Revisiting Wood Identification

Includes a Live Web Event on 10/30/2026 at 12:00 PM (EDT)

Revisiting Wood Identification: Part I

Live lecture: October 30, 2026, at 12pm ET

Intended for collections professionals with a baseline knowledge of wood anatomy, this lecture, given jointly by Arlen Heginbotham (Conservator of Decorative Arts and Sculpture, the J. Paul Getty Museum) and Randy Wilkinson (Principal Conservator, Fallon and Wilkinson LLC), will reinforce the importance of microscopic anatomical analysis as the predominant wood identification technique. Topics will include setting up a successful thinking framework for wood identification, reviewing the best available resources with which to compare your samples, and presenting options for when you’ve hit the inherent limitations of this technique. The current research into other instrumental techniques being explored for wood identification will also be reviewed.

Revisiting Wood Identification: Part II

Live lecture: Time/Date TBA

The second part of this series will serve as a practical exploration of much of the theory discussed in Part I, with our speakers each demonstrating their workflow from taking a successful sample to navigating the previously mentioned resources.

Registration includes both lectures and access to the recordings after the live events.

Arlen Heginbotham

Conservator of Decorative Arts and Sculpture

J. Paul Getty Museum

Arlen Heginbotham is Conservator of Decorative Arts and Sculpture at the J. Paul Getty Museum. He received his A.B. in East Asian Studies from Stanford University, his M.A. in Art Conservation from Buffalo State College, and his Ph.D. in Earth Sciences from the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. Arlen’s research interests include the technical study of Asian export lacquer, wood identification by chemical analysis, the use of X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy as a tool for studying copper alloy artifacts and their patinas, and digital X-radiography for conservation. He has authored over 40 peer reviewed publications and has co-authored, with Gillian Wilson, the catalog French Rococo Ébénisterie in the J. Paul Getty Museum and is an editor and author of the recently published Guidelines for the Technical Examination of Bronze Sculpture from Getty Publications.

Randy Wilkinson

Principal Conservator

Fallon and Wilkinson LLC

Originally from Baltic, Connecticut, Mr. Wilkinson attended the University of New Haven and received a BS in Electrical Engineering in 1988. After college, he gave up engineering and decided to follow a dream by opening a business building 18th and 19th century reproduction furniture. During his first years in business, he was often asked to repair antiques. Seeing the need to learn more about furniture restoration, he was accepted in the Smithsonian Institution’s Furniture Conservation Training Program in 1996. He spent four years in training, receiving his MA from Antioch University, in Yellow Springs, Ohio. He completed internships at the Preservation Society of Newport County, in Newport, Rhode Island, and the Mystic Seaport Museum, in Mystic, Connecticut.