The Voice of Matter: science, ethics and forgotten landscapes in

The Voice of Matter: science and narratives in objects

On Saturday 11 April 2026 at 10:00, the Museo Egizio hosts a public conference on archaeometry: scientific approaches that probe material culture to reconstruct ancient technologies, environments and social practices. Specialists from chemistry, geology, botany and bioarchaeology explain how interdisciplinary analyses turn artefacts into information-rich archives.

Speakers and key topics

• Alessandro Borghi (Department of Earth Sciences, University of Turin) — Stones of Ancient Egypt: petrographic studies and valorisation of lithotypes used in architecture and sculpture; sourcing and working techniques.
• Alan Crivellaro (DISAFA, University of Turin) — The voice of wood: wood as a biological archive; dendrochronology, anatomy and tracing supply networks.
• Alice Paladin (Eurac Research) — Human remains: bioarchaeology as a tool to read individual and collective biographies and to connect past health data with contemporary questions.
• Marco Nicola (Department of Chemistry, University of Turin) — Egyptian blue: the ancient synthetic pigment, its chemical-physical traits, recent finds and modern technological potentials.

Chair: Enrico Ferraris.

Practical information

The conference takes place in the Museum's conference hall. Entrance is from Via Maria Vittoria 3m. Attendance is free but requires prior reservation. The event will also be streamed on the Museum's YouTube channel.

This talk is part of the public series preparing for the International Symposium of Archaeometry (ISA 2026) and is conceived for both specialists and the wider public interested in the intersections between science and cultural heritage.