Preservation Clinic will offer advice on how to care for keepsakes

Posted on Fri, May 18, 2012 : 10:57 a.m.

photo courtesy of Mary Morris

If you've got some family heirlooms or other old treasures that may not be in the best condition, the University of Michigan Library has some help available.

The library presents its annual Preservation Clinic this Sunday, with the theme of "Get your stuff out of the shoebox.” Everyone is welcome to take their old stuff to the Hatcher Library Gallery, where they can consult with experts in various fields (books, photos, etc.) about how to care for their items. They will be prepared with magnifying glasses to examine tiny items, and huge tables to accommodate large maps.

The clinic experts can offer advice on papers, videos, LPs, tapes and even digital files. U-M Library preservation staff will help you determine how to repair, scan, store, display, and care for your gems to keep them well preserved.

A library press release recounts, "A visitor to last year’s Preservation Clinic brought a framed letter written by an ancestor during the Revolutionary War. Was it safe to hang the framed letter on the wall? Was the glass and frame of archival quality and protecting the letter? Or should the letter be taken out of the frame? The preservation expert quickly determined that the letter was not the original version written in the 18th century, but a 19th-century albumen print - a photograph printed on paper coated with an egg-white and silver emulsion. The conversation thus changed to a discussion about preserving an early photograph."

“We can help you figure out how to preserve very old family treasures as well as your brand new digital files and photos,” said Shannon Zachary, Head of Preservation and Conservation at the U-M Library, said in the release. “This is what we do every day for the library; we are happy to share our expertise with the public.”

The University of Michigan Library’s Department of Preservation & Conservation offers services for the care and maintenance of the library's collections—to prevent damage, to extend useable life, or to repair damage—and coordinates preservation activities for the library's digital collections. Experts from the Library’s Digital Conversion Unit will also be on hand to talk about scanning old books, photos, and documents. This event is offered in conjunction with Preservation Week, a national initiative to connect people with resources to preserve cultural heritage.

The Preservation Clinic takes place 2:30-4:30 p.m. Sunday, May 20, at the Hatcher Graduate Library, First Floor, Gallery (enter from the Diag), 913 S. University Ave. There is no charge.