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dentally, is usually carried out in the
ZFB in parallel to the restoration
measures?
Heritage is an
ongoing duty
Viewing words, sentences, images
and drawings on a screen alone is
just not the same as still being able
to hold in your hand the pieces of
paper on which, centuries ago, a
good proportion of what forms the
basis of our history and culture today
was written down, drawn or printed.
In any case, the passage of time and
events have already destroyed or
ruined much of this. What still remains
should not be seen as a problem
that we have inherited but as a
duty, and the effort of preserving it
must be regarded as being worthwhile,
even for our own sakes.
Manfred Schindler
manfred.schindler@msw.de
Innovation 15, Carl Zeiss AG, 2005
details
Microscopy
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Books have many different enemies:
mice, bookworms, light,
micro-organisms and acid. Recording
the damage that a book
has suffered always forms the
starting point of a comprehensive
strategy for book preservation.
Microscopes, especially stereomicroscopes,
are frequently used
in the restoration of books to
analyze the book’s “state of
health” before work begins on it:
a record is made of the book
materials and images of the
damage.
Liposcelis divinatorius, for example,
is a minute, wingless type of
book louse that lives between the
pages of books. It prefers to live
in a moist, warm environment and
feeds on mildew, starch, organic
glue, fabric, paper, silk and
leather. Its natural predator is the
book scorpion.
Discoloration of paper and parchment
is usually the sign of an
infestation by micro-organisms
(mildew, bacteria). These are
usually single-cell organisms,
which can be seen under the
microscope. Dye stuffs, excreted
by the micro-organisms, turn
paper green, brown, red, yellow
and black, while parchment is
more likely to show purple marks.
These marks remain even after
the perpetrator has died. However,
colored spots also occur
if the paper has been attacked by
micro-organisms in its structure.
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Fig. 3:
Aqueous fungicide
treatment to kill mildew.
Fig. 4:
Removal of ash and lime.
Fig. 5:
Paper deterioration
caused by acid.
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