Book Conservation
B-31 Olin Library
255-2484 (Conservator)
255-5765 (Questions regarding repair of circulating books)
255-5766 (All other questions)
Located
in Olin Library, the Book Conservation
Unit is responsible for the conservation
treatment of rare and unique materials from the Division of Rare and
Manuscript Collections, as well as from all of the University’s
other nineteen libraries and archives. The functions of the book conservation
unit include: treatment of rare books and manuscripts, simple repairs
of circulating material, training of interns, students, and volunteers,
organizing and conducting training workshops, assisting with exhibition
of rare materials, and assisting Cornell departments having environmental
problems.
Replacing the spine of an 18th century
binding |
Conservation treatment may be fairly
simple, such as the construction of enclosures to house books and
manuscript material; or, it can be very complex, and may include
washing, aqueous deacidification, paper repair, stain removal, resewing,
leather or parchment restoration, and rebinding in cloth or leather.
The conservation staff prepares exhibit supports for all rare material
put on display, assists with the installation of the exhibits, and
monitors the environment in the display areas. The book conservation
staff also provides advice and assistance to any department at Cornell
University that experiences environmental damage (such as mold or
water damage) to their books and papers. The conservation unit acts
as a resource to other libraries, organizations, and individuals
outside Cornell regarding conservation of their collections, and
training of their staff. |
Much of the work on rare materials
by the conservation unit is conducted on a project basis, usually
with foundation grant money. In the past, the National Endowment
for the Arts (NEA) Title IIC funded the full conservation treatment
of the French Revolution Collection, and the preservation and
conservation of the Icelandic Collection. More recently, the Delmas
Foundation provided funds to treat the Dante-Petrarch Collection.
Another project recently completed was the conservation treatment
and digital imaging of the 10,000 pamphlets contained in Cornell’s
Anti-slavery and Civil War collection. This project was funded
by the Save America’s Treasures initiative. |
Repairing a torn page in a 16th century
vellum book |
Attaching a cloth hinge to a book from
the circulating collection
|
The conservation unit is responsible
for treatment of circulating books damaged by reader use from all
of the endowed libraries. When a damaged book is identified at the
circulation desk it is directed to the conservation area where it
is quickly examined. If the imprint is pre-1850 it is sent to the
conservation liaison specialist who will offer it to the rare books
and manuscripts collection, and if it is accepted it will receive
the appropriate treatment. If it has brittle paper it will be sent
to the brittle books program and will be reformatted. If it is not
brittle or rare it will be quickly repaired with a new buckram spine,
or have whatever treatment is deemed appropriate. Repairs for circulating
material are designed to be quick yet strong, and books are returned
to the general collection within 48 hours. |
| The conservation unit promotes education
and training. It is currently conducting the New
York State Technician Training Program (funded by New York State),
and is part of the Native
American Internship in Preservation Management and Practice,
funded by the Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS).
Library professionals have come from Southeast Asia to participate
in the Southeast Asia Training Program (funded by the Luce Foundation,
Harvard-Yenching Institute, and Soros Foundation Burma Project).
In 2002 and 2004, the conservation staff taught classes in Bookbinding
and Book Repair as part of the Cornell Adult Education (CAU) summer
program. |
Demonstrating book repair to the 2004 CAU Bookbinding class |
Cornell students are also given the opportunity to work in the department
either as part of the work-study program funded by Seymour Askin (the
Seymour Askin Jr. student worker endowment), the Einhorn preservation
endowment, or as volunteers.
The book conservator, Michele Brown, supervises this unit. Michele Brown received a Certificate in Hand Bookbinding and Restoration from the Camberwell School of Art and Crafts in London in 1977, and is a member of the Guild of Book Workers, and the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (AIC). Pat Fox is the assistant book conservator. Currently funded by a three year grant from the Save America's Treasures program, she is primarily responsible for the conservation of the Native American Collection, and for the supervision of the conservation technicians. Four conservation technicians (two senior technicians Roger Clearwater, and Susann Argetsinger, along with technicians Andrew Rabkin and David Gislason) assist with the functions of the conservation department
For further information contact Michele Brown at mb72@cornell.edu or
(607) 255-2484.
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