Corning Museum of Glass

Stephen Koob was responsible for the care and preservation of all of the Museum’s collections until his retirement in 2020. This included cleaning the glass and making recommendations for its handling, storage, display, and movement. He also oversaw the maintenance and repair of objects in the Museum’s conservation lab, and provided documentation of such objects throughout their repair. Koob collaborated closely with  curators and research scientist to evaluate new acquisitions for condition and quality. He is an expert in dealing with “crizzling,” a condition that affects unstable glass.

A member of numerous professional organizations, including the Archaeological Institute of America, Koob is also a Fellow of the International Institute of Conservation and the American Institute for Conservation. He replaced Dr. Robert Brill as Chairman of Technical Committee 17, which studies the Archaeometry and Conservation of Glass, as part of the International Congress on Glass. He is the author of the book, Conservation and Care of Glass Objects (2006).

Koob holds an MA in Classical Archaeology from Indiana University, and a B.Sc. in Archaeological Conservation and Materials Science from the Institute of Archaeology, University of London. Before joining the Museum staff in 1998, Koob worked for 11 years as conservator, specializing in ceramics and glass, at the Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution.