Topkapi Palace, Hagia Sophia, Dolmabahce and the Anatolian Civilizations Museum are UNESCO-listed Turkish heritage sites. Artefacts include wood, fabric, parchment and oil paintings. NFPA 909 mandates VESDA early detection, water mist or gas instead of sprinklers, water-damage minimization and egress close to artefacts.
Heritage Risk
- Wooden structure: Ottoman architecture
- Painting canvas: Oil-based
- Manuscript: Parchment paper
- Textile: Carpet kilim
- Notre-Dame 2019: 850-yr wooden roof
NFPA 909 Strategy
- Prevention: Passive primary
- Early detection: VESDA HSSD
- Minimize water: Water mist 70 bar
- Gas suppression: FM-200 for artefacts
- Salvage plan: Priority list
VESDA HSSD
- Sensitivity: 0.005 percent obs/m
- Air sampling: Pipe network
- 4 alarm levels: Alert-Action-Fire 1-2
- Invisible: Hidden in front of artefact
- Topkapi harem: VESDA reference
Water Mist
- High pressure: 70-100 bar
- Droplet size: <100 um
- Evaporation: Heat absorption
- Water use: 20 percent of sprinkler
- Damage to artefacts: Minimal
Turkey Museums
- Topkapi Palace: 400,000 artefacts
- Hagia Sophia: 1500 yr UNESCO
- Dolmabahce: Late Ottoman
- Anatolian Civilizations: Ankara
- Beirut 2020: Museum damage
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Sources & Further Reading
NFPA 909, NFPA 914, UNESCO, TS EN 14972, Getty Conservation. NFPA 909 Protection of Cultural Resource Properties.