Restoration of a Collection of String Quartet Compositions

Prioritizing our work can be challenging as we provide services to the general circulating collection in Walter Clinton Jackson Library, the collections of the Harold Schiffman Music Library, as well as the various collections of the Martha Blakeney Hodges Special Collections and University Archives. Part of our consideration of how to devote our time depends on how an item will be used, such as in an exhibition, with a class, or for a scheduled researcher appointment. The curator of each collection makes those decisions and the work falls into our work queue according to how soon it will be needed and for what purpose it will be used.

The cello music collections at UNCG constitute the largest single holding of archival cello music-related materials in the world. Stacey Krim manages the collection. One of her many duties is identifying items needing conservation and/or restoration (what's the difference?) so that they may be used by researchers or in classes, stabilized for storage, or handled for digitization purposes. 

Four volumes before treatment

This set of four volumes was bound by one of its previous owners and contains the instrumental parts for a variety of string quartet compositions written by variety of composers and published by different publishing houses between 1780 and 1809. The set was donated to the UNCG Cello Music Collection as part of the Bernard Greenhouse Collection. Krim identified the items as a priority for conservation and transferred them to Preservation Services. We determined that due to their intended use with classes and researchers, both repair and restoration would be necessary.

Left to Right: Quarter Leather, Half Leather, and Full Leather Bindings

The binding style of these four volumes is referred to as half leather. A book with all leather or all book cloth as its covering material is referred to as full leather or full cloth respectively. A book with leather or cloth at the spine and fore edge corners (or sometimes there is a strip of leather or cloth all along the fore edge instead of just at the corners) with an alternate material for the rest of the cover is half leather or half cloth. And, a book with leather or cloth just at the spine with a different material, such as cloth or paper, covering the remainder of the book is referred to as quarter leather or quarter cloth. Quarter and Half bindings were developed as a way to minimize use of the more expensive binding materials by covering the rest of the book cover in a more economical material such as cloth or paper.

Bound volumes with missing or detached spines

Three of the bound music scores were missing the spine all together and one book had a detached spine. The leather at the spines and fore edge corners was dry and brittle. In some cases, the leather had worn away to reveal the book board underneath. 

Tail edge of damaged volume before treatment

Mended pages during the treatment process

After restoration treatment

The paper sides, in this case blue paste paper, were also damaged and worn, particularly at the edges. The text block pages were in fairly good condition, but there were some tears and losses, including insect damage in a few places.

The interior pages were mended with Japanese paper and wheat starch paste. The covering material required several steps of treatment. The leather was treated with Klucel-G, a consolidant that also helps prevent the leather from burning (darkening) during the mending process as it is exposed to the moisture of the paste.
 

Worn leather fore edge corner with damaged board underneath

Rebuilding the board with linen cord remnants and adhesive

The book board was consolidated as well, and in some cases it was rebuilt where it was too damaged or was missing parts. 

During treatment - Japanese paper applied, then toned to match

After treatment - corners fully restored

Toned Japanese paper was applied over the exposed book board and then further toned with watercolor to more closely resemble the original covering material of either leather or paste paper. A coat of Klucel-G was applied over the newly attached Japanese paper and watercolor to further seal and protect the Japanese paper and to match the sheen of the original leather.

Spines during treatment

Spine reattached and secured with toned Japanese paper

The new spines were created with Japanese paper laminated to Irish linen to lend strength, then attached to the books. The one remaining original spine was reattached over the laminated Japanese paper and Irish linen.

Four volumes after treatment

Not all of the books we treat receive full restoration such as these. For example, the priority for a book in the generally circulating collection is to return it to service quickly having been repaired in a method that can withstand the use of many patrons over a long period of time. Though we make every effort to create a tidy, attractive repair, the priority is the strength and speed of the repair. Though the restoration of the four volumes of cello music provides a functional and aesthetically pleasing solution, it required a much more time-consuming process and is perhaps not capable of receiving the regular handling as a book in the general collection.

Nonetheless, it is a treat for us to do restoration work as it is a change of pace and often provides such satisfying results, though more challenging work to do.

Aqueous Treatment & Paper Tape Removal

Paper, essentially a relatively flat sheet of bonded cellulose or plant fibers, can be surprisingly strong and long lasting. As with most organic substances though, it is susceptible to decay when exposed to certain environmental conditions such as too much or too little humidity or excessive heat. Paper can also begin to break down due to the acidity from pollutants in the paper fiber, from media (such as ink) that have been applied, or from surface dirt or grime, such as oils from human skin as the paper is handled. 

Black printing ink created a brownish mirror image on the
facing page as the acidity leached from one page to the next.

Book and Paper Conservators have various treatment methods for removing or reducing the harmful effects of pollutants from paper, such as surface cleaning, deacidification, and aqueous treatment. Aqueous treatment is most often described as the process of cleaning and deacidifying paper by submerging it in a bath of water, or a series of baths. Depending on the item being treated, each bath may last from about fifteen minutes to more than an hour. After each bath, the item being treated is removed from the bath and the dirty water is emptied and replaced with clean water. This process continues until the bath water runs clear or almost clear after soaking. Aqueous treatment reduces the acidity of the paper somewhat, often reduces the discoloration caused by age or environmental exposure, and helps remove some of the dirt and grime from the paper. It can also be a great method for removing some types of tape and adhesives from previous repairs like paper tapes.

Map of Boston from The Life of George Washington, 1807.

Two layers of paper tape were attached to
the folded edge of the map.

This map of Boston is from The Life of George Washington, 1807, and was at one time attached in the book with paper tape or else mended with paper tape at some point. Paper tape often has a water-soluble adhesive, so aqueous treatment is an effective way to remove it, provided the paper can be submerged in a bath of water. Sometimes the paper is too fragile to withstand aqueous treatment or it might contain media, such as ink or watercolor, that is soluble in water, which prevents a conservator from using an aqueous treatment. For that reason, the media must first be tested for solubility. If it is stable, aqueous treatment can proceed.

Water droplet applied to ink to test for solubility.

A small piece of blotter was used to absorb the water
droplet and determine if the media was stable.

The blotter was clean, as seen above, so the media
was stable and aqueous treatment could proceed.

Once the media for this map was tested, the map was placed on a piece of Hollytex. Hollytex is a thin, strong, acid-free, woven polyester that acts as a support while the paper is in the water bath. A second sheet was placed on top so that the map was sandwiched between and it was easier and safer to handle. 

Map resting on Hollytex prior to humidification

Before placing the map in the water bath, it was humidified lightly to help it absorb water more easily once submerged. A Dahlia Sprayer - commonly used in conservation, was imported from Japan, and was selected for its ability to provide a fine mist without droplets or splatters - was used to humidify the front and back of the page prior to submersion.

The water flow was tested prior to misting the map.

 

The back of the map was also sprayed prior to
submersion in the water bath.

 
Once the map was humidified and the fibers were relaxed, the second piece of Hollytex was placed on top and the map was carefully submerged into a bath of water. Light pressure was applied to encourage the map to absorb water and sink into the bath for soaking.

The map, sandwiched between two pieces of Hollytex,
was submerged into a bath of water.

 

Light pressure was applied to encourage the map to
absorb water and sink into the bath.

The map was left to soak so that the paper tape's
adhesive could dissolve and release.

The paper tape

After soaking for about a half hour, the adhesive from the paper tape had softened enough to release from the map. The paper tape was peeled back to the extent possible, then a microspatula and a larger plastic spatula were both used to loosen and lift the remainder of the paper tape carrier.

Once both layers of the paper tape were removed, the surface of the map where the tape was adhered was lightly massaged to remove any remaining adhesive.

Using fingertips to gently massage the paper surface
to remove the remaining adhesive.

The map was then soaked in several successive baths to remove acidity and discoloration to the extent possible.

When tilted, it was easier to see how discolored the water had become.

After the last bath, the map was removed from the bath and placed on a blotter to air dry. Sometimes, paper items will need flattening after washing, but fortunately this map dried flat on its own.

The Hollytex makes it much easier to handle the wet paper.

Draining the majority of the water out before placing on blotter.

Wet map drying between Hollytex on blotter.

The map will be mended and hinged back into its place in The Life of George Washington with Japanese paper and starch paste. Because it was washed, much of the acidity has been removed, so it will be stronger and hopefully be used for many years to come.