Exploring

Selection for Preservation

Selection for Library Collections

The selection process for preservation has been discussed and analyzed extensively within the library community because of the growing need to develop strategies for selecting collections for repair, replacement, and reformatting.

Identification of damaged or deteriorated materials often occurs in the course of other library activities, although it may also happen as part of a special project. Consistent procedures for the identification of damaged items are necessary. When an item is identified for possible in-house or offsite preservation action, the librarian must indicate in the catalog record that the item has been temporarily removed from circulation and complete a form indicating what preservation action is needed. This form will accompany the item, which should be placed in a particular area and routed for further review or preservation action. Items must also be placed in a particular area and routed for further review or treatment.

In her article "Selection for Preservation," (cited in Additional Resources) Carolyn Harris summarizes the most common methods librarians use to identify collections whose importance and condition justify preservation action. Some of these methods are appropriate in the archival context as well:

• Condition and Use—Deteriorated items in need of attention are identified as they are returned after circulation or pointed out to staff by users or stack maintenance staff.
• Condition and Library Processing—Items in need of attention are identified during acquisition, cataloging, or other processing activities.
• Condition at the Shelf—Special projects that require inspection of materials at the shelf (e.g., bar coding, shelf reading) can also identify deteriorated collections. For historical or special collections, a conservator may be needed for further review.
• Collection and Condition—An entire collection is identified as important for preservation (see the discussion of collection-level selection below), and individual items within that collection are reviewed to identify materials in need of preservation attention.
• Scholarly Review—Faculty, researchers, or scholars identify deteriorated items with particular research value. This may be on an individual basis or part of a special project.
• Vulnerability to Loss or Deterioration—Materials that are particularly subject to deterioration, such as newspapers or items to be exhibited, are identified for attention.
• Value or Uniqueness—Items that are particularly unique or valuable (in monetary or other senses) are identified for attention.

Take a few moments to consider the following scenario. Click on Show Answer for a discussion of the options.

Decision Making on the Collection Level

While it is easy to identify materials already in special collections as important, a research library may hold other collections of importance as well. In many cases, libraries have chosen to preserve only those collections that are circulated and used. But the library community has also realized that research libraries have a responsibility to preserve collections that may be important for research in the future, even if they are not currently used. Thus, strategies have been developed to select collections for preservation according to their quality and importance.

The criteria used to identify important collections include size of the collection; subject strength (e.g., the depth and extent of the collection as compared to other collections on that subject); past, current, or projected future use; quality and extent of bibliographic control of the materials; available funding for preservation of the collection; media contained in the collection; cooperative responsibilities of the institution; and scholarly interest in the collection.

  See a Selection for Preservation (Library Materials, Collection Level) Worksheet (PDF, 448k).

Decision Making on the Item Level

Before any item is preserved, it must be reviewed to make sure that preservation is the proper action to be taken. How is the item related to others in the collection? Are there additional copies or other items by the same author? Does the item fit the collecting policy? Are there other copies that are easily accessible in a close geographic area? Has the item been preserved (e.g., filmed or treated) elsewhere? Is a replacement (e.g., reprint, facsimile, microfilm) commercially available?

If these questions do not establish that the item should be discarded or replaced, additional analysis will be needed to determine the item's priority for preservation action and how it should be preserved.

  See a Selection for Preservation (Library Materials, Item Level) Worksheet (PDF, 232k).

See Carolyn Harris's "Selection for Preservation" (cited in Additional Resources) for more criteria and further discussion of collection-level and item-level decision making. For a discussion of intrinsic/artifactual value in library collections, see Conserv O Gram 19/1, What Makes a Book Rare? (PDF).