Exploring

Conservation Treatment

Collections Conservation/In-House Repair

Collections conservation is normally carried out by either a collections conservator (a professional conservator specializing in general library collections) or a conservation technician (someone with more limited training who is knowledgeable about specific techniques). In small institutions, in-house repair is often carried out by a regular staff member who has been sent to one or more workshops; this can be problematic, though, because the training is usually brief and ongoing supervision unavailable.

Collections Conservation

There are a number of procedures that are carried out as part of collections conservation, including preparing new materials for library use (binding pamphlets, attaching book pockets, etc.); preparing books for library binding; constructing protective enclosures; and carrying out basic book repair.

Look at the following sites to explore what is involved in implementing a book repair program. How do the sites differ? What activities do you think might be appropriate for your institution?

• University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
• Dartmouth College
• University of California, Berkeley
• Cornell University

In-House Repair of Historical Collections

In the context of historical collections, "safe" in-house techniques are limited to rehousing objects in appropriate enclosures and simple cleaning of books and some paper using preservation-quality procedures and materials.

Guidelines for rehousing various types of collections (e.g., boxing books, placing documents and manuscripts in archival folders and boxes) are provided in Session 5: Collections Care. Instructions for simple page repairs and surface cleaning can be found on the Northeast Document Conservation Center's (NEDCC) Web site, but these activities should be undertaken only when absolutely necessary and after training and extensive practice on unimportant items. In reality, most institutions will have higher-priority preservation needs than the repair of individual items.