Get an up-close look at musical conservation.
In the Conservation Lab, MIM’s team helps maintain the museum’s diverse collection. MIM conserves instruments and music-related artifacts to ensure their structural integrity and preservation for future generations. Through a large viewing window, guests can see the process of conservation, from cleaning and examining instruments to restoration, repair, and documentation.
Conservation work includes careful testing and documentation of various methods for stabilizing, preserving, and restoring objects made of a wide variety of materials, including wood, metal, bone, hide, and plastic. This research is significant for the broader field of museum conservation and helps to inform the treatment of ethnographic and anthropological collections in museums around the world.
Inside the Conservation Lab
Your support helps MIM preserve instruments which might otherwise be lost to history.
Musical History Under a Microscope
MIM’s conservation team conducted laboratory tests on two instruments, an Andean panpipe and a wooden rattle from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to learn more details about their pasts.
Video Highlights
Conserving Oversized Instruments
