Sibylla Tringham

Lecturer, Conservation of Wall Paintings

Sibylla was appointed lecturer in wall painting conservation at The Courtauld in 2015. During the previous decade, she supervised major field programmes for The Courtauld at Nagaur (India) and Valletta (Malta), and held a part-time appointment as visiting lecturer. In addition to lecturing, she supervises and teaches on national and international projects in Bhutan, China, Cyprus, Georgia, and for the Leon Levy Foundation Centre for Conservation Studies at Nagaur (India).

Following an MA in History of Art at Edinburgh University, she received her Courtauld MA in Conservation of Wall Painting in 2004, and took up a Graduate Internship in Field Projects at the Getty Conservation Institute. Sibylla has served on the Department’s International Advisory Board since 2011 and is a Fellow of the International Institute for Conservation.

Sibylla’s research interests are in consolidation of paintings and plaster, with a focus in assessment methods. Previous research investigated field and laboratory methods for determining the distribution of organic and inorganic consolidants in painted lime plaster. Other research interests lie in environmental causes of deterioration and passive approaches to their amelioration, and imaging and documentation techniques.


Research interests

  • Consolidation of decohesive paint layer and plasters
  • Environmental causes of deterioration and passive approaches to their mitigation
  • Imaging techniques for conservation
  • Remedial approaches to  wall painting conservation

Recent Publications

  •  ‘Trialling an Accessible Non-Contact Photogrammetric Monitoring Technique to Detect 3D Change on Wall Paintings’ W. Rose, J. Bedford, E. Howe,  and S. Tringham in Studies in Conservation, 2021
  • ‘Challenges of Conserving Wall Paintings: A 30-Year Perspective’, S. Tringham & S. Rickerby in Studies in Conservation, Volume 65, Special issue: IIC 2020 Edinburgh Congress preprints, 2020, 327-332.
  • ‘Conserving the Wall Paintings at Longthorpe Tower’ S. Tringham Courtauld News, 42, 2020, 70-71.
  • ‘Passive and remedial approaches to salt damage and biodeterioration of wall paintings and monuments in the Crypt of the Grand Masters, St John’s Co-Cathedral, Valletta’, S. Tringham, C. Martin de Fonjaudran, C. de Giorgio and S. Cather in T. Danzl, M. Exner, E. Rüber-Schütte (eds.) Wandmalereien in Krypten, Grotten, Katakomben. Zur Konservierung gefasster Oberflächen in umweltgeschädigten Räumen.  (Wall paintings in crypts, grottoes and catacombs. Strategies for the conservation of coated surfaces in damp environments)  Symposium, Quedlinburg, Germany, 3-6 November 2011, German National Committee of ICOMOS, Halle. 2013, 85-96
  • ‘Cultural identity, conservation approaches, and dissemination: conserving the wall paintings of Nagaur Fort, Rajasthan, India’, C. Martin de Fonjaudran, S. Tringham, S. Bogin, S. Menon and K. Jasol,ICOM-CC 16thTriennial Conference 2011 Proceedings. Almada, Critério, Lisbon, 2011 (e-publication, no pagination)
  • ‘Book Review’, S. Tringham Studies in Conservation (54) 2009, 62-4
  • ‘Protective structures over archaeological sites: a review of assessment initiatives’, S. Tringham and J. Stewart, in A. Ben Abed, M. Demas and T. Roby (eds.) Lessons Learned: Reflecting on the Theory and Practice of Mosaic Conservation: Proceedings of the 9th ICCM Conference, Hammamet, Tunisia, November 29-December 3, 2005 J. Paul Getty Trust, Los Angeles, 2008, 204-14.
  • ‘Conserving the Palace of Mirrors at Nagaur, Rajasthan’ S. Bogin, C. Martin de Fonjaudran and S. Tringham, in Courtauld News (No. 23) Spring 2008, 14-15.

Citations