In July 2009, NSF and the Mellon Foundation co-sponsored a workshop aimed at examining and improving the state of the science used to study, preserve and protect cultural patrimony.

The goals of the workshop were to explore the basic scientific questions relating to cultural heritage materials; define priorities for research; frame promising research initiatives that could be implemented in the short and long term; and enhance cross-disciplinary collaborations among scientists in cultural heritage institutions and their peers in academic, national, and industrial laboratories.
The full report, Chemistry and Materials Research at the Interface between Science and Art  can be downloaded here