How do you learn to do it?
Conservation training is provided in specialist courses throughout the world, and is usually supplemented with internships and supervised work experience in a conservation department. The Preservation & Conservation Department has hosted students from across the globe for over 35 years, enabling them to develop their skills under the tutelage of our experienced staff. Since 2008 the Heritage Council of Ireland has supported this programme through a jointly-funded internship scheme which is available annually to a conservation graduate.
The Library's preservation programme 'Save the Treasures of the Long Room' has provided in-house training for 38 staff, who have applied their experience to the preservation, cleaning and minor repair of over 90,000 books in the Long Room.
In recent years we have developed research in conservation science in collaboration with colleagues and students at Trinity College, and with the National Gallery of Ireland, the British Library, the Victoria & Albert Museum, and the University of Perugia.
All following items have been conserved by interns and students who have received training in the Preservation and Conservation department.
Men and women of Ireland remember
c.1920
This single wood pulp pamphlet is one of many in the Arthur Samuels Collection. A graduate of Trinity College Dublin, he also was an Irish Unionist Alliance M.P. for Dublin University and Attorney General of Ireland from 1918 to 1919. Samuels collected ephemeral material from the period 1914-1923 from both sides of the political divide.
The conservation treatment consisted of infilling losses and tears with Japanese repair papers applied with wheat starch paste and housing it in a protected enclosure.
Treatment by Rebecca de Bút, Heritage Council Intern 2012-2013.
OLP 016.0941 SAM (Box 3.No.21)
Een Ernftich en Trouw Vertooch...
Ghedrvckt, 1649
The book is a quarter parchment laced-case binding, with marbled paper sides. It belongs to the Fagel collection, one of the largest special collections in the library. The parchment on the spine of the book was severely distorted and had suffered from losses. The spine was repaired with a new piece of parchment and the fragmented spine piece was re-attached as part of the book's conservation treatment. Treatment by Francesca Lemass, University of the Arts London, 2010.
Fag.H.3.30
Irish and English Theatre Playbills
19th century
This selection of 19th-century Irish and English playbills acquired by the library were pasted into a scrapbook. They were selected for treatment as part of an in-house training workshop. The playbills were removed from the scrapbook, washed, deacidified and sized. Tears were repaired using Japanese paper and wheat starch paste. Severely damaged items were lined.
Treated by Dublin conservators during a workshop on Japanese lining techniques; held in collaboration with the Paper Conservation Department of the National Gallery of Ireland, 2010.
OLS Papyrus Case III, no. 34, 64 &75, recto of playbills
St. Johns deeds
1249-1704
This parchment deed, from 1517, belongs to a collection of over 200 deeds relating to the Parish of St. Johns, Dublin.
The conservation treatment of the deeds included mechanical cleaning, flattening and repair. In addition, a complete storage system was designed for the conserved deeds. The losses on this particular example were repaired with pieces of new parchment.
Treatment by Brannah MacKenzie, Heritage Council intern 2011.
MS 1477, no. 150
Oliver Goldsmith Le Vicaire de Wakefield
Paris, 1858
The book is a full goatskin leather binding, with gold blocking on the boards and gold tooling on the spine. Prior to conservation treatment the left board was severely damaged and the book block was distorted after the book was crushed. The conservation treatment included stabilising the board and book block so that the book could function as normal.
Treatment by Rachelle Keller, University of Amsterdam, 2012.
uncatalogued
Mrs. Haywood (Eliza Fowler) Love in excess, or, the fatal enquiry
1720
This book is an early 18th century printed text covered in a full tanned calfskin binding. The text block was heavily foxed, with staining and discolouration. As part of the conservation treatment the endpapers were washed, deacidified, resized and reinserted with aero linen joint. The boards were reattached and the spine was rebacked with archival calfskin stained with durapel leather dye. The shelf number was hand tooled using gold leaf.
Treatment by Krystyna Olczyk, Heritage Council intern 2012.
W.m.13, spine
Psalms
1533
This manuscript is in a full sheepskin leather binding, with blind-tooling and gold-tooled lettering. The Greek manuscript, written c1533, contains the psalms and the canticles of the Greek Church.
The conservation treatment included paper repair, a new tailband and a reback, (incorporating a papier-mâché spine insert). The original spine leather was reattached.
Treatment by Simona Cenci, Heritage Council intern 2010.
MS 27