I recently completed a box that will contain a rare book. Many rare books are
very fragile (and very valuable) so therefore need special care such as the box
I built. It is made of walnut, felt lined interior and a hand painted oil on
canvas on the top. See picture at:
alt.binaries.pictures.woodworking
Bill
--
http://home.earthlink.net/~billbernice1/
I've known people who seal newspapers &tc. in plastic bags with the
atmosphere displaced with argon. I bet a careful google search would yield
abundant hits.
-JBB
"Bill Orr" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I recently completed a box that will contain a rare book. Many rare books
are
> very fragile (and very valuable) so therefore need special care such as
the box
> I built. It is made of walnut, felt lined interior and a hand painted oil
on
> canvas on the top. See picture at:
>
> alt.binaries.pictures.woodworking
>
> Bill
> --
> http://home.earthlink.net/~billbernice1/
>
>
Greetings and Salutations...
On Sat, 06 Mar 2004 17:53:32 GMT, "Bill Orr"
<[email protected]> wrote:
>
>
>--
>http://home.earthlink.net/~billbernice1/
>"Edwin Pawlowski" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>news:[email protected]...
>>
>> "Bill Orr" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>> news:[email protected]...
>> > I recently completed a box that will contain a rare book. Many rare books
>> are
>> > very fragile (and very valuable) so therefore need special care such as
>> the box
>> > I built. It is made of walnut, felt lined interior and a hand painted oil
>> on
>> > canvas on the top. See picture at:
>> >
>> > alt.binaries.pictures.woodworking
>> >
>> > Bill
>>
>> Nice box, Bill.
>>
>> Do you have to take any special precautions in the finish or wood type to
>> avoid contamination from outgassing?
>> Ed
>
>Bill Orr says:
>
>Thanks, Ed. It's probably a good idea but I don't know the outgasing
>characteristics of various woods or the precautions that should be taken (my
>wood handbook don't cover that). I suppose you could varnish the inside of the
>box as a general precaution. You could also seal the book in a plastic zip pouch
>as I have done but some collectors caution against that also, I think Maybe
>someone here knows. The book I have in it is a 1st edition of "The
>MalteseFalcon" printed during WWII on wartime paper that excluded any war
>material and is therefore very poor quality yellowing and brittle paper.
> If anyone knows, I'm listening
>
>Bill
>
>
>Bill
>
>
Hum...I am not an expert, but, have dabbled in the area a bit.
If you REALLY want to preserve the book, I would suggest that you read
this article...and seriously consider contacting these folks:
http://www.loc.gov/loc/lcib/0201/preserve.html
The fact of the matter is that the acids in the paper are like
a slow fire and WILL consume the entire book in time. The folks that
neutralize the acids use processes that stop the problem without
altering the book.
The good news is that if the box is fairly air-tight, it will
go a long way towards keeping the oxygen that helps the burning away
from the book. The bad news is that it is my understanding that wood
is not one of the preferred methods of storage, because of the complex
compounds it outgasses. I would agree with the other poster that
suggested shellac as a sealer on the inside. However, if you could
wrap the book tightly in aluminum foil, that would go a LONG way
towards keeping the bad things away from it.
However, the most important thing to do is get those acids
neutralized. considering that last year a 1930 edition of this
book sold for slightly over $8000 at auction, it would probably
be worth the few hundred dollars that the neutralization might
cost (I have not checked prices...just guessing...)
Dave Mundt
On Sat, 06 Mar 2004 17:53:32 GMT, "Bill Orr"
<[email protected]> wrote:
>http://home.earthlink.net/~billbernice1/
>"Edwin Pawlowski" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>news:[email protected]...
>>
>> Do you have to take any special precautions in the finish or wood type to
>> avoid contamination from outgassing?
>> Ed
>
>Bill Orr says:
>
>Thanks, Ed. It's probably a good idea but I don't know the outgasing
>characteristics of various woods or the precautions that should be taken (my
>wood handbook don't cover that). I suppose you could varnish the inside of the
>box as a general precaution. You could also seal the book in a plastic zip pouch
>as I have done but some collectors caution against that also, I think Maybe
>someone here knows. The book I have in it is a 1st edition of "The
>MalteseFalcon" printed during WWII on wartime paper that excluded any war
>material and is therefore very poor quality yellowing and brittle paper.
> If anyone knows, I'm listening
>
I would seal the inside of the box with shellac, that seeming to be
the most neutral of any of the finishes. You certainly *don't* want
the box airtight or the book sealed in plastic. Airtight archival
storage requires considerably more work and knowledge than I suspect
any of us here have.
Tim Douglass
http://www.DouglassClan.com
Tim Douglass writes:
>On Sat, 06 Mar 2004 17:53:32 GMT, "Bill Orr"
><[email protected]> wrote:
>
>>http://home.earthlink.net/~billbernice1/
>>"Edwin Pawlowski" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>>news:[email protected]...
>>>
>>> Do you have to take any special precautions in the finish or wood type to
>>> avoid contamination from outgassing?
>>> Ed
>>
>>Bill Orr says:
>>
>>Thanks, Ed. It's probably a good idea but I don't know the outgasing
>>characteristics of various woods or the precautions that should be taken (my
>>wood handbook don't cover that). I suppose you could varnish the inside of
>the
>>box as a general precaution. You could also seal the book in a plastic zip
>pouch
>>as I have done but some collectors caution against that also, I think Maybe
>>someone here knows. The book I have in it is a 1st edition of "The
>>MalteseFalcon" printed during WWII on wartime paper that excluded any war
>>material and is therefore very poor quality yellowing and brittle paper.
>> If anyone knows, I'm listening
>>
>
>I would seal the inside of the box with shellac, that seeming to be
>the most neutral of any of the finishes. You certainly *don't* want
>the box airtight or the book sealed in plastic. Airtight archival
>storage requires considerably more work and knowledge than I suspect
>any of us here have.
Another poster pointed to a Library of Congress page containing preservation
information.
As a former archivist, if not a preservationish, unsealed wood is the worst
possible choice.
Your book is printed on wartime paper, aka pulp paper, which contains a high
percentage of lignin (wood fibers), which is causes the chemical reaction
breaking down the wood. Lignin contains acids which are the root cause of
decomposition. Exposure to wood accelerates the process.
All paper, except cotton/linen bonds, contains lignins in varying proportions.
For wood pulp based paper good preservation practice dictates, at a minimum,
storage in a ph buffered paper. Try a craft store such as Michaels or AC
Moore.
Repair of lignin damage is, short of heroic measures involving replacement of
missing material with polymers, impossible, but it is possible to completely
halt further decomposition by de-acidification.
De-acidification for single pages is possible at home using a buffered
solution. For books, especially those with market value, try a professional
de-acidification/archival preservation firm. If you can find one in your area
that does batch-work you're probably looking at $10-20.
HTH,
Marc (a now-thankfully-retired archivist)
Archival storage recommend
On Sat, 06 Mar 2004 17:38:32 GMT, "Edwin Pawlowski" <[email protected]>
wrote:
>Do you have to take any special precautions in the finish or wood type to
>avoid contamination from outgassing?
Main thing to avoid is felt, especially genuine woolen felt !
http://amol.org.au/recollections/
will tell you a lot.
--
Smert' spamionam
"Tim Douglass" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On Sat, 06 Mar 2004 17:53:32 GMT, "Bill Orr"
> <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> >http://home.earthlink.net/~billbernice1/
> >"Edwin Pawlowski" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> >news:[email protected]...
> >>
> >> Do you have to take any special precautions in the finish or wood type to
> >> avoid contamination from outgassing?
> >> Ed
> >
> >Bill Orr says:
> >
> >Thanks, Ed. It's probably a good idea but I don't know the outgasing
> >characteristics of various woods or the precautions that should be taken (my
> >wood handbook don't cover that). I suppose you could varnish the inside of
the
> >box as a general precaution. You could also seal the book in a plastic zip
pouch
> >as I have done but some collectors caution against that also, I think Maybe
> >someone here knows. The book I have in it is a 1st edition of "The
> >MalteseFalcon" printed during WWII on wartime paper that excluded any war
> >material and is therefore very poor quality yellowing and brittle paper.
> > If anyone knows, I'm listening
> >
>
> I would seal the inside of the box with shellac, that seeming to be
> the most neutral of any of the finishes. You certainly *don't* want
> the box airtight or the book sealed in plastic. Airtight archival
> storage requires considerably more work and knowledge than I suspect
> any of us here have.
>
> Tim Douglass
>
> http://www.DouglassClan.com
Thanks, Tim. That's good information.
Bill
--
http://home.earthlink.net/~billbernice1/
"Bill Orr" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I recently completed a box that will contain a rare book. Many rare books
are
> very fragile (and very valuable) so therefore need special care such as
the box
> I built. It is made of walnut, felt lined interior and a hand painted oil
on
> canvas on the top. See picture at:
>
> alt.binaries.pictures.woodworking
>
> Bill
Nice box, Bill.
Do you have to take any special precautions in the finish or wood type to
avoid contamination from outgassing?
Ed
--
http://home.earthlink.net/~billbernice1/
"Edwin Pawlowski" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> "Bill Orr" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> > I recently completed a box that will contain a rare book. Many rare books
> are
> > very fragile (and very valuable) so therefore need special care such as
> the box
> > I built. It is made of walnut, felt lined interior and a hand painted oil
> on
> > canvas on the top. See picture at:
> >
> > alt.binaries.pictures.woodworking
> >
> > Bill
>
> Nice box, Bill.
>
> Do you have to take any special precautions in the finish or wood type to
> avoid contamination from outgassing?
> Ed
Bill Orr says:
Thanks, Ed. It's probably a good idea but I don't know the outgasing
characteristics of various woods or the precautions that should be taken (my
wood handbook don't cover that). I suppose you could varnish the inside of the
box as a general precaution. You could also seal the book in a plastic zip pouch
as I have done but some collectors caution against that also, I think Maybe
someone here knows. The book I have in it is a 1st edition of "The
MalteseFalcon" printed during WWII on wartime paper that excluded any war
material and is therefore very poor quality yellowing and brittle paper.
If anyone knows, I'm listening
Bill
Bill