Preserving the past

A report on weaknesses in artifact preservation will come as no surprise to anyone who's been involved in a small museum or historical society:

Millions of rare artifacts in museums and libraries across the United States are slowly disintegrating because of improper storage, according to a survey said to be the largest-ever look at the condition of such collections.

Damage is occurring at institutions of all sizes, but is worse at small-town museums and historical societies, said the report, to be made public Tuesday at the New York Public Library.

The survey of conditions at 3,370 museums, libraries and archives found that many lacked the basic environmental controls that prevent photographs from losing colour, keep rare books from crumbling to dust and protect military uniforms from being devoured by insects.

A quarter were deemed potentially vulnerable to damaging fluctuations in temperature, light and humidity. About 65 per cent had already sustained damage to their collections.

Only one in five institutions had a paid staff dedicated to caring for stored materials, and fewer than one in three had an up-to-date assessment of the overall condition of their collection. Eighty per cent of the institutions lacked a plan detailing how their objects might be saved if a natural disaster occurs, the survey said.

I founded a historical society several years ago, so this report is in no way surprising to me: our membership were eager to acquire artifacts, but there was little or no concern for how the acquisitions were to be stored and cared for. I believe this is pretty typical: the thrill is in the hunt, not in the maintenance.

To counterbalance the ominous tone in the report, it should be remembered that there are probably several times as many small museums and groups working to preserve the past than there were even 20 years ago: amateurs are not able to provide the perfect archival conditions of the "big players", but they are still working to save things that otherwise would already have been lost. It's too easy to poke fun at a couple of people in a decrepit old storefront or farmhouse, but if they weren't making the effort, there's no chance that the big players would step in . . . their resources are never sufficient to preserve everything.