Postdoctoral Position in Cultural Sciences

The research group Antwerp Cultural Heritage Sciences (ARCHES) of the University of Antwerp (Faculty Design Sciences, Conservation-Restoration), in collaboration with the AXIS research group (University of Antwerp, Department of Physics), is looking for a full-time (100%) doctoral candidate in the interdisciplinary field of Applied Sciences and Heritage science, focussing on the material technical study and chemical characterization of impermeable coatings on historical horse-drawn vehicles.

The University of Antwerp is a dynamic, forward-thinking, European university. We offer an innovative academic education to more than 20 000 students, conduct pioneering scientific research and play an important service-providing role in society. We are one of the largest, most international and most innovative employers in the region. With more than 6000 employees from 100 different countries, we are helping to build tomorrow's world every day. Through top scientific research, we push back boundaries and set a course for the future – a future that you can help to shape. ARCHES is a research group associated with the educational programs of Conservation-Restoration and Heritage studies. The group's mission is to build bridges between various scientific fields (Life, Social and Natural Sciences), in pursuit of improving the conservation of both tangible and intangible heritage. AXIS is a research group specialized in non-invasive analysis and imaging of cultural heritage and museum objects and intensively collaborates with various Belgian, European and American museums.

Position

• You will work actively on the preparation and defence of a PhD thesis dedicated to the study of historical impermeable coatings (in particular on carriages and sledges).
• More in particular, your work will focus on the chemical characterisation of the lacquer coatings found on historical horse-drawn vehicles (using mostly X-ray based and IR-based methods - also at synchrotron end stations - as well as MS methods) and on the production, artificial ageing and chemical characterization of historically accurate mock-up samples.
• This is a strongly interdisciplinary project with an international scope, this implies that the candidate will have to collaborate in an interdisciplinary manner with chemists, heritage scientists and conservators throughout the project. Therefore the candidate should have good communication skills and is expected to interact pro-actively with, and occasionally travel to, the European institutes and museums associated with this project.
• You will do most of your work at the City (CST) and Groenenborger (CGB) campuses of the University of Antwerp, under the guidance of professors Andrea Marchetti (heritage science) and Koen Janssens (natural sciences). You will closely collaborate with colleagues at the Royal Museum of Art and History (Brussels) and occasionally travel to partner institutions throughout Europe (Portugal, Germany, Italy, France,...).
• You will publish scientific articles in WoS journals with impact factor, related to the research project.
• You will carry out a limited number of teaching and research support tasks for the Antwerp research groups.

Profile

• You hold a master’s degree in chemistry or physics, heritage science or chemistry applied to cultural heritage, or you will have obtained it by the time you start work.
• Expertise in material-technical research of heritage objects is considered a plus.
• Expertise in mass-spectrometry based techniques is considered a plus.
• Expertise in molecular spectroscopy techniques is considered a plus.
• You can demonstrate that you achieved excellent results in your studies.
• Your research qualities are in line with the faculty and university research policies.
• You act with attention to quality, integrity, creativity and cooperation.
• You can speak and write English fluently, knowledge of Dutch and/or French is considered a plus.

What we offer

• We offer a full-time doctoral scholarship for a period of 1 year. Following a positive evaluation, the scholarship can be renewed for another 3 years.
• You will work in an international context on an interdisciplinary project, giving access to state of the art equipment and key museum collections.
• Your monthly scholarship amount is calculated according to the scholarship amounts for doctoral scholarship holders on the pay scales for Contract Research Staff (Dutch: Bijzonder Academisch Personeel, BAP).
• The planned start date is October 1, 2024 or as soon as possible after that date.
• Find out more about working at the University of Antwerp here.

Want to apply?

• You can apply for this vacancy through the University of Antwerp’s online job application platform up to and including 9 September 2024 (by midnight Brussels time). Click on the 'Apply' button, complete the online application form and be sure to include the following attachments: a motivation letter and your academic CV.
• The selection committee will review your application as soon as possible after the application deadline. As soon as a decision has been made, we will inform you about the next steps in the selection procedure. Please take note of the following dates: September 16 and/or September 18, 2024 for your possible online or on campus interview (in by mutual agreement).
• If you have any questions about the online application form, please check the frequently asked questions or send an email to jobs@uantwerpen.be. If you have any questions about the job itself, please contact Prof. Andrea Marchetti, promotor of this project Andrea.Marchetti@uantwerpen.be.

Context

Up to the early 20th century, carriages and sleighs have played a central role in society and thus are present in many museum collections today. Yet, the heritage of horse-drawn vehicles (Hippomobile heritage) remains a vastly understudied area in heritage scholarship, especially when it comes to materials, technology and degradation. This research aims at gaining a deeper understanding of one of the most complex materials found in carriages: impermeable lacquer coatings.

Because of their nature and use, horse-drawn vehicles were systematically exposed to environmental agents such as (UV) light, moisture, atmospheric pollution gases and dirt/dust. The water-sensitive materials that form part of these vehicles were protected against the adverse effect of the environment through the application of impermeable lacquer coatings. These are complex, multi-layered organic coatings, composed of mixtures of various natural resins, drying oils, metal driers and pigments, but possibly also early synthetic materials (in 19^th and 20^th century). During ageing, these materials interact with each other and with environmental agents, further complicating the overall chemistry of the coatings.

Today, the lack of research on the history, composition and reactivity of these multilayered coatings, makes it impossible to design a well-informed conservation plan for hippomobile heritage. The lacquer on the exterior of historical horse-drawn vehicles, when original, is often found in a poor conservation state. Given the key twofold function of lacquer on carriages and sleighs, i.e., protective and decorative, its degradation can have dramatic consequences on the overall condition of the objects and cause a drastic loss of aesthetic, historical and thus (future) valorization value for the museums they are kept in.

This research aims at filling this critical knowledge gap by means of a multidisciplinary approach, combining (1) material characterization of historical vehicles by means of state-of-the-art analytical methods, with (2) research of written and visual sources and reconstruction of historical lacquer coatings. The fundamental information obtained in this project will allow to shed light on the composition and technology of these impermeable coatings. These results will complement previous research conducted on European lacquers employed for indoor applications, finally allowing to obtain a complete picture on lacquer materials and on the historical evolution of waterproofing and material technology as a whole.

The University of Antwerp received the European Commission’s HR Excellence in Research Award for its HR policy. We are a sustainable, family-friendly organisation which invests in its employees’ growth. We encourage diversity and attach great importance to an inclusive working environment and equal opportunities, regardless of gender identity, disability, race, ethnicity, religion or belief, sexual orientation or age. We encourage people from diverse backgrounds and with diverse characteristics to apply.