Kinshasa conservation professor calls for testing of traditional materials
ACP (ND) reports that Henry Bundjoko has called for scientific testing of traditional Congolese materials used in conserving cultural objects. Speaking at Kinshasa’s Académie des beaux-arts, the professor described a catalogue of thirteen local plants and materials and proposed fieldwork with artisans. He stressed that laboratory research must establish toxicity, compatibility and reversibility before wider use. His proposal connects conservation training with local knowledge, rather than treating traditional recipes as proven restoration methods.