4th symposium on Preserving Archaeological Remains in situ 2011

International legislation, such as the Valetta treaty, calls for the “conservation and maintenance of the archaeological heritage, preferably in situ”. Since 1996 research into in situ preservation has been presented at a series of international conferences: Preserving Archaeological Remains in situ (PARIS). The fourth of these conferences will be held in Copenhagen at the National Museum of Denmark in May 2011.

After fifteen years of research and practical application the time is ripe to evaluate the efficacy of in situ preservation as a means of managing the cultural resource. The key aim of the conference is to present and discuss the latest knowledge, focusing on long term studies of degradation and monitoring of archaeological sites preserved in situ in urban, rural and marine environments.
One of the strengths of the previous PARIS conferences has been in their multidisciplinary nature bringing together scientists, heritage managers and policy makers. Building on this the organizers especially call for presentations from practitioners and stakeholders to cover the following themes:

1. Degradation of archaeological remains. Can we quantify degradation rates and what rates are acceptable?
2. Monitoring and mitigation case studies – with special focus on long term projects. How, and how long, should sites be monitored?
3. Protocols, standards and legislation for monitoring and management. Is it realistic to make multinational standards when the sites and national legislations are so variable?
4. Preserving Archaeological Remains in situ. Can we document the effectiveness of in situ preservation after nearly 2 decades of research?