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Category: Preservation

Close-up view of two hands carefully at work on an aged, yellowing manuscript with handwriting

Conservation Treatment of a WWI Panoramic Photograph, Scenes from the Nelson W. Jordan family papers

Posted by: Samantha Schireson

Conservation Treatment of a WWI Panoramic Photograph, a guest post by Alisha Chipman, Senior Photograph Conservator in the Conservation Division at the Library of Congress. This panorama is part of the Nelson W. Jordan family papers held by the Manuscripts Division. Nelson W. Jordan (1842-1922) was born enslaved in Albermarle County, Virginia.

Kathryn Kenney tensioning a parchment manuscript fragment using clips and pins. Photo credit Cathie Magee .

Preserving Evidence of Use: The Conservation of a Teaching Collection of Medieval Manuscript Fragments

Posted by: Samantha Schireson

Prior to the rise of printing, medieval libraries were filled with handwritten, manuscript books and documents. Many of those items no longer exist in their original form; some were thrown away when their contents became outdated or no longer useful, others were discarded and replaced with printed books. But some were taken apart, and their covers and pages were repurposed. Some of these pages, which are called fragments, can be found in the collections of The Library of Congress. This post is about a project to conserve these fragments.

Close-up view of two hands carefully at work on an aged, yellowing manuscript with handwriting

A look at John Feely, Nineteenth Century Book Stamp Engraver

Posted by: Samantha Schireson

This post examines the work of nineteenth century book stamp engraver, John Feely. During the latter half of the 19th century, book publishers in Britain and the United States began to hire artists to design book covers. Advances in technology allowed for more affordable manufacturing of books and book cloth, so decorative bindings became more prevalent in the commercial market. Many examples of Feely's highly stylized engraved book covers can be found in the General Collection at the Library of Congress.