Slowing the March of Time
Preserving and Protecting Items Of Historical Significance
Carrie Ann Cook
Copyright 1999 Carrie Ann Cook
2011 Smashwords Edition
Discover other titles by Carrie Ann Cook at Smashwords
This book is available in print at many book retailers.
Smashwords Edition, License Notes
This electronic is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
Foreword and Contents
This material was written in an attempt to bridge the gap between two very different schools of thought. The true conservationist, who says everything must be restored and everything possible done so as not to lose the treasure and the family historian that wants to enjoy his or her heirlooms without exposing it to harm through not knowing better.
While there is quite a bit of information within this cover, it barely scratches the surface for the "purest" conservationist. However, it is probably more than the average family historian is going to need or utilize. Remember that the knowledge herein are for your information as well as for you to use (or not) the best way you see fit. Many of the suggestions found here are fairly easy to accomplish, probably using things and storage options you currently have available in your home. Others will be not quite so easy to implement.
This book is organized into the following sections:
Foreword/Contents
Introduction
General
Storage Ideas
Specific
Storage Ideas
Disaster
Recovery
Mold
Notes
General
Notes
The
Option of Recreating
What
is Important
Introduction
While we all do our best with what we have, it is important to remember that:
Some damage is irreversible
If the significance of the object is very high, a professional conservator should only handle it. The American Institute for Conservation maintains a free referral list of conservators who will be able to provide guidance. Based on a complete description a computer-generated list will be compiled and grouped geographically, by specialization, and type of service for you.
American
Institute for Conservation of Historica & Artistic Works
1156
15th Street NW, Ste. 320
Washington, DC
20005
202.452.9545
202.452.9328
fax
mailto:info@conservation-us.org
General Storage Ideas
There are many different types of items one might wish to preserve/conserve and protect, all with specific needs for best storage - sometimes the best environment for certain items are even at odds with each other. There are so many things a person might wish to keep for future generations; a specific list would be quite lengthy. Some of the general items that were considered when compiling this information on general storage/preserving include:
Printed/flat
paper materials (documents, photos, drawings, maps, etc.)
Recordings
(picture and/or sound)
Heirlooms (clothing, jewelry, furniture,
glass, utensils, knickknacks, linens, etc.)
Note: Please realize that the information contained within this material are suggestions. They are not the "last word", nor are they mandates. If you could fulfill all the suggestions, it would be a best case scenario. However, if you do not follow the ideas, all will not be lost. Even being able to improve storage by trying one new idea on these pages would help.