Materials
Causes of Damage
Family papers and documents are often stored in all sorts of places - in the attic or the cellar, at the backs of drawers and cupboards, even framed and hung on a wall or stood on a bookshelf.
Many of these locations are not really suitable for long-term preservation, as the documents can be susceptible to damage from over-handling, insects, damp and UV rays from sunlight.
Another major factor of damage is the poor quality of the original material. From around the 1850s machines were used to make paper instead of it being made by hand, and instead of using linen rags, wood pulp was used. This was a plentiful source of cheap material but the pulp was very acidic, and contained a substance called lignin which turns paper brown on any parts subjected to sunlight.
Moisture can leave stains or pink marks. This is a sign that mould has been eating the cellulose etc. out of the paper and this makes it soft and powdery. Added to this, the manufacturing processes themselves were very acidic, so some leathers used in bookbinding lost strength very quickly.
This image shows a badly damaged map before repair by our qualified Conservator.
