Standards Development

Scope

This document is a part of the series of standards on seismic protection of cultural heritage collections under ISO/TC 349. It provides comprehensive principles for seismic testing and monitoring of cultural heritage collections, clarifies the inherent interdependence between the two complementary activities of testing and monitoring objects in cultural heritage collections, and specifies technical requirements such as laboratory and in-situ testing, together with in-situ monitoring, application of testing and monitoring data, as well as the content and format of outcome reports.

This document is applicable to, but not limited to, the seismic damage mitigation for cultural objects in exhibition and storage within buildings, as well as exhibition/storage facilities. It is not applicable to the seismic damage mitigation of those buildings.

Purpose

Worldwide, cultural heritage sites and institutions holding objects in cultural heritage collections are exposed to seismic risk. Even when the main structural system of a building remains intact, earthquakes can still cause severe damage to objects in cultural heritage collections. In recent years, seismic events in several earthquake-prone countries have resulted in significant losses, involving not only physical damage to cultural heritage but also the loss of elements of the shared cultural identity of humanity.

During the transmission of seismic motion from the supporting structure to the objects in cultural heritage collections, the dynamic response of the objects can be described in terms of three energy components: (1) dissipated energy, associated with frictional sliding and cracking at contact interfaces; (2) potential energy, associated with internal forces and deformations within the object; and (3) kinetic energy, associated with the velocity and acceleration of object motion.

The seismic performance of objects in cultural heritage collections is jointly influenced by the characteristics of the exhibition or storage conditions and by the dynamic response of the host building. Their behavior is highly sensitive to key performance parameters, including the dynamic properties of the structure (natural frequencies and mode shapes), material properties (strength, yield strain), and the conditions of connection interfaces (e.g., friction coefficient).

Therefore, effective seismic damage mitigation for objects in cultural heritage collections requires interdisciplinary collaboration among experts in engineering, archaeology, and cultural heritage conservation. Such collaboration is essential for the development of theoretical models and safetyoriented design approaches for seismic performance. It also requires the combined use of laboratory testing and in-situ monitoring to verify the accuracy of key performance parameters and the validate the results of theoretical seismic performance analyses. Laboratory testing enables the identification of sensitive performance parameters and the derivation of fragility data for cultural objects under controlled conditions. In-situ monitoring allows the verification of these parameters and fragility data by tracking seismic response and long-term behavioral evolution under operational and environmental conditions. It also enables learning from non-damaging or low-intensity events, providing valuable information for improving protection and mitigation strategies against future destructive earthquakes. Under seismic action, structural characteristics such as frictional sliding, cracking, internal forces, and displacements constitute the primary control parameters for the seismic safety of building structures. In contrast, the velocity and acceleration response spectra of building floors represent the seismic input to the object response for the seismic safety of exhibition and storage systems, as well as of the cultural objects they support. The control parameters for object safety are related to displacement, rotation (overturning), and material strain limits.

The dynamic response spectra of floors are mainly governed by the characteristics of the seismic input motion and by the natural vibration frequency of the host building. Testing methods for the identification of the dynamic characteristics of the buildings housing the collections may include experimental approaches or, where sufficient data are available, validated numerical or analytical models.

At present, commonly adopted seismic damage mitigation measures for cultural heritage collections, such as strapping, clamping, and anchoring, can effectively limit sliding, collision, swaying, and overturning of cultural objects under seismic action. However, these measures may also increase seismic potential energy, which can exacerbate stress-strain demand on the objects and lead to material integrity damage, such as cracking or permanent deformation.

Consequently, small-scale sampling and non-destructive testing aimed at characterizing material-level seismic performance indicators of cultural objects constitute an essential component of a comprehensive strategy for ensuring the seismic safety of cultural heritage collections.

It is crucial to conduct systematic verification of seismic design assumptions and of the effectiveness of mitigation measures, safety design assumptions, and damage mitigation measures for objects in cultural heritage collections prior to their implementation. Shaking-table testing of integrated “exhibition or cabinet systems – cultural object” assemblies provide a controlled environment for characterizing their dynamic performance. By adopting floor acceleration or velocity response spectra under seismic action as input conditions, such tests allow the identification of potential failure modes (e.g., sliding, overturning, or collision) and the quantitative verification of the effectiveness of protection schemes. As a complementary approach to laboratory testing, seismic monitoring provides key insights into the behavioral characteristics of objects in cultural heritage collections and their exhibition or storage environments. Monitoring systems capture dynamic response data during actual or simulated events using non-invasive and easily removable instrumentation. These data are essential for validating protection strategies, refining fragility models, and supporting post-earthquake inspections, thereby contributing to the sustained effectiveness of seismic damage mitigation measures.

This document provides methodologies for: a) classifying cultural objects in cultural heritage collections into typologies and fragility classes, enabling representative analysis without requiring testing of every individual object; b) conducting laboratory testing of integrated “exhibition or storage systems – cultural objects” assemblies, using representative objects or high-fidelity surrogates, to quantify seismic fragility classes; and c) implementing in-situ monitoring of the combined “building structure – exhibition or storage systems – cultural object” system to assess the dynamic behavior of objects within their specific environments and to verify the effectiveness of protective measures.

In accordance with the comments of the committee expressed during the first plenary meeting of ISO/TC 349, the scope of this document has been refined to clarify its structure and objectives. Although the standard addresses both testing and monitoring, these activities are treated within a single, integrated framework. This integration is essential, as testing activities rely on monitoring technologies for data acquisition, while the reliability and long-term effectiveness of monitoring approaches require validation through experimental testing.

To ensure focused and efficient progress, the drafting working group will establish task-oriented subgroups dedicated to testing and to monitoring, respectively. These subgroups will operate in close coordination under the unified leadership of Working Group 1 (WG1) on Cultural Heritage Seismic Protection. This organizational structure is intended to ensure methodological consistency with other standards in the series and to preserve the coherence and integrity of the final set of International Standards.

This document complements ISO/AWI 25938 (Cultural heritage conservation — Seismic damage mitigation for objects in cultural heritage collections — General principles and requirements). This document focuses on the field of seismic testing and monitoring, serving as the core technical content for implementing Section 5.7 of ISO/AWI 25938 General Principles and Requirements, and reflects the verifiability principle required for international standard formulation. The standard establishes consistent methodologies for testing and monitoring, enabling comparability, repeatability, and validation of results across different institutions and countries. It supports the integration of experimental data into seismic risk assessment and decision-making processes. By supporting the evaluation of seismic demand and the verification of protection measures, the standard contributes to reducing damage to cultural heritage collections and optimizing preventive interventions, leading to more efficient allocation of financial and technical resources. The standard contributes to the safeguarding of cultural identity and the continuity of public access to cultural heritage collections by improving their resilience to seismic events and supporting informed risk management strategies. The adoption of preventive and performance-based approaches promoted by the standard can reduce the risk of irreversible loss or severe damage to cultural heritage objects, thereby limiting material waste and environmental impact. This document supports the achievement of the relevant United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs):

SDG 3 – Good Health and Well-being: By improving the seismic safety of cultural heritage objects and their display environments, the document contributes to reducing risks to museum staff, visitors, and conservators during and after seismic events.

SDG 4 – Quality Education: The standard promotes knowledge transfer and the dissemination of scientifically grounded methodologies for seismic testing and monitoring of cultural heritage collections, supporting education and capacity building in conservation and engineering disciplines.

SDG 8 – Decent Work and Economic Growth: By providing structured technical frameworks for preventive conservation, the document supports the protection of cultural heritage assets that contribute to sustainable cultural tourism and associated economic activities.

SDG 9 – Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure: The document encourages the development and application of innovative testing, monitoring, and mitigation technologies, strengthening technical infrastructure for cultural heritage conservation in seismic regions.

SDG 11 – Sustainable Cities and Communities: Cultural heritage is a key component of resilient and sustainable communities. The proposed standard supports the protection of movable cultural heritage against seismic hazards, contributing to disaster risk reduction and urban resilience.

SDG 12 – Responsible Consumption and Production: By promoting preventive conservation and risk mitigation, the document reduces the likelihood of irreversible loss of irreplaceable cultural heritage objects, supporting responsible stewardship of cultural resources.

SDG 16 – Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions: The protection of cultural heritage strengthens institutional responsibility, cultural identity, and international cooperation in disaster risk reduction, aligning with governance and resilience objectives.