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Taylor & Francis

Prepare your manuscript for Journal of the Institute of Conservation.

Review the checklist, choose your article type, and turn your draft into a cleaner submission package.

Checked 2026-08-02
Check readiness freePrepare this manuscript

Article types

Review
Book Review
Editorial
Clinical Trial
Protocol
Letter
Lectio
Systematic Review

Readiness requirements

Review the key details below, or download the complete checklist with every stored source-backed requirement.

Abstract length

  • Provide an author-written abstract of no more than 150 words.
  • The abstract should be clear and concise, closely mirror the content and be self-contained, describing the 'what' of the article, 'why' the reader should care and 'how' the research addresses the problem posed.

Keywords

  • Authors should list six keywords.

Reference style

  • Articlo formats your supplied references to the journal's stored style and checks that citations match the reference list; source validity is not verified.
  • Full Articles should not normally exceed 10,000 words inclusive of all reference notes, tables and figure captions.
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  • Where applicable, this should include the hyperlink, DOI or other persistent identifier associated with the data set(s).
  • The footnotes should be placed in order of citation in a separate file, preceded by the footnote number in bold.
  • Imperial or other units of measurement should only be used if appropriate to the subject (e.g. when quoting a historical reference).
  • A declaration must be included within the submission stating: Confirmation the authors take full responsibility for the integrity of the whole content, including accuracy of references.

Figure and table rules

  • Keep every figure and table numbered, captioned, and cited in the manuscript. Keep figures embedded; Articlo also extracts numbered source files for the package.
  • Use italic for titles of works of art, books, journals, plays, movies, videos, etc. In captions use bold for ‘Table 1’, ‘Fig. 2’.
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  • If the authors do not own the copyright of a figure, permission to reproduce it must be obtained from the copyright owner.
  • The flat image should conform to our standard requirements for figures.
  • Tables are left-justified and should not have borders or vertical lines.
  • Tables generated electronically should be saved in a separate file and not embedded as objects in the text file.
  • Each table should be submitted on a separate page.
  • A caption must be supplied for each figure and table.
  • Captions should include relevant information or highlight details of the image.
  • Captions should be listed and uploaded on a separate file.
  • If applicable, acknowledgement of copyright must be included with each caption.
  • Use figures for ages and with abbreviations of units.
  • Please do not embed images, figures, or tables in the text and do not use the automatic footnote application in the word-processing package; this accompanying material should be uploaded in separate files, and include a separate image caption file.
  • Please do not set the text of footnotes and captions to a smaller font size – this will be done by the typesetter.

Funding statement

  • You should declare only the acquired funds and grants that are directly relevant to the work reported in your article; for example, This work was supported by the [Funding Agency #1] under Grant [number xxxx]; [Funding Agency #2] under Grant [number xxxx]; and [Funding Agency #3] under Grant [number xxxx].

Competing interests

  • Include or confirm the competing interests required by the journal. Articlo checks this item and flags anything that still needs author input.

Data availability statement

  • Include or confirm the data availability statement required by the journal. Articlo checks this item and flags anything that still needs author input.

Blinded manuscript

  • Include or confirm the blinded manuscript required by the journal. Articlo checks this item and flags anything that still needs author input.

Cover letter

  • No commercial use shall be made of the article, or the PDF file, without the Publisher’s prior, written permission.

Author contributions

  • Submitting authors should be prepared to submit CRediT roles for themselves and their co-authors (where applicable) as part of the submission process.

Supplementary files

  • Include every cited supplementary file and use matching labels in the manuscript.
  • The house style is to use consecutively numbered footnotes rather than endnotes, and they should include any supplementary information and should be as short as possible.

Title page and author information

  • All authors of a manuscript should include their full name and affiliation on the cover page of the manuscript.

Article structure and word limits

  • Ratios of units should be expressed using superscript notation: gm -2 not g/m 2 or gsm for grammes per square metre.
  • Trade marks and registered names should be given the appropriate symbol, in superscript.
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  • Images should be submitted as JPGs or TIFFs at a resolution of 300dpi to ensure print quality.
  • You may include a maximum of three 3D models per manuscript.
  • Use a comma separator for numbers over 9999, but not in strings of numbers such as inventory or serial numbers.
  • Where a trade name is used in the text, it should be given a capital letter and be followed after its first mention with its chemical name or description in brackets e.g. Paraloid B-72 (ethyl methacrylate methyl acrylate co-polymer).
  • Use day, month, year: ‘1 January 2000’.
  • These instructions will ensure we have everything required so your paper can move through peer review, production and publication smoothly.
  • Your research funder or your institution may require you to publish your article open access.
  • Use our APC finder to view the APC for this journal.
  • All submissions should be made online at the Journal's ScholarOne Manuscripts Site.
  • Once a user is logged onto the site submissions should be made via the Author Centre.
  • This outline should provide a clear synopsis of the article and lay out its structure on one page.
  • Manuscripts for articles based on all conservation disciplines are welcome and should be submitted at least six months before the chosen issue date.
  • If a contributor is able to benefit financially from any aspect of the work, they are required to disclose it.
  • Manuscripts must be formatted as Microsoft, Word files.
  • The author should keep an electronic copy of the final text (and any accompanying material) submitted.
  • The text should be double-spaced with ample margins.
  • Gold Open Access is also supported by the Publisher subject to an Article Publishing Charge (APC) which contributors must pay before publication.
  • They should be clear and simple; computer-generated bitmap diagrams should be avoided as they are problematic to resize.
  • Include brief acknowledgements if appropriate at the end of the article.
  • The manufacturers of all products must be given at the end of the article.
  • Only true fonts such as Times New Roman or Arial should be used.
  • Any symbols used should also be true fonts as otherwise they will not print correctly.
  • Text submitted should be left-justified and without hyphenation, except for compound words.
  • Quotations of two or more lines in length should be preceded by a colon and placed on a new line, indented by two tabular stops.
  • Use single spaces after full stops, commas, colons, and semi-colons.
  • The main title should reflect clearly and succinctly the contents of the article, in order to assist indexing and information retrieval services.
  • Technical and chemical names should be corroborated against authorative sources eg. International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC).
  • Do not use a full stop after contractions such as Dr, Mr, St (saint) but Prof. is correct.
  • Do not use a full stop in acronyms or in AD, BC, MS.
  • Otherwise they should be converted to metric measurements or the metric equivalent should be added after, in parentheses.
  • Dimensions of objects should be given as height before width in the case of two-dimensional items, and height before width before breadth for three-dimensional items.
  • Nomenclature (e.g. chemicals, colour, minerals) should follow international or UK (BSI) standards.
  • Use hyphens for clarity, to avoid confusion in reading.
  • A declaration must be included within the submission stating: Originality and accuracy of content has been confirmed by the authors.
  • Authors must provide full methodological details and adhere to relevant reporting guidelines where applicable.
  • Authors must retain the original and revised versions which must be shared upon request.
  • The PLSP guidelines for authors must be followed at all times.
  • New users should first create an account.
  • Do not use the terms ibid, idem, op. cit, and loc. cit when referring to previously cited works: just cite author's surname(s), short form of the title and relevant page number(s).
  • Pages should be numbered.
  • Do not use bullet points.
  • Where possible Système International (SI) units (based on the metre, kilogramme, second, candela, ampere and kelvin) should be used: any good dictionary will have a list of these, together with derived units such as the volt and joule.
  • Use round brackets (parentheses) around explanations, translations, etc. Use square brackets around additions/explanations added by someone other than the original author. (A complete sentence within parentheses or quotes should end with a full stop before closing the bracket or quote.) Use apostrophes for possessive meaning, e.g. ‘Icon’s policy’.
  • conditions: Contributors to the Journal: shall ensure articles that are archived in a repository fully acknowledge the Journal and issue in which the article is published, when this information is available; and (b) include a link to the published version on the Publisher's online hosting platform at http://www.tandfonline.com.
  • Gold Open Access papers: shall be published and freely accessible to the public on the Publisher’s online platform.
  • Gold Open Access papers: shall be published in the printed Journal.
  • Do not duplicate information already in the text.
  • Do not hyphenate acid free, self portrait, so called, well preserved.
  • Image descriptions are typically used by systems such as pronouncing screen readers to make images accessible to people that cannot read or see the object due to a visual disability.
  • conditions: Contributors to the Journal: shall receive a PDF file of the final, published VoR of their article, which they may share with colleagues and other research associates, but cannot archive in a personal, institutional, or subject-based open access repository.

Reporting guidelines

  • Include or confirm the reporting guidelines required by the journal. Articlo checks this item and flags anything that still needs author input.

Preprints and prior publication

  • Include or confirm the preprints and prior publication required by the journal. Articlo checks this item and flags anything that still needs author input.

Artificial intelligence disclosure

  • Add or confirm the author-written Artificial intelligence statement; Articlo flags it if author input is still needed.
  • Please include a statement disclosing whether and how generative AI has been used in the research and manuscript preparation process.
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  • Use of AI tools as part of ethical research studies is permitted.
  • A declaration must be included within the submission stating: The name and version number of the AI tool used.
  • Systematic Review: Use of AI tools as part of ethically conducted literature reviews, systematic reviews, meta-analysis and bibliometrics studies is permitted.
  • Use of AI tool assisted plain language summaries (PLS) of authors own work is permitted.
  • Please read our guidance on using AI tools in your research and manuscript preparation to understand scenarios where their use may be permissible, and the required information that must be disclosed.
  • A declaration must be included within the submission stating: Confirmation the authors have checked terms of use for the specific AI tool used, and therefore confirm suitability for publication.

Manuscript structure

  • Footnotes should appear in numerical order with the number placed as a superscript at the end of the sentence to which it refers, after the full stop.
  • Where appropriate, contributors must acknowledge the work of others either directly in the text, or through the footnotes, or acknowledgements.
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  • Please do not use the automatic footnote application in your word-processing package as these notes are typeset separately you need to upload them on a separate sheet.
  • Paragraphs should be distinguished by an indent of two character spaces, except for the first paragraph in a sub-heading.
  • Authors must retain full records of the methods undertaken, including full descriptions and records of the prompts used, which must be shared with the journal upon request.
  • Do not generate footnotes using the automatic footnote/endnote application in the word-processing package.

Language and text style

  • Abstracts are up to a maximum of 150 words and will be translated into French, German, Mandarin and Spanish.
  • Spelling, punctuation, capitalization, etc. should conform to the Icon house style.
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  • Language employed should be clear, straightforward and free from idiomatic expressions.
  • Jargon and culture-specific terms should be avoided, unless defined or explained in full in the text.
  • The abbreviation should be used consistently after this.
  • UK spelling conventions should be used.
  • Foreign proper nouns do not need italics: Académie Française, unless they are also titles of works of art, literature, etc, et al. is in general use and is not italicised.
  • The full term should be given when first mentioned, with the abbreviation in parentheses, e.g. The Institute of Conservation (Icon), ethylene diamine tetra-acetic acid (EDTA).
  • Use single quotation marks.
  • Foreign words assimilated into English or which have a technical meaning do not need italics, e.g. catalogue raisonné, chiaroscuro, impasto, pentimento, putto, oeuvre, recto, verso.

Article type and manuscript length

  • The title, position and place of work of each author, together with contact and email details and biography ( must be included in the main text uploaded as 'text with Author information' (but not in the anonymized file)).

Study reporting guidelines

  • Authors must provide full methodological details and adhere to relevant reporting guidelines where applicable (e.g. CONSORT-AI, STARD-AI, GAMER, TRIPOD-AI, etc).
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What your package checks

Abstract: 150 words
Paper: 10,000 words
Declarations: Acknowledgements, Artificial intelligence

Source transparency

This preparation guide uses published journal-specific author requirements. Journal instructions can change, so authors should complete a final review before submission.

Open official guideline source