Franca Cole

Franca Cole is an archaeologist and conservator whose research focuses on the way humans interact with material culture. Her projects include the deliberate fragmentation of handmade ceramics at Niah Caves, Sarawak; trans-Saharan trade of beads and textiles; and sustainable alternatives to air-conditioning for collections storage in extreme climates. Currently she is a Research Fellow on the Climate Transformation Programme and lectures on Material Culture and Collections Care at NTU. Franca was educated at UCL and University of Cambridge. Before her PhD, she was a freelance archaeological conservator, working at sites and museums in Turkey, Libya, Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Peru, Chile, India, Norway, Greece, UAE, Qatar and Malaysia. She has held academic posts at UCL Qatar and the University of Leicester, has lead conservation training programmes at UNESCO Bangkok and HCC Singapore, and was State consultant in conservation and archaeology to Sarawak Museum Department 2020-2026.