in roadstone aggregate performance and road surface sustainability. Richard works on multiple projects using Raman spectroscopy, mostly within the geosciences, but also within archaeology, plant science, pharmacy, microelectronics, microplastics and medicine. | Jorge is a seasoned Raman Applications Scientist at Renishaw, with a strong academic background in Chemistry and Materials. Jorge’s PhD research focused on the study of confined phenomena in porous systems using vibrational spectroscopy, including Raman. Jorge has continued to successfully apply his expertise in Raman research instruments across a wide range of application areas.
|
About the event:
- Date: 19th September
- Time: 9.30am - 5.00pm
- Location: Natural History Museum
- Fee: £49 payable on confirmation of registration
As part of the event, attendees will be able to enjoy a 30-minute guided tour of the Natural History Museum (subject to availability on the day).
Our confirmed speakers
 Denis Moiseev
CEO and a co-founder, Hephaestus Analytical
|
Denis Moiseev is a leading art authenticator. At Hephaestus Analytical, scientific analysis is used to verify that the age, process, and materials of an artwork are consistent with the attribution. At Hephaestus Analytical, scientific analysis and AI is used to verify that the age, process, and materials of an artwork are consistent with the attribution. |
 Joseph Razell-Hollis
|
Joseph is currently providing spectral data analysis to support Inuit researchers as they monitor environmental microplastic pollution around Nunatsiavut. Previously, Joseph worked at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California, USA to develop quantitative methodologies for using DUV Raman spectroscopy. His work helped to prepare the SHERLOC instrument for NASA’s Mars 2020 mission. |
 Sergio Ando
|
Sergio is an Associate Professor at Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences of Milano-Bicocca. Sergio’s research focuses on sedimentary petrography using innovative tools, such as Raman spectroscopy for heavy-mineral analysis. Sergio is an Associate Professor at the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences of Milano-Bicocca and he is the Director of the Departmental study centre called "Provenance". |
 Lucia Burgio
|
Lucia is a Lead Conservation Scientist at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, UK. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry, has been an Honorary Research Fellow at UCL since 2001 and has been chairing the AMC Heritage Science Expert Working Group, RSC, since 2014. She specialises in the dating and authentication of artwork, usually with Raman microscopy, X-ray fluorescence and optical microscopy. |
 Richard Unitt
|
Richard is a Research Fellow at the School of Biological, Earth & Environmental Sciences, University College Cork, Ireland. He specialises in petrography and mineralogy, with an interest in roadstone aggregate performance and road surface sustainability. Richard also works on multiple projects using Raman spectroscopy.
|
 Paul Garside
|
Denis Moiseev is the CEO and a co-founder of Hephaestus Analytical, a leading art authenticator. At Hephaestus Analytical, scientific analysis is used to verify that the age, process, and materials of an artwork are consistent with the attribution. At Hephaestus Analytical, scientific analysis and AI is used to verify that the age, process, and materials of an artwork are consistent with the attribution. |
