Welcome (Again), Ryland!

I am happy to announce that effective November 5 Ryland Ianelli will start as the Manton Digital Production Technician. Ryland has been a member of Preservation Services since October 2011 when he was hired to work on the U. S. Congressional Serial Set Project and various digital production projects. In the last year Ryland has worked on Occom Circle, Photographic Files, and produced optical character recognition (OCR) text for the forthcoming Japanese Press Translation Project.

Ryland has a Master of Fine Arts in Cartooning from the Center for Cartoon Studies and a Bachelor's degree in Art History from Reed College. Prior to coming to Dartmouth he had several years of experience working as a Collection Assistant in the Reed College Visual Resources Collection.

The digital production technician is a two-year temporary position in the Digital Production Unit of Preservation Services funded by the Manton Endowment Reserve. I’m delighted to have Ryland full time in the Production Unit.

Bill Ghezzi
Interim Digital Production Manager

Encapsulation: Too Close For Comfort

As part of a digitization project to scan historic maps of New Hampshire, selected maps are being reviewed here in the Conservation lab. Each week I gather fifteen maps from the Evans Map Room in Baker Berry Library and transport them to Conservation. Since the project workflow as a whole spans multiple departments in the library, a database with a listing of maps by call number is used for tracking. For each group of maps I can enter information about conservation review, necessary treatment, and their current locations.

For the past few weeks the majority of maps reviewed are in good condition and already encapsulated. Encapsulation is a great solution for flat items, small or oversize, especially if they might be handled often. There are two methods of encapsulation, welded and taped. Welded encapsulation is preferable, however, it requires specialized equipment, whereas the taping method can be done anywhere. Taped encapsulation is generally done with narrow, acid free double-sided tape and mylar. A reasonable margin should be given between edges of the item and the tape. A drawback with taped encapsulation is that over time an object can shift inside the mylar and come in contact with the tape. To avoid this, and the potential for damage, a wide margin between edges of the item and the tape is recommended. Whatever the method, welded or taped, once encapsulated objects are better protected from moisture and handling.

The rough edges on this map are caught in the tape. A wider margin would allow this map to float inside the mylar.

Tape will make a better seal if thread from linen backing are trimmed prior to encapsulation.

Items with folded edges should be flattened first, then encapsulated.

Written by Elizabeth Rideout.

A Model Collection

In the conservation lab we work on books from wide-ranging time periods. Some date back to the 1300s while others are 2012 editions. As conservators we need to understand our book history and be familiar with a variety of book structures. Consideration to the traditions of books from world cultures is also important, as our collections contain material from around the globe.

There are many ways to acquire knowledge about book structures. One can read about them, handle historical examples, or learn their construction in hands-on workshops. Reading about book structures is a good place to start. There are many books with descriptions, photographs, or drawings. Some have enough information to construct a model or facilitate a repair, such as The Archaeology of Medieval Bookbinding by J.A. Szirmai.

Handling books of a particular binding style is another way to learn. Exemplars provide information on how they function, plus construction methods can be discovered if details are exposed. Damage can reveal information such as sewing patterns, board attachment methods, and board shaping. In addition to providing evidence of construction, they are helpful in determining a sympathetic repair.

A third source of information about book structures is by consulting modern models of these bindings. Here at the lab, we've been working on building such a collection. These are valuable not only for our own work but as a resource for others in the library or when we have visitors. Each year we add at least one or two new models to our collection. Some are the result of a workshop, others from finding instructions in books or on the Internet and working through them on our own.

Previous posts have covered two of our cutaway models, and two scaleboard binding models. Here are a few others from our growing collection:

An Islamic binding, based on notes and a demonstration by Katherine Beaty at the Guild of Book Workers (GBW) Standards of Excellence Seminar in Boston, MA, 2011.

A springback binding, based on notes and the demonstration by Richard Baker at the GBW Standards of Excellence Seminar in Denver, 2003, as well as these articles: Peter Verheyen's "Springback Ledger Binding", and Peter Verheyen and Donia Conn's "The Springback: Account Book Binding".

A vellum over boards model, learned at a workshop with Peter Gerety of Praxis Bindery at the Garage Annex School.

An endsheet sampler, using Arthur Johnson's The Thames and Hudson Manual of Bookbinding as a guide.

I'm lucky to have opportunities available to me for professional development and training. When I take workshops or learn on my own, I've found that making a second model soon after the first reinforces my new skills and knowledge. When my learning is self-directed from articles and old examples it is helpful that I have our Collections Conservator Deborah Howe available to discuss any questions that arise. I am grateful that colleagues in conservation and bookbinding offer workshops through the GBW and other organizations, and that some provide instructions via the Internet. Our collection of models is due in large part to these open sources. Thanks for sharing!

Written by Stephanie Wolff.

DJ: Spin that Disc!

My father was a DJ, so growing up I was surrounded by LPs and at an early age I was taught how to handle and clean the vinyl discs that spouted the music of the Moody Blues, Rolling Stones, and Harry Nilsson's "The Point".

Recently, the conservation lab was besieged by a large collection of discs that had an odd surface coating of a white waxy residue. The discs were being processed as part of a Robert Frost collection located in Rauner Special Collections Library, and contained recordings of interviews and lectures of Mr. Frost at Dartmouth College.

With a first go around on the internet I came across detailed information on how many variations of disc manufacturing there are: vulcanite, shellac, Columbia, Edison, vinyl, and acetate, which is the least stable one. These have an interior base of aluminum or glass and sometime cardboard. These inner cores are coated with nitrocellulose lacquer plasticized with castor oil. It seemed that most of what we had were indeed acetate.

The white substance was something I had never seen and my previous knowledge of how to clean albums didn't seem applicable to these. At first some of my colleagues thought the substance was mold but on further investigation and inquiry I came across this great dialog between Anji Cornette, The Cutting Corporation, and Alan Lewis, National Archives and Records Administration, and based on what they said I determined that it must be palmitic acid. "The production of palmitic acid is caused by the hydrolysis of the castor oil from heat and humidity, which then oozes through the lacquer on a disc. The specks or small mounds on the groove look similar to powder residue but have a more crystallized appearance. Palmitic acid is stubborn to remove and requires extensive cleaning."

Realizing that this was more than a simple cleaning, I contacted The Cutting Corporation. They were great and very forthcoming in talking about the whole process of deterioration and the different service options.

Once we chose to send out the discs for cleaning, Aaron Coe, our contact there, worked with two Rauner staff members to decide if they would have a digital copy made in addition to cleaning (which we did). All transactions went smoothly and Aaron sent me a set of photos of the cleaning (thanks Aaron!). The discs have been returned and we are now able to listen to the voice of Robert Frost.

Additional Sources:

• Preserving Sound Recordings by Stephanie A. Hall
• The Care and Handling of Recorded Sound Materials by Gilles St-Laurent

Written by Deborah Howe.

Farewell, Helen!

It is with mixed emotions I share the news that Helen Bailey, Preservation Specialist, is leaving Dartmouth. Helen has been with us for about three years and in that time has made a substantial impact on the department and the Library. When she began in 2009 as a conservation intern from the University of Texas she took on a number of special projects. One close to my heart was the rejuvenation of our department web pages; she reorganized the web site creating a coherent and consistent design that provides information for library staff and the general public. The Preservation Services blog, which she currently manages, has become popular due to her thoughtful posts on digital preservation, statistics, film assessment, and of course, Preservation Week.

When Helen became our Preservation Specialist in 2010 she turned her focus to digital preservation, collaborating with me to write the Library's first Digital Preservation Policy. Working with her colleagues in Acquisitions, Cataloging and Metadata Services, Digital Resources, and Digital Library Technologies Group she chaired an e-Resources Preservation Group. That group has effectively raised awareness of the preservation needs of e-resources including better ways to utilize existing tools and getting the most from our Portico and LOCKSS memberships.

Helen came to Dartmouth for book conservation and, not forsaking her book binding roots, she has been on staff as a Book Arts Instructor. Her classes on miniature books and Coptic bindings were very popular as were her classes on accordion folds and piano hinge bindings. She was also the behind-the-scenes technical coordinator of our online registration system – no mean feat!

So, what has lured Helen away from Dartmouth? Only a super, fantastic appointment to be the first MIT Library Fellow for Digital Curation and Preservation! This new program provides outstanding librarians just beginning their career the opportunity to contribute in strategic areas for academic research libraries. Helen will be working in the area of digital curation and developing outreach materials to engage librarians, faculty, and others in best practices for the long-term management of digital content. Our consolation in her departure for MIT is that we surely will benefit from the work she completes in her fellowship.

Farewell and remember, we are just up the road from you. Don't be a stranger!

Helen's last day in Preservation Services is October 5.

Written by Barb Sagraves.