The temperature in the Rattanakosin Museum of Dress’s main gallery climbed to 33.6°C (92.5°F) on Tuesday afternoon, and humidity reached 78%, according to the museum. Conservators removed the affected garments after staff detected the change; no visitors or workers were hurt. The exhibition’s other 58 outfits were moved to a separate, climate-controlled room.
The museum closed the gallery at 14:20 and cancelled its remaining visits for the day. It estimated that 26 gowns from a collection of 84 had suffered distortion to silk panels or softened seams. Repairs and conservation work could cost ฿4.8 million (about €127,000), the museum said, though the full damage assessment is not complete.
A paper behind the trial
The experiment began after a 9 September paper by materials researchers Špela Rožič and Cem E. Solmaz proposed that woven plant-fibre screens could reduce cooling demand in textile galleries by up to 22%. The study, published by the fictional Journal of Passive Materials, tested small display rooms under controlled conditions, not a full exhibition hall.
Museum staff fitted the screens above the gallery’s display walls last week. The installation was part of a plan to burn less diesel in backup generators as higher fuel costs and reduced deliveries squeezed the venue’s operating budget. On Tuesday, a grid interruption prompted the museum to switch to its generator, and the screens obstructed ceiling air returns, according to the museum’s first technical assessment.
“The paper gave us a reason to test a promising idea, but it did not test this room, this installation or a generator running at reduced output,” said Rožič, a materials researcher who reviewed the museum’s temperature readings. She said the study’s authors had not advised the museum on where to mount the screens.
The paper gave us a reason to test a promising idea, but it did not test this room, this installation or a generator running at reduced output.
Špela Rožič, materials researcher
Conservators assess the gowns
Alex Gaona, the museum’s exhibition curator, said the first warning came when a display case’s sensor passed 30°C shortly after 13:00. Staff opened the gallery doors and moved visitors out while conservators began transferring the gowns. “We followed the readings, but the temperature rose faster than our team expected,” Gaona said.
A separate review will examine the installation and the generator settings before the gallery can reopen, the museum said. The screens have been taken down, and the venue has suspended plans to use the method in two other rooms. It expects to publish an initial conservation report within 10 days.
The collection includes court dress and ceremonial clothing from several Thai regions, much of it made with hand-woven silk and ageing adhesives. Facundo Mota, a textile conservator at the museum, said the team would first stabilise each garment before deciding which could return to display. The exhibition remains open elsewhere, with tickets redirected to its unaffected galleries.
