Volume 38, Issue 1 -

This paper describes the measures taken to rehouse the collection of drawings and prints by Karl Friedrich Schinkel in the Kupferstichkabinett Berlin. Previously, the collection had been exposed to high concentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Housing the artworks in piles inside portfolios had caused mechanical damage. The VOC concentration in the object’s environment was reduced by replacing the main emission sources with low-emissive materials, by increasing the air exchange rate of the cabinets, and by sealing emission sources that could not be removed from the cabinets. It was decided to dispense with the application of any chemisorbents since they proved to be ineffective for the given storage situation. To avoid further mechanical damage, the objects were inserted into folders made either from cardboard or, depending on the characteristics and sensitivity of the object, from a combination of cardboard and polyester film. Groups of artworks were stored in new, lightweight enclosures that combine the advantages of the Solander box, the corrugated cardboard box, and the four-flap portfolio. Crosswise bonding of the corrugated boards provides sufficient stability. The joints that are particularly subjected to stress were reinforced with fabric. These new enclosures protect the objects from slipping and lateral impact. The historic portfolios were preserved as documentary material and are now stored in a separate place.

In a disaster event involving water, the length of time that collection materials remain wet is a critical factor in determining whether a successful recovery is possible. There is a substantial knowledge base for the water immersion resistance of traditional information carriers such as paper documents but not for electronic storage media. In this study, floppy diskettes, VHS videotapes, optical discs, and flash media, were immersed in different water baths for various time intervals. The baths consisted of two different sources of tap water, a more corrosive tap water solution, and artificial seawater. Most electronic media survived well in clean tap water but problems occurred with some CDs and VHS tapes. More damage became evident with electronic storage media when the immersion bath was more corrosive. For some media, such as optical discs, whether damage occurred was likely linked to the manufacturing quality of the media. Drying methods were also explored. Air-drying was determined to be the best method for recovering wet electronic storage media. Freeze-thaw-air drying and vacuum freeze-drying methods can destroy CDs and DVDs and should be avoided. If wet materials cannot be recovered and dried promptly, it was established that storage in cool water reduces deterioration significantly.

We present here a self-made trap we designed for monitoring the presence of insects responsible of biodeterioration in a library in the center of Rome (Biblioteca Angelica). The trap was very effective in capturing all types of crawling insects. The trap, made from a transparent plastic layer, allowed the microscopic observation of animal body from both sides with no need of removing the specimen from the entomological scotch on it. Besides, this small transparent trap has a minimal visual impact within the halls of libraries and museums without diminishing its effectiveness and it is easy to place even within cabinets. We therefore recommend the use of this trap, simple and unexpensive to prepare, in libraries, archives, museum and any other conservative environment for monitoring the presence of insects and to contain the size of their populations.

Marguerite Yourcenar’s manuscript L’Œuvre au noir was off limits to scholars for years because of its fragile condition. In all there were 6,725 inches (17,081.5 cm) of rubber-based and synthetic adhesive tapes used in the two-volume manuscript. The primary challenge was the failure of the rubber-based adhesive, causing the composite leaves to flutter in a pile of paper scraps when a page was turned. To complicate matters, Yourcenar often typed and wrote directly on the tapes, necessitating their preservation and reattachment. It took two conservators 290 hours to stabilize this manuscript, facilitating safe consultation by researchers.