A collaborative project was developed by the National Museum of Cambodia and the Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution to address the conservation needs of the metal artifacts in the collection of the National Museum of Cambodia. A metal conservation laboratory was created and Cambodian staff trained in the theory and practice of metal conservation, with the aim of establishing a self sufficient laboratory which could care for the collection over the long-term. Collaboration and education were used as tools to create a sustainable means of working toward the preservations of the museum’s metal collection.