The conservation lab primary serves the maintenance and preservation of collections at the Tandy Museum as well as artifacts used by faculty in the Seminar Room. It was originally located in the Tandy Archaeology Lab in the basement of the Fleming wing. Today, under the direction of Heather Reichstadt it is temporary located in Archives of the Robert’s Library. In addition to preservation work, the laboratory also assists in curation and maintenance of exhibits, and loaned artifacts at the Tandy Museum. Students in the graduate program of Archaeology and Biblical studies also do internships in the lab. While not part of tours of the Tandy Museum, tours of ongoing projects are usually available with forewarning.
In addition to the preservation work conducted for SWBTS collections, consultation services are available to other institutions and individuals across the United State. Past projects have included collection evaluations for risk assessment and museum planning, research and appraisal for insurance purposes, object consolidation and mounting for display, as well as conservation and restoration of a variety of items. Our conservator, Heather Reichstadt, provides these services on a consultant basis. Past projects have include storage preparation for archaeological textiles belonging to the Maiman Foundation of Peruvian Art in Tel Aviv, conservation of historical costumes and textiles for the Nahon Museum in Jerusalem, consolidation and display preparation of an African Ndebele textile for the Dallas Museum of Art, collection evaluation and strategic outline of a museum plan for Ashland Theological Seminary.
For further information please contact Heather Reichstadt at hreichstadt@swbts.edu
