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Conservation

Conservation of objects in the Folger collections
Taming a tight binding
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Taming a tight binding

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Erin Blake

You know how some old bindings gently let a book stay open on its own, at a comfortable angle? And how other old bindings seem to willfully resist, taunting you by starting to close just as you get the book weights perfectly arranged? This post introduces a simple tool that…

Unwanted doodles in a Shakespeare quarto
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Unwanted doodles in a Shakespeare quarto

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Heather Wolfe

Our new curator of early modern books and prints, Caroline Duroselle-Melish, and I were up in the conservation lab a few days ago, consulting with book conservator Adrienne Bell on the optimal opening for safely digitizing a quarto edition of…

Another peek into the Conservation Lab
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Another peek into the Conservation Lab

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The Collation

This month, the Conservation Lab is working on items that reflect a wide range of Folger activities and holdings. Some of the most beautiful books in the Folger’s collections are those with embroidered bindings. But such books are also among the…

Making a Karibari board
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Making a Karibari board

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Rhea DeStefano

In conservation, the drying or humidification of paper poses particular challenges when dimensional and visual characteristics of the original paper are to be retained. Because of this, the drying of an artifact is a key step in its treatment. There…

A peek into the Conservation Lab
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A peek into the Conservation Lab

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The Collation

Ever wonder what the conservators are up to on our third floor? Here’s a peek into what’s happening in the Werner Gundersheimer Conservation Laboratory this month: The team is in full treatment mode for the Library’s upcoming exhibition, “Symbols of Honor: Heraldry…

What's that smell? Getting personal with historic costumes
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What's that smell? Getting personal with historic costumes

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Caryn Lazzuri

Here Is a Play Fitted is on view through January 12, 2013 The Folger’s current exhibition, Here Is a Play Fitted, takes a broad look at how Shakespeare on the stage has changed over the past 400 years. For a…

Conserving the Cosway Portrait of Shakespeare
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Conserving the Cosway Portrait of Shakespeare

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Dawn Rogala

A guest post by Dawn Rogala Editor’s note: Folger conservators are internationally known for their expertise in book and paper conservation. When it comes to conserving paintings, though, we turn to outside experts like Dawn Rogala of Page Conservation, Inc. Here,…

Elizabeth goes to New York
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Elizabeth goes to New York

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Erin Blake

On September 5, two professional art handlers from Artex Fine Art Services loaded a great big wooden crate onto their climate-controlled box truck, strapped it securely into the rear cargo area, then strapped my little suitcase next to it. The…

How (not) to mend a tear
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How (not) to mend a tear

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Erin Blake

Going through a box of early 19th-century playbills recently, I was puzzled to see something paper-clipped to an area of loss on the right-hand edge of a bill, as if someone had attached a little note to it: Playbill for…

Rehousing our tinsel print collection
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Rehousing our tinsel print collection

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Rhea DeStefano

Tinsel prints are a unique English art form from the early and mid-19th century. They are typically composed of metal foils, fabric scraps, leather, feathers, and any other suitable material glued onto printed portraits of actors and actresses. Theatrical tinsel…

The road to Acquisitions Night 2012
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The road to Acquisitions Night 2012

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Erin Blake

This Thursday is Acquisitions Night, the annual benefit to support Folger collections. It’s something of a three-ring circus: buffet dinner in the Great Hall, conservation demonstrations at one end of the Paster Reading Room, and—in the center ring—dozens of newly-acquired…

A newly uncovered presentation copy by Margaret Cavendish
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A newly uncovered presentation copy by Margaret Cavendish

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Author
Heather Wolfe

Heather: The other day I received an email from the Conservation Lab with the subject line: “Annotation found on the verso of a lined frontispiece,” and a link to a couple of images, one taken under ultraviolet light. The conservators…

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