The Higher Institute for Conservation and Restoration (ISCR), established by  Ministerial Decree of October 7, 2008 , is the technical body of the Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities and Tourism and belongs to the General Secretariat; he is specialized in the restoration and conservation of works of art and cultural heritage.

The ISCR, pursuant to article 8 of the legislative decree 20 October 1998, n. 368 and subsequent modifications, is endowed with scientific, financial, organizational and accounting autonomy.

At ISCR operates the School of Higher Education, called SAF, referred to in Article 9 of Legislative Decree 20 October 1998, n. 368 and subsequent modifications. The SAF is responsible for the training activities of future restorers according to what is reported in the Legislative Decree 42 of 22 January 2004 "Code of Cultural Heritage and Landscape".

It was founded in 1939 at the suggestion of Giulio Carlo Argan and directed from its beginnings until 1959 by Cesare Brandi. The current tasks are almost identical to those identified since its origin. The novelty of his approach consists in the uniqueness of an organism in which research, training and systematic and continuous restoration and experimentation are carried out simultaneously. The model, more or less consciously, was that of the medical faculties where the teachers are the same ones who treat the sick inside the different clinics and at the same time carry out research on the basis of the patients who treat.