experimentation

[15_the_circle]

the Library of Congress US Newspaper Program is focused primarily on preservation of newsprint through media conversion to film.  the microfilming guidelines on its website provide some advice for dealing with the newpaper fragments, excerpted as follows: 

"Relaxation (humidification) and flattening.  ... Controlled amounts of moisture can be safely introduced into both rag content and wood pulp newspaper pages, allowing them to be relaxed for flattening.  The entire process - from the introduction of moisture through flattening and drying - should be conceptualized and experimented with prior to full-scale implementation of treatments.  ... For dealing with brittle folded material, which will break with attempts to unfold it, an inexpensive humidification chamber can be built."

last night I began a test with one of the wads to see whether a slow humidification can be beneficial.  it will probably take a day or two to see what, if anything, comes of it. 

Comments

[collpepper.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you found something on the subject. I had absolutely no idea how you could preserve it. It is such a wonderful find!

[theswirtproject.livejournal.com]

I've had this very same problem, actually. Here is what Wilma Slaight (archivist for the rare books collection at Wellesley College) had to say about it:

"The Northeast Document Conservation Center has a technical leaflet
http://www.nedcc.org/plam3/tleaf64.htm that will tell you how to do this.
If you do not plan on keeping the newspapers once they are flattened you
do not need to worry much about whether they are clean so you can skip
some of their steps. The homemade humidification chamber works quite
well, but you do need to allow the papers enough time in it to absorb some
humidity. Once it is rehumidified it will tear very easily. In this case
plain paper towels will work as blotting paper."

I found that depending on the size, anywhere from 1-3 days was sufficient for re-humidification. The pieces of paper that I was dealing with were pretty small, so uncurling them was quite easy after that.


(p.s. - I hope you don't mind the intrusion, but I found your journal after finding the photogrove community)

re: advice from a professional

[15-the-circle.livejournal.com]

thanks so much for the link and excerpt.  it is quite helpful and very much appreciated. 

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>
> ... I hope you don't mind the intrusion
>

not at all.  this journal, tucked away as it is in one of the quietest nooks and crannies of LJ space, is nonetheless open to anybody with a browser and an internet connection.  visitors and comments are always welcome. 

helpful contributions such as yours are good for Extra Bonus Points which although they can't be redeemed for cash or anything of value have at least the potential of being good for one's karma. 

Re: advice from a professional

[(Anonymous)]

True, indeed. There seems to be a dearth of internet karma these days, so I will take whatever I can get.

And good luck with the newspapers -- I certainly hope you get them to cooperate.