About Me

I am an accredited conservator with 40 years of experience, specialising in public engagement, sustainable conservation, archive rationalisation and investigative conservation of archaeological artefacts, in the field and in post-excavation and museum contexts. I collaborate widely with individuals and institutions, and edited a volume drawing together research on the conservation of coins, Look after the Pennies (Archetype, 1998). Having previously worked for the American Museum of Natural History, Museum of London and the National Trust, I now lead DGB Conservation, a friendly team providing a range of conservation, exhibition design, installation, mounting and research services across the UK and abroad. We work frequently with organisations including Canterbury Archaeological Trust, Oxford Archaeology, Maidstone Museums, and Compton Verney Art Gallery.

We offer tailored expertise across archaeological conservation, including on-site lifting; assessment, conservation, and continued care and handling of museum objects; and materials science analyses. We have a well-stocked conservation laboratory based in Kent, and analytical equipment including a scanning electron microscope and FTIR machine.

Services offered include:

Conservation Planning and Assessment
o  Providing conservation advice at planning, fieldwork, and post-excavation stages.
o  Compiling reports on the conservation needs of individual artefacts and site assemblages.
o  Contributing to preservation in situ and reburial methodologies.
o  X-radiography and 3D photogrammetry of artefacts for recording and treatment assessment.
o  Targeted and general surveys of archaeological material.

Conservation Treatments
o  Treatment of all types of object for archive deposition and display.
o  On-site lifting of fragile objects and assemblages of objects; in-situ stabilisation of walls and wall plaster.

Scientific Research
o  Research into the technology and stability of non-ferrous metals.
o  Specialist analyses of object manufacture and composition using scanning electron microscopy and/or FTIR.

Training and Advocacy
o  Training sessions on the general care of artefacts for archaeological and museum workers, including on-site lifting, pot washing and sticking, packaging, and X-radiography.
o  Liaising between related professionals (planners, archaeologists, scientists, museums).
o  Demonstrations, displays, and publications for clients and the general public.

Collection Handling
o  Specialist packaging.
o  Collection moves.
o  Exhibition installation.
o  Artwork handling.
o  Mounting.

My team includes Dr Emma Payne and Dr Luciana da Costa Carvalho, both conservators of archaeological and museum objects, who trained at the Institute of Archaeology, University College London. Emma has worked on a range of archaeological materials on site in the UK, Italy, and Egypt, and in museum contexts. She specialises in the analysis and treatment of plaster and stone sculpture. Emma also uses 3D imaging for her research and recently published her book Casting the Parthenon Sculptures from the Eighteenth Century to the Digital Age (Bloomsbury, 2021). Luciana is an experienced materials scientist specialising in the identification of organic residues associated with inorganic matrices. She recently published her book Beyond Copper Soaps: Characterization of Copper Corrosion Containing Organics (Springer, 2022) and she has worked extensively in the field in Egypt.

A longstanding member of the DGB Conservation team is Marie Le Saux, conservator and museum technician. Marie has worked with Dana since 2007. She trained in conservation in 2006, as one of the first of an ICON work-based training programme cohort, and has since assisted Dana on a wide variety of projects. Marie is also an experienced museum technician dealing with collections care and exhibition installation, having worked at both the V&A and the British Museum.

Beyond lab-based object conservation and materials science, my own interests are centred on cultural education, engagement, and community projects. My community project CSI: Sittingbourne involved training local volunteers to help conserve archaeological finds from a nearby Anglo-Saxon grave site. CSI: Sittingbourne received the 2012 IIC Keck Award for the best project for public engagement in conservation, which was co-awarded with the Acropolis Museum in Athens. The CSI lab is based in Sittingbourne’s central shopping centre and open to visitors to encourage community involvement. Recently granted a Movement for Good award from the Benefact Group was a follow-on project, Hands on the Past @ CSI: Sittingbourne organised between Sittingbourne Heritage Museum and AMTec Heritage Science CIC / DGB Conservation. Many of our community engagement projects are organised as part of AMTec Heritage Science CIC: https://www.amteccic.com.

One of the most rewarding aspects of my work is engaging new audiences with expert knowledge; I love designing and facilitating creative/educational workshops based around heritage material. I am always interested to discuss new partnership projects, local community, business and public sector funded projects, project management, and volunteer and professional training.