Paper conservation

For different types of collections, this balance is differently defined. For example paper conservation treatments commonly undertaken in the museum conservation laboratory would be impractical in a Hbrary archive having a far greater collection size. The use of treatments for mass paper quantities would be unacceptable in the art museum. Documents in archives and books in Hbraries serve a different goal from art objects in a museum. Their use value Hes primarily in their information rather than in an intrinsic esthetic value. Whereas optimal preservation of that information value requires preservation of the object itself, a copy or even a completely different format could serve the same purpose. 

Visual Examination. Since the visual evaluation in this study involved considerable judgment, a panel of evaluators was recruited. The panel included two librarians, a paper conservator, a scientist, and a staff member familiar with the quality of library books in circulation. Each member was given a description of the major and subcategories listed in Table V. Panelists were shown examples of books illustrating each of the criteria to be rated. After several training sessions to develop consistency in ratings, the panel rated the complete set of dried books which had received different restoration treatment. 

Thomas W. Duncan was the book and paper conservator at the Coming Museum during these investigations. He is presently associated... 

Thomas W. Duncan was the book and paper conservator at the museum during these investigations. He is presently associated with the New England Document Conservation Center, Andover, Mass. The author is grateful for his direct assistance in planning and implementing these investigations. 

As restoration planning evolved, concern for the stored, nonfrozen contaminated materials increased. The use of insecticides was considered initially however, the suggestion was eliminated after discussions were held with several groups of paper conservators. They felt that such compounds might leave residual halogens in the paper. Such halogens ultimately contribute to an acidic environment which in turn accelerates aging of the paper. 

Oince most of my readers are not professional textile people at home among tabby weaves, compound silks, ikats, and double-cloth, I try to keep my textile terminology simple. I mention some of the problems we face in working with ancient textiles, some of the answers we have come up with, and the solutions for which we are still searching. It seems chemists have shown a bit of favoritism to painting, metal, and paper conservators and not to the textile conservator. Those in textiles do need chemical help, and I hope we can work together more closely in the future. 

Agent—Paper Systems as Used in Paper Conservation, Restaurator (1972) 2, No. 1,5-23. 

Book and Paper Conservation, ICOM Prepr., Committee for Conservation, 4th Triennial Meeting, Venice, 1975, 75/9/3-1, 75/9/3-6, ICOM, Paris, 1975 ... 

As a practicing conservator with over twenty-five years experience in book and paper conservation, I view with approbation the increasing number of young people who are choosing this profession. My colleagues and I welcome the opportunity to train them in the important task of preserving our artistic, literary, and scientific heritage. I find the work and interest of conservation scientists extremely helpful. 

One of the tribulations of the New England Document Conservation Center is that very few people can remember our name. This was driven home to us earlier this summer when a client sent us a number of prints for treatment, and addressed her package Paper Conservation Center, North Andover, Massachusetts. We received a call from someone at the town dump who said a package of prints, which appeared to be for us, had been delivered to their paper recycling program. It was fortunate that some employee noticed this was the first time they had ever received trash by registered mail. 

The New England Document Conservation Center, or NEDCC, was founded six years ago by the New England Library Board, with the help of start-up funds from the Council on Library Resources. The purpose was to provide paper conservation services to libraries, historical organizations, and public records offices that could not afford in-house laboratories. The idea was that a shared resource could eliminate wasteful duplication of equipment and make available on a regional basis the skills of professional paper conservators. It was expected that after a start-up period, the Center would be self-supporting through fees for its services. 

NEDCC is located in Abbot Hall on the campus of Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts. It is the only regional center in the country specifically oriented to conservation of library and archival materials as opposed to museum collections. Having begun life in the basement of the Merrimack Valley Textile Museum, we are pleased that we now have windows on all four sides. We have a large, spacious paper conservation laboratory, and specialized equipment such as our Israeli-made leaf caster. This is used to fill losses in book pages or documents and to reinforce crumbled edges. 

Although we like to think we can perform almost any treatment that involves paper, there are some jobs we can t or won t do. For example, we were once approached by a man who had a large number of cancelled stock certificates. He had the idea that if he could find a paper conservator to fill in the holes, he could turn them in for cash. Although it is unusual for us to turn down work, this was one job we passed by. 

Lack of availability of trained conservation staff has been a perennial tribulation for the Center. The number of professional paper conservators in the country is woefully limited, and most of these are well situated in institutions that value them highly. The list of paper conservators certified by the American Institute for Conservation numbers fewer than forty, and of these, there are only a handful whose expertise is in library conservation. In hiring staff, we are in competition with subsidized institutions, such as museums and large research libraries, which can offer higher salaries, leisurely working conditions, and lucrative moonlighting opportunities. It took more than one year for NEDCC to recruit a new Senior Conservator to head our laboratory, and nine months to find an appropriate Book Conservator. 

We have been highly fortunate in recruiting new conservation staff of the highest caliber. Our new Senior Conservator, Mary Todd Glaser, brings to the Center an international reputation as a conservator of art on paper. She was trained at New York University and formerly served as Secretary of American Institute for Conservation and as Chairman of the Board of Examiners for the Certification of Paper Conservators. Her presence at the Center enables us to become more active in the area of fine arts conservation. 

Paper conservation, as known today, is new to Spain. Until a few years ago, custodians of the nations records on paper and parchment could only despair at the deterioration taking place. The restorers—craftsmen, in reality—scarcely were trained to tackle the broad problem. The pleas and warnings of those who wanted something done went unheeded. Here and there individual authorities sought professional help from abroad, but results proved minimal. In 1969, a dramatic change took place. Conservation was raised from the empirical to the scientific level. The breakthrough a law that provided for a centralized agency to restore the nations archival and library materials, determine the causes of deterioration, and train personnel to carry out these tasks. 

Returning to more recent times, the story of paper conservation in Spain would be incomplete without the mention of a handful of people who saw the urgent need for measures that would prevent or attenuate... 

To give the reader an idea of the Centers organizational duties and how paper conservation is practiced today, a brief description follows. Since space and time do not permit a detailed account of restoration techniques, the gaps will be obvious. The reader, therefore, is invited to contact the Center for any additional information. 

Chief, Technical Department. The present chief holds the rank of professor of paper conservation, polytechnic level. He is responsible for the establishment and maintenance of restoration standards and techniques used by the Center and field workshops. 

Brightness reversion is one of the serious problems for paper industries, restorers, paper conservators, and librarians, because the brightness of neither unbleached nor bleached pulp is permanent, and the causes and prevention of reversion still are not known entirely. 

Louden, L. Paper Conservation and Restoration Bibliographic Series... 

In terms of paper conservation, this work is of value since it is an attempt to determine (i) if UV and EB grafting times for cellulose copolymerization can be shortened significantly by the inclusion of appropriate additives and (ii) if such a process is capable of incorporating into cellulose properties required for preservation, particularly wet and dry strength and flexibility. These studies also should indicate the feasibility of extrapolating data from the present solvent grafting systems to processes based on solvent-free, rapid-cure UV and electron beam (EB) which are the ideal polymerization conditions for preservation applications. 

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