ISO FORM 1
ISO TS/P 318

PROPOSAL FOR A NEW FIELD OF TECHNICAL ACTIVITYPROPOSER:DATE OF CIRCULATION:

SAC

2023-11-07

CLOSING DATE FOR VOTING:
2024-01-30

A proposal for a new field of technical activity shall be submitted to the Office of the CEO (to tmb@iso.org),
which will process the proposal in accordance with ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1, Clause 1.5.
Furthermore, a proposal will be considered as complete if every information field is complete and follows theguidelines for proposing and justifying a new field of activity given in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1, Annex C.
TITLE(Please see the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1, Annex C, Clause C.4.2)
Cultural Heritage Conservation
SCOPE(Please see the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1, Annex C, Clause C.4.3)
Standardization in the field of terminology, technologies, materials and equipment for monitoring, evaluation,preservation and restoration of cultural heritage.
Exclude: ISO/TC 36 Cinematography, ISO/TC 42 Photography, ISO/TC 46 Information and documentation
Note: Limited to tangible cultural heritage. If an overlap or the potential for overlap with other TC/SC isidentified, coordination with related TC/SC should be sought by contacting or working with working groups.
PURPOSE AND JUSTIFICATION (Please use the field immediately below or attach an annex.)(Please see the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1, Annex C, Clause C.4.13)
Cultural heritage embodies an immeasurable wealth inherited from our ancestors, serving as a testament to theprogress of human civilization and encompassing profound historical, artistic, and scientific significance. Yet,the conservation of world cultural heritage confronts urgent challenges, as numerous significant cultural sites
are at risk of damage and loss caused by natural disasters, climate change, inadequate maintenance andmanagement, urbanization, vandalism and theft, cultural identity crises, and social changes. The United
Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (SDGs) highlights the need for increased efforts tosafeguard world cultural and natural heritages. Standardization serves as a crucial tool for enhancing theeffectiveness of cultural heritage conservation efforts. However, different countries and internationalorganizations have formulated or implemented different standards, due to vast distribution, large quantity,
diverse status and exceptional value of cultural heritage around the world. This poses significant obstacles to
the global conservation of cultural heritage and hampers effective communication and cooperation on a globalscale. Hence, the establishment of the ISO Technical Committee on Cultural Heritage Conservation is a matterof utmost urgency.
The establishment of the Technical Committee on Cultural Heritage Conservation will make significant

contributions to the conservation of cultural heritage:
Fostering consensus on cultural heritage conservation. The establishment of the Technical Committee onCultural Heritage Conservation, will significantly contribute to fostering consensus among countries regarding
cultural heritage conservation, building a universally recognized system of terms, theories, and methodologies
for cultural heritage conservation. The formulation of common standards will play a crucial role in reducing thesubjectivity and uncertainty in cultural heritage conservation, leading to more effective conservation practices.
Enhancing the level of cultural heritage conservation. The establishment of the Technical Committee on
Cultural Heritage Conservation, will involve the development and implementation of a series of international
standards for cultural heritage conservation, which will facilitate the exchange of advanced technologicalexpertise and best practices accumulated from global efforts in cultural heritage conservation. This will foster
collaborative endeavours in technological innovation, encouraging research and application of newtechnologies in cultural heritage conservation, elevating the overall level of conservation efforts in all countries,
particularly those with limited access to advanced technologies. This approach will fully leverage the leading
and supporting role of standards.
Creating an exchange platform for cultural heritage conservation. The establishment of the TechnicalCommittee on Cultural Heritage Conservation, will create an efficient and inclusive platform that facilitates theexchange of knowledge and practices in cultural heritage conservation. It will actively involve more countries
and regions in the development of cultural heritage conservation standards, thereby ensuring their activeparticipation. Furthermore, it will facilitate communication and collaboration between the International
Organization for Standardization (ISO) and esteemed international organizations dedicated to cultural heritage
conservation, including the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), theInternational Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), and the International Council of Museums (ICOM),
which will effectively support the implementation of relevant conventions on cultural heritage conservation.
Promoting the research on the origin and development of standardization. The establishment of the TechnicalCommittee on Cultural Heritage Conservation provides an opportunity to explore the study of standardization inrelation to cultural heritage research. This involves examining significant milestones and the overall
development process of standardization, encompassing the transition from spontaneous to conscious efforts
and from experiential to scientific approaches. Furthermore, it entails interpreting the conceptual framework andlogical principles underlying the development of standardization disciplines from the perspective of cultural
heritage conservation. These efforts will significantly contribute to advancing research on the origin andhistorical development of global standardization.
PROPOSED INITIAL PROGRAMME OF WORK (Please use the field immediately below or attach an annex)
Please see the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1, Annex C.4.4 and C-4.5)
For each item, the initial work programme shall define the deliverable type and target dates. The initial work
programme shall also assign priorities to the different items.
Standardization of cultural heritage conservation is a systematic and onging endeavor that requires
continuous improvement. The new ISO/TC will develop, but not be limited to, the following international
standards in the first three years:
1. Conservation of cultural heritage - Terminology
2. Conservation of cultural heritage - Deterioration and illustration
3. Conservation of cultural heritage - Restoration techniques for inorganic porous cultural relics(stone, wall
painting, earthen sites)
4. Conservation of cultural heritage - Specification for seismic protection of museum collections
5. Conservation of cultural heritage - Environmental monitoring for museum collections
RELATION OF THE PROPOSAL TO EXISTING INERNATIONAL STANDARDS AND ON-GOING
STANDARDIZATION WORK☒ The proposer has checked whether the proposed scope of the new committee overlaps with the scope ofany existing ISO or IEC committee or JTC1 sub-committee☐If an overlap or the potential for overlap is identified, the affected committee has been informed and anagreement has been reached between proposer and committee on

i. modification/restriction of the scope of the proposal to avoid overlapping,ii. potential modification/restriction of the scope of the existing committee to avoid overlapping.
☐If agreement with the existing committee has not been reached, please explain why the proposal should
be approved.

☐Have proposals on this subject been submitted into an existing committee and rejected? If so, what werethe reasons for rejection?

No.
LISTING OF RELEVANT DOCUMENTS (SUCH AS STANDARDS AND REGULATIONS) AT
INTERNATIONAL, REGIONAL AND NATIONAL LEVEL(Please see the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1, Annex C, Clause C.4.6)
Ⅰ. Cultural heritage standards issued by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO)
1. ISO 13822:2010, Bases for design of structures — Assessment of existing structures
2. ISO 21127:2014, Information and documentation — A reference ontology for the interchange of cultural
heritage information
3. ISO 5127:2017, Information and documentation — Foundation and vocabulary
4. ISO 21110:2019, Emergency preparedness and response
5. ISO/TR 19263-1:2017, Photography — Archiving systems — Part 1: Best practices for digital image captureof cultural heritage material
6. ISO 13810:2022, Tourism and related services — Visits to industrial, natural, cultural and historical sites —Requirements and recommendations
7. ISO/CD 5727, Accessibility and usability of the built environment — Accessibility of immovable cultural
heritage — General criteria and methodology for interventions
Ⅱ. Cultural heritage standards issued by the regional organizations for standardization(The EuropeanCommittee for Standardization, CEN/TC346- Conservation of Cultural Heritage)
1. EN 15757:2010 , Conservation of Cultural Property - Specifications for temperature and relative humidity tolimit climate-induced mechanical damage in organic hygroscopic materials
2. EN 15758:2010, Conservation of Cultural Property - Procedures and instruments for measuring
temperatures of the air and the surfaces of objects
3. EN 15999-1:2014, Conservation of cultural heritage - Guidelines for design of showcases for exhibition andpreservation of objects - Part 1: General requirements
4. EN 16648:2015, Conservation of cultural heritage - Transport methods
5. EN 16782:2016, Conservation of cultural heritage - Cleaning of porous inorganic materials - Laser cleaning
techniques for cultural heritage
6.EN 15898:2019, Conservation of cultural heritage - Main general terms and definitions
7. EN 17429:2020, Conservation of cultural heritage - Procurement of conservation services and works
Ⅲ. Cultural heritage standards issued by some countries
1. Argentina(1) IRAM 30801, Management system for collections of cultural or natural objects. Requirements
2. Australia(1) AS/NZS 2789:2016, Information and documentation - International library statistics(2) AS ISO 21127:2017, Information and documentation - A reference ontology

3. China(1) GB/T 23862-2009, Specification of shipping packaging of cultural relics(2) GB/T 30686-2014, Bronze and iron collection's disease and illustration(3) GB/T 37909-2019, Technical specifications for thermoluminescence dating of the ancient ceramics(4) WW/T 0037-2012, Technical requirements for conservation & restoration of polychrome paintings on
historic buildings(5) WW/T 0104-2020, Monitoring for museum environment-Monitoring terminal-Temperature and humidity
4. Egypt(1) E.S. 4044 / 2006, Information and Documentation - Library performance indicators(2) E.S.2604-1/2008, Information and documentation - International library statistics Part 1: Vocabularies
5. France(1) NF X80-002, Conservation of cultural heritage - Recommendations for designing, building, selecting andusing a showcase for the exhibition of cultural heritage(2) NF X80-003, Conservation of cultural heritage - Test methods - Evaluation of the effect of a treatment onporous inorganic materials by the measurement of the groove width(3) NF Z40-014, Information and documentation - Requirements and criteria for the selection of paper andboards for the storage of paper and parchment documents
6. Germany(1) DIN 67700,Constructing libraries and archives - Requirements and recommendations for planning(2) DIN /TR 67702,Information and documentation - Management of the environmental conditions for archiveand library collections(3) DIN SPEC 67701, Information and documentation - Collections management for archives and libraries(4) VDI 3798 Blatt 1:2020, Material cultural heritage - Documentation, examination, and preservation including
consideration of environmental impacts(5) VdS 3511, Security Guidelines for Museums and Showrooms
7. India(1) IS 14850: 2000, Fire Safety of Museums - Code of Practice(2) IS 15791: 2007, Museum Plywood – Specification
8. Italy(1) UNI 11769: 2020, Applications for the cultural heritage - Evaluation elements for archival arrangement anddescription applications(2) UNI 10705: 2007, Cultural heritage - X-ray fluorescence analysis using portable systems
9. Russian Federation(1) GOST R 56198-2014, Monitoring of technical state of the cultural heritage objects. Immovable monuments.
General requirements(2) GOST R 56891.1-2016, The preservation of cultural heritage. Terms and definitions. Part 1. General
concepts, the composition and content of the scientific and project documentation(3) GOST R 70005-2022, Preservation of cultural heritage objects from biological damage. Classification,methods of protection and elimination of consequences. General requirements
10. Saudi Arabia(1) SASO-ISO-21127, Information and documentation - A reference ontology

11. Spain(1) UNE 41810:2017, Conservation of cultural heritage. Intervention criteria for stone materials
12. United Kingdom(1) BS 7913:2013, Guide to the conservation of historic buildings(2) BS 4971:2017, Conservation and care of archive and library collections
13. United States(1) NFPA 909-2021, Code for the Protection of Cultural Resource Properties – Museums, Libraries, andPlaces of Worship(2) ANSI/IES RP-30-2017, Recommended Practice on Museum and Art Gallery Lighting
And others.
Ⅳ. Cultural heritage documents published by other international organizations
1. Documents issued by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO):(1) Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict (1954)(2) Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage (1972)(3) Recommendation for the Protection of Movable Cultural Property (1978)(4) Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage (2001)(5) Warsaw Recommendation on Recovery and Reconstruction of Cultural Heritage (2018)
2. Documents issued by the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS):(1) International Charter for the Conservation and Restoration of Monuments and Sites (The Venice Charter)(1964)(2) The Washington Charter (1987)(3) Nara Document on Authenticity (1994)(4) Xi’an Declaration on the Conservation of Setting of Heritage Structures, Sites and Areas (2005)
3.Documents issued by the International Council of Museums (ICOM):(1) International Guidelines for Museum Object Information: The CIDOC Information Categories(1995)(2) Statement of Principles of Museum Documentation(2012)(3) Environmental Guidelines ICOM-CC and IIC Declaration(2014)(4) International Committee for Documentation Conceptual Reference Model(2021)

LISTING OF RELEVANT COUNTRIES WHERE THE SUBJECT OF THE PROPOSAL IS IMPORTANT TO
THEIR NATIONAL COMMERCIAL INTERESTS(Please see the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1, Annex C, Clause C.4.8)
Argentina, Australia, Belarus, Canada, China, Egypt, France, Germany, Greece, India, Iran (Islamic Republicof), Israel, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Korea (Republic of), Nepal, Pakistan, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia,
South Africa, Spain, Türkiye, United Kingdom, United States, Uzbekistan, and organizations for conservation ofcultural heritage
LISTING OF RELEVANT EXTERNAL INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS OR INTERNAL PARTIES(OTHER THAN ISO AND/OR IEC COMMITTEES) TO BE ENGAGED AS LIASONS IN THIS WORK
(Please see the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1, Clause C.4.9)
1. ISO/TC 36 Cinematography

2. ISO/TC42 Photography
3. ISO/TC 46 Information and documentation
4. ISO/TC 228 Tourism and related services
5. United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
6. International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS)
7. International Council of Museums (ICOM)
8. International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM)
9. International Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (IIC)
10. Conservation International Council on Archives (ICA)
11 International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA)IDENTIFICATION AND DESCRIPTION OF RELEVANT AFFECTED STAKEHOLDER CATEGORIES (Pleasesee ISO Connect)
Benefits/Impacts/ Examples- Provide reliable technical requirements for cultural
heritage conservation
Industry and commerce – large industry- Assist in the development and improvement ofmaterials, equipment, and technologies for cultural
heritage conservation

Industry and commerce – SMEs

- Same to that of large industry- Raise awareness of the importance of cultural
heritage conservation

Government-Guide in the formulation of cultural heritage
conservation policies- Provide standard tools for the management of
cultural heritage conservation projects

Consumers- Improve the understanding of the importance of
cultural heritage conservation- Enhance the accessibility, appreciation and enjoymentof the preserved cultural heritage- Provide professional technical specifications for
personal skills and career development

Labour- Provide standards for professional qualification- Create more job opportunities for international
personnel

Academic and research bodies- Promote more international academic exchanges andcooperation through the development of commonly
agreed terminology and the formulation ofinternational standards- Enhance basic research on cultural heritage
conservation- Standardize and effectively carry out work

Standards application businesses- Provide international standards for professional
qualifications

Non-governmental organizations- Provide worldwide technical guidance for cultural
heritage conservation in accordance with international
standards and conventions issued by relevantinternational organizations

Other (please specify)

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EXPRESSION OF LEADERSHIP COMMITMENT FROM THE PROPOSER(Please see the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1, Annex C, Clause C.4.12)
If ISO agrees to establish this Committee on Conservation Technology of Cultural Heritage, China is willing toundertake the work of the Secretariat.
☒ The proposer confirms that this proposal has been drafted in compliance with iso/iec directives,
part 1, annex c

SIGNATURE OF THE PROPOSERSACCOMMENTS OF THE ISO CENTRAL OFFICE (IF ANY)
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