European center for cultural heritage sciences established. The headquarters is in Florence

E-RIHS - European Research Infrastructure for Heritage Science(www.e-rihs.eu) provides technologically advanced tools and specialized expertise to explore the secrets of the colors in an ancient painting, analyze the composition of historic textiles or identify archaeological sites. This infrastructure brings together Europe’s most prestigious research centers, universities, restoration laboratories and archives to offer its services free of charge to the best projects selected by an international panel of experts. Since March 28, 2025, with the official recognition of the European Commission, E-RIHS has acquired the status of ERIC (European Research Infrastructure Consortium), a legal form that allows multiple countries to share resources and expertise in a stable way, thus opening new perspectives for interdisciplinary collaboration. The headquarters of E-RIHS ERIC is located in Italy, in Florence.

An infrastructure at the service of knowledge and preservation

Understanding, studying and preserving cultural heritage raises complex questions: what materials is a painting made of? What causes a fresco to deteriorate? How to protect an archaeological site from climate change? Answering these challenges requires a multidisciplinary approach that combines humanities, natural sciences and advanced technologies. E-RIHS, the only European infrastructure dedicated to heritage science, stands as a reference point for addressing these issues. It brings together research institutions, museums, universities, restoration laboratories and archives in a single collaborative network, offering access to excellent resources, data and services across Europe. It also promotes highly qualified training programs through the HS Academy to develop expertise in heritage science.

E-RIHS periodically selects the most promising projects from across Europe, aimed at deepening knowledge of cultural heritage and developing innovative solutions for its protection and enhancement. Selected projects can benefit free of charge from cutting-edge technologies, such as non-invasive diagnostic analysis, geophysical surveys, remote sensing, and digitization, as well as receive support from experts in the field. Specific services are also provided for museums and small institutions.

Some of the most significant projects carried out in Italy thanks to E-RIHS include, for example, the digitization of the Aztec turquoise mosaics in the Museum of Civilizations in Rome; the study of the materials and painting techniques of Andrea Solario, a Leonardo painter, at the Poldi Pezzoli Museum in Milan and of Giorgio Morandi at the Morandi Museum in Bologna; the analysis of the Papyrus of Kha, a 15-meter-long book of the dead kept at the Egyptian Museum in Turin; and the research on Etruscan painting technique in the wall paintings of the Tarquinia Necropolis. All these interventions were made possible thanks to teams of experts from different institutions.

A strategic milestone for European research

The path of E-RIHS is rooted in more than two decades of experience, gained through projects funded by the European Framework Programs for Research and Innovation. The establishment of E-RIHS as an ERIC represents a key step in consolidating its activities and strengthening its role in the international research landscape. The infrastructure is part of the ESFRI (European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures) Roadmap, which identifies the most relevant initiatives for the European Union. Italy, with the support of the Ministry of University and Research (MUR) and the National Research Council (CNR), is hosting the E-RIHS Central Hub in Florence, within the regenerated spaces of theformer Manifattura Tabacchi, granted by the Fondazione CR Firenze.

From this location, E-RIHS coordinates activities among its eleven founding countries-Cyprus, France, Italy, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, the United Kingdom, Romania, Slovenia, Spain and Hungary-which will soon be joined by ICCROM (International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property) as a permanent observer. This distributed network gives researchers, scholars and practitioners access to diagnostic analysis tools, scientific advice and databases held by individual institutions.

Statements

“The birth of E-RIHS marks a turning point for cultural heritage research and innovation,” says Minister of University and Research Anna Maria Bernini. “Italy has been its pioneer, promoting a real revolution, combining science, technology and culture. The mobile laboratories developed by our researchers have transformed the way of studying and preserving works, bringing research to places of culture.” “It is no coincidence,” he adds, “that Italy has been chosen to host this infrastructure, unique in Europe and the world. It is a project in which the MUR has invested with conviction more than 35 million euros in recent years between ordinary and strategic funds, and in which it continues to believe: a concrete commitment to support Italian scientific talent in a crucial field for the country, which unites the past of our culture with the future of research.”

“We are proud of this achievement, which recognizes the commitment of CNR and its partners in building a European research infrastructure for heritage sciences,” said CNR President Maria Chiara Carrozza. “The CNR has coordinated the national node of E-RIHS with contributions from the National Institute of Nuclear Physics (INFN) and the National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development (ENEA), providing state-of-the-art laboratories and established expertise, both at the national and European level. Over the years, it has developed new technologies, advanced protocols and digital tools for heritage study and conservation. With the launch of E-RIHS ERIC, the Italian node will also expand to include universities, which have contributed to the growth of E-RIHS through national and European projects. This will make it possible to strengthen interdisciplinary collaboration and promote research excellence in such a strategic field as cultural heritage.”

“We are grateful to our founding members for their continued support and to the European Commission for recognizing E-RIHS as a strategic research infrastructure for Europe,” said Vania Virgili, acting director general of E-RIHS. “E-RIHS is now a legally recognized entity, with a prestigious legacy in the advancement of cultural heritage science behind it and an unwavering commitment to transforming research into concrete solutions capable of addressing the challenges of the field and generating tangible impact on the protection and enhancement of cultural heritage for the benefit of society as a whole.”

“In 2015 on the occasion of the 40th anniversary celebrations of the Opificio delle Pietre Dure,” stressed Bernabò Bocca, President of Fondazione CR Firenze, “our Foundation came into contact with the project of bringing the headquarters of the European research infrastructure dedicated to Heritage Science to Florence. It appeared to us then a unique opportunity to further consolidate Florence’s role in the world as the ’capital of restoration.’ Since then we have accompanied the CNR and MUR to today’s recognition by the European Commission, which consolidates our institutional mission to support and promote, in a contemporary dimension of the historic cultural capital that our city preserves.”

Photo: E-RIHS.it

European center for cultural heritage sciences established. The headquarters is in Florence

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