International worhshop on Fluid Preserved Collection Management Held at RSU Anatomy Museum
The RSU Anatomy Museum hosted an international workshop titled 'Fluid Preserved Collection Management' earlier this week, 7 and 8 July. The event brought together curators, preparators, and conservators of anatomical and natural history collections from Latvia and neighboring countries.
Organized by the RSU Anatomy Museum, the seminar was designed for professionals working with biological material collections who wished to deepen their knowledge of fluid preserved specimen preservation. Over the course of two days, participants shared their experiences, took part in practical demonstrations, and engaged in discussions on contemporary methods for maintaining such collections. Attendees included representatives from Rīga Stradiņš University, the Latvian National Museum of Natural History, the Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies, Vilnius University, the Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, the University of Tartu, and the Estonian Museum of Natural History.
Museum curator Ieva Lībiete shared the idea behind the seminar: “Almost every university that established a medical or veterinary faculty in the late 19th or early 20th century created anatomical collections. However, evidence-based practices for preserving these specimens are rare. We’ve been very fortunate – in part thanks to initial support from Hoffmann-La Roche and now through our own efforts – to bring in professional German conservator Fabian Neisskenwirth, who is working in Riga this summer and sharing his expertise with our museum’s conservator Māris Jēkabsons. Since we’ve recently received many inquiries from colleagues in Latvia and neighbouring countries about our practices and how we address challenges specific to wet specimens, we decided to take this opportunity – while Fabian is with us – to bring together colleagues from the Baltic region to share experiences and strengthen collaboration, especially among university museums.”
On the seminar’s second day, participants attended practical lectures and took part in a round-table discussion on the challenges of maintaining collections and potential opportunities for collaboration. The seminar was supported by the Medical Museums Support Society, with special thanks to Artis Ērglis for his significant contribution to the event's organization.
