High-Resolution Material Profiling of Institutional Collections for Anti-Trafficking Protocols

The protection of cultural heritage in Eastern Europe currently faces complex challenges of high-volume illicit supply and fragmented legal oversight. While Western European markets have moved toward stringent due diligence (EU Regulation 2019/880), many Eastern European jurisdictions remain vulnerable due to legislative lag and inconsistent definitions of cultural property.

Because the legal risks are low the Eastern Europe has seen a proliferation of "shadow markets.", exacerbated by war conflicts.  In these markets, high-quality forgeries are not merely sold as fakes; they are used to deform the legitimate market and cause economic strain in an already underfunded cultural sector.

The Slovak National Gallery oversights a collection of more than 100.000 of works of art, verified and studied by curators. By integrating Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) data from verified institutional collections into a centralized Material Signature Database (MSD), the initiative establishes an empirical authentication strategy that bypasses the limitations of current fragmented legal frameworks.

Utilizing machine learning algorithms to compare the spectroscopic data as well as data from non destructive and destructive testing of the questioned works of art against the verified chemimetric baseline, facilitates effective identification of objects in need of detailed study.

We are looking for partners in conservations science, material science and and GLAM sector, to develop an impactful proposal and establish empirically-driven protocols.