Angela Calia

Angela Calia

Senior Research Director

+39 0832 422208
Lecce
angela.calia@cnr.it

Professional profile

Geologist| Heritage Materials Specialist | Conservation Scientist

Experience and expertise in applied research on cultural heritage materials and artifacts, focusing on issues related to knowledge, diagnosis, and conservation. In particular, her research falls within highly interdisciplinary contexts and covers the following topics:

  • Materials Characterization: Mineralogical-petrographic, chemical, and physical applications in the study of natural and artificial stone materials, paintings, and surface finishes on Cultural Heritage artifacts for archaeometric purposes (nature of component materials, production technologies, execution techniques, provenance, dating, etc.).
  • Decay and Durability: Petrophysical and physico-mechanical characterization of historical building materials combined with artificial aging processes, aimed at studying the causes and mechanisms of decay, durability, and conservation issues.
  • Integrated Diagnostics: Application of integrated diagnostic technologies in the framework of minimally invasive investigation protocols.
  • Conservation: Development and testing of new products and treatments for the conservation of stone surfaces, along with laboratory and in situ studies of performance (efficacy, compatibility, and durability) in relation to the substrates and the exposure environment.

Currently responsible for the FIXLAB platform, at CNR ISPC in Lecce, of E-RIHS.it, the Italian node of the European Research Infrastructure for Heritage Science (E-RIHS).

CNR Disciplinary Fields and Research Management Sectors

  • SH8_1 Science and Technologies for Cultural Heritage
  • PE11_5 Engineering of composites and hybrid materials
  • PE10_10 Mineralogy, petrology, igneous petrology, metamorphic petrology

MUR Italian Scientific-Disciplinary Sector

  • GEOS-01/D Mineral Resources and Mineralogical-Petrographic Applications for the Environment and Cultural Heritage

Groups & Labs CNR ISPC

Heritage Materials Science Lab →
Heritage Conservation Lab →

Publications

CNR IRIS platform →
ORCID →

Highlight

G. Di Fusco, A. Calia (2026). Advances in (LA)-ICP-MS techniques and applications for the elemental analysis in the field of cultural heritage: a review, Talanta 303, 2026, 129492, pp. 32. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.talanta.2026.129492

D. Fico, G. Di Fusco, M. Masieri, R. Casciaro, D. Rizzo, A. Calia (2026). An Advanced Multi-Analytical Approach to Study Baroque Painted Wood Sculptures from Apulia (Southern Italy). Materials, 19(2), 284, pp.26. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ma19020284

G. Simonelli, G. Sidoti, L. Ruggiero, A. Calia, G. Quarta, F. Aramini, P. Mezzadri (2024). The use of phosphonates to inhibit salt crystallization: a laboratory study for the sustainable conservation of mural paintings in the hypogea context, Sustainability, 16, 9745. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/su16229745

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