Evaluation of a microclimate monitoring system applied to small size Museums

Abstract

The conservation of works of art exhibited inside museums is influenced considerably by the indoor microclimatic conditions. Temperature and air moisture content variations and lighting play an important role in the deterioration of works of art, both artefact of historical-artistic value and demoethnoanthropological goods. Small museums around the country are a source of pride for local people. They preserve and guarantee the transmission to future generations of important works of art or goods of cultural interest. In these contexts is not sustainable an environmental monitoring like that carried out in major museums, both for the high cost of equipment and management and for the lower influx of visitors. The aim of this work has been to verify the conservation conditions of a remarkable collection of votive wood paintings housed in the Museum of the Basilica of the Madonna della Quercia (Viterbo, Italy), using simple instruments and tools. Microclimatic environment characterization has been conducted from December 2008 to September 2009, surveying temperature and relative humidity. Lux and radiation measures have been performed. Moreover punctual microclimatic surveys of surface temperature of a wooden votive tablet, as well as measurements of environment temperature, relative humidity and dew point have been carried out. The results have been interpreted with reference to museum standards regarding the conservation of works of art, in order to verify compliance of the measured values with the optimal values of the parameters established by the legislation proposed by the Italian Ministry of Culture n. 238, 19-10-2001.