Tag Archives: CHPL

Nests and Eggs on Display at the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra

Illustrations of the Nests and Eggs of Birds of Ohio are on display at the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra March 1^st and 2^nd as part of a musical program honoring Oliver Messiaen who was both a major composer of the 20^th century and an ornithologist.

Synesthesia

Oliver Messiaen is well known for studying bird songs and interpreting their notes into musical transcriptions. His works are also unique in that Messiaen experienced synesthesia which greatly influenced his creations. Synesthesia is when a person perceives more than one sense at a time, such as Messiaen who experienced colors when listening to music and was able to see sounds.

Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra Program

The program at the CSO honors Messiaen by incorporating both music, color, and bird visuals to invite the audience to experience a unique multi-sensory experience. Messiaen’s Des canyons aux étoiles (“From the Canyons to the Stars”) will be performed by the conductor, Matthias Pintscher, and pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard.

Click the image for a link to the digital program for the CSO Proof: *From the Canyons to the Stars*

“Inspired by his visits to Utah’s Bryce Canyon and Zion National Park, Messiaen’s Des canyons aux étoiles (“From the Canyons to the Stars”) depicts the birdsong and red rock hues he experienced during his time in the desert… Accompanied by immersive video-art, Springer Auditorium will be transformed, allowing listeners to escape into the southwestern landscape and experience a synesthesia of their own.” – As described by the CSO website

Nests and Eggs

Complementing the musical performances, on display will be a page from Cincinnati and Hamilton County’s Illustrations of the nests and eggs. The page showcases a local Ohio native, the Wood Thrush, who lays bright blue colored eggs within a nest made of old leaves, dried grasses and moss (rarely sticks). The nest of the Wood Thrush also contains “rootlets” placed intentionally inside of the nest, resulting in a pinkish brown or black lining. The nest is “plastered” with a thin mud that is easily missed as it’s thoroughly worked in and covered.

Nests and Eggs, while lesser known than Audubon’s Birds of America, is quite extraordinary in how it highlights the uniqueness of the construction of nests made by different bird species. Take for instance, the Baltimore Oriole’s nest, which primarily consists of strings and flax fibers to create a soft and long pocket. Compare that to the more traditional nest of the Wood Thrush whose home is bowl-shaped with a wide opening.

It’s also extraordinary that the illustrations are detailed lithographic portraits created by Gabrielle Estelle Jones and her family, despite not having been formally trained. Their work was intended to be used as a companion volume to John James Audubon’s Birds of America. While not as large as the Birds of America double elephant folios, Eggs and Nests is still an impressively large-sized volume.

Gabrielle “Gennie” Estelle Jones

The following excerpt was written by Sara Williams, Arts & Special Collections Reference Librarian:

Illustrations of the Nests and Eggs of Birds of Ohio was a project begun by Genevieve Estelle Jones, a native of Circleville, Ohio. Born May 13, 1847, Genevieve, or Gennie, spent much time as a young girl birdwatching in the woods and wetlands with her father, an amateur ornithologist. Just before the age of 30, Jones’ father forbade her from marrying the man she loved, and in 1876, she visited the Centennial World’s Fair in Philadelphia to take her mind off her broken heart. While there, she viewed hand-colored engravings from John James Audubon’s vibrant The Birds of America. Inspired by Audubon’s example, Jones set out to illustrate the nests and eggs of birds, an aspect often missing from his work. Jones completed only five illustrations for her book before she died of typhoid at the age of 32. The work was eventually completed by Genevieve Jones’ family. Only 90 copies of the book were published, of which only 34 are currently known to exist.

Preservation

As part of the Preservation Lab’s role in displaying the object, a condition report book was created to accompany the item to ensure the object’s condition is preserved. This helps those who are installing anticipate any possible challenges in supporting fragile pages or bindings. In this case, the upper endsheets are extremely brittle and have been previously repaired, but could break again if not carefully draped and held with polyester strapping in a safe manner.

After determining a proper exhibit case to fit and secure the binding, a custom cradle was made. To protect weak points of the binding on display, a support was constructed out of 8 ply museum mat board to support the heavy and oversized pages from stress along the joint.

Solutions were tested to fit within an 18 inch deep case, however, the book was just too large!

A custom 8 ply mat board cradle was created to fit within a more appropriate 4 ft case. Pages are strapped with polyester strapping

Before an object travels, it’s often reviewed to make sure it can handle transport and treated if necessary. Luckily, in this case, the binding was treated in 2016 and is still in great condition for its age. When it received treatment, at that time it received a lightweight yet strong enclosure that will also work well to safely protect the item for travel to the CSO.

Corrugated banker’s box with a drop spine houses the Nests and Eggs book. Binding and exhibit labels are ready for packing.

A 4-foot case was kindly loaned to the CSO from the Behringer-Crawford Museum and is ready for use! (Image credit: Amber Ostaszewski)

Entrance to the Founder’s Room
Bird sounds were played in the entryway
During staging of the exhibit
Nests and eggs on display in the Founder’s Room
The Founder’s Room
Night of the performance
Entering the theatre
Not visible are the camping chairs and fire pits in the orchestra pit

Additional Resources

Interested in seeing more Nests and Eggs? The entire binding is conserved and digitized where it is made publicly available online. More information about Gennie’s fascinating and tragic history can be read at the Linda Hall website.

CSO Program Dates

There are two programs where you can view the item on display, Friday, March 1^st and Saturday, March 2^nd, both at 8pm at the Music Hall. Interested? Click here for the digital program.

We hope to see you there!

Ashleigh Ferguson Schieszer [CHPL] – Book and Paper Conservator, Co-Lab Manager

Interested in starting a career in conservation? Join us!

The Preservation Lab, a partnership to preserve and conserve the collections of the Cincinnati & Hamilton County Public Library and the University of Cincinnati Libraries, seeks applicants for a Conservation Assistant position.

The Conservation Assistant is a technician level position with on-the-job training that may appeal to emerging conservation professionals. This position will join a collaborative team of 7 full-time staff members, including conservators, a preservation librarian, technicians, student workers and volunteers to preserve collections from both institutions. The Preservation Lab staff consists of both Cincinnati Public Library and the University Library members. This position is a Cincinnati and Hamilton County Public Library position but is stationed at the University of Cincinnati West campus.

The successful candidate will demonstrate the ability to execute hands-on work with skill.

Founded in 1853, the Cincinnati and Hamilton County Public Library today is one of the busiest and most highly acclaimed library systems in the United States, providing service to over 800,000 residents through a network of 40 branch libraries, a major downtown Main Library, and a Distribution Center. CHPL holds one of the largest genealogical collections in the United States and many other specialized collections, most of which are housed in the Main library.

Pay rate begins at $15.87/hour.

Deadline to Apply: Dec 1, 2023

For more information about job duties and how to apply, please visit the Cincinnati and Hamilton County Public Library website.

Ashleigh Ferguson Schieszer, Special Collections Conservator [CHPL]

Panorama Preservation: A Visit with Ralph Wiegandt

As conservation professionals at the Preservation Lab, we get to see and work with our fair share of historic, rare, and just plain interesting artifacts. I recently had the pleasure of becoming familiar with an item that is all 3 of these, and just so happens to be one of The Cincinnati & Hamilton County Public Library’s (CHPL) most prized possessions: the Fontayne and Porter 1848 Cincinnati Panorama Daguerreotype.

Cincinnati Daguerreotype Panorama by C. Fontayne and W. Porter, 1848

For those who are unfamiliar, a daguerreotype is the very first photographic process, utilizing iodine-sensitized silver plates and mercury vapors, often offering stunning detail and resolution. Currently on display in the downtown Main Library’s Cincinnati Room, the Cincinnati Panorama is no exception, and is considered one of the most detailed and vivid examples of daguerreotype photography currently in existence.

CHPL panorama plate 5 detail
CHPL panorama plate 4 detail
CHPL panorama plate 2 detail

Daguerreotype photography is not without its challenges, however. Most significant of these (at least which concerns us in the conservation field) is that daguerreotypes are extremely delicate. They scratch easily and can degrade with simple exposure to oxygen, atmospheric pollutants, and moisture. These attributes bring up a difficult question: how does one display an item like this, while also ensuring its preservation for generations to come?

Enter Ralph Wiegandt. Wiegandt is a Photograph Research Conservator who designed and installed the 1848 Cincinnati Panorama’s enclosure and display case in 2008. He routinely has performed on-site follow-up consultations in 2012, ’14, ’16, and most recently this past June with Genealogy and Local History and Preservation Lab staff. My fellow lab mate, Hyacinth, and I had the good fortune to also meet with Wiegandt on this recent visit to attend a presentation on his uniquely designed enclosure. Although the primary purpose of the visit was to discuss the enclosure, Ralph shared no shortage of information about daguerreotype plates, the photographers (Fontayne and Porter), the conditions surrounding the panorama, and much more.

Ralph Wiegandt, photo by Hyacinth Tucker

It was clear from speaking with Wiegandt that this project was one he was deeply passionate about, referring to it as “a seminal object in my career.” He spoke with excitement about the unique attributes the Cincinnati Panorama showcases, chief among them: the stunning detail and clarity. According to Wiegandt, this image is so detailed that it can be magnified up to 30x before experiencing any resolution loss. This allowed for intense digital imaging to be performed during the initial conservation of the daguerreotype in 2008. In this process, digital photos were taken from different degrees of closeness to the original image and then stitched together, creating one large interactive digital display, viewable here.

Wiegandt informed us that the 1848 Cincinnati Panorama was not the first attempt at such a picture. Just several months prior, W.S. Porter had taken another daguerreotype panorama of the Fairmount Water Works in Philadelphia.

Fairmount Water Works Daguerreotype Panorama by W.S. Porter, 1848

The detail of this image, however, is not as impressive as the Cincinnati Panorama. What can be gleaned from this fact, according to Wiegandt, is that the Philadelphia capture was a successful learning experience for Porter, and that his skills and techniques were able to improve dramatically by the time he attempted the Cincinnati Panorama with C. Fontayne.

At the time of the Cincinnati Panorama, daguerreotype photography had only existed for 9 years. Equally as remarkable as the detail these images were able to capture is the inception of this technology. Wiegandt explained how Louis-Jacques-Mande Daguerre experimented with plates of silver sensitized with iodine fumes. The idea was that the sensitized silver would be reduced as it was exposed to light (i.e., the shutters on a camera opening and allowing light from the image field to hit the plates), thus creating latent images in the silver. Although this proved to be successful, a viewable image was not detectable until a chance happening, which Wiegandt describes as “a miracle.” Legend has it that one of Daguerre’s exposed plates was stored in a cabinet, sharing this space with one other singular item: a broken instrument that utilizes mercury (such as a thermometer, barometer, etc.). Upon examining this plate, Daguerre realized the latent image was now detectable, correctly deducing that the mercury fumes had developed the film. The fumes had caused the light-exposed areas on the silver plate to form small bumps, roughly 1 micron in size, creating an instant high-resolution image. The microscopic size of these bumps means that, according to Wiegandt, daguerreotype images are an early example of what we would today call nano technology. (Ralph also notes the actual circumstances of its discovery are unclear since any notes from Daguerre’s studio would have been lost during a fire shortly afterwards.)

Much like the Fontayne and Porter Cincinnati Daguerreotype, the current display case is quite unique as well. As mentioned before, daguerreotypes are incredibly delicate. To successfully prevent further degradation and preserve this object for generations to come, its exposure to oxygen and other reactive gases must be severely limited. The solution that Wiegandt produced was a specialized inert gas case, similar in concept to how the Declaration of Independence is housed. The goal of this case is “to maintain a slightly elevated pressure of a non-reactive gas such that it will not put excessive strain on the seals yet will be above the potentially highest barometric pressure” (Wiegandt, 2006), thus preventing any atmospheric air from coming in contact with the sensitive daguerreotype plates.

Wiegandt’s sealed encasement design sketch provided in treatment documentation

Wiegandt chose argon to pressurize the case with as it has a better diffusion rate and is more inert than other gases such as nitrogen, all while being cost effective.

Wiegandt informed us on his most recent visit that the case is doing its job: the panorama has experienced no detectable degradation since its installation. However, this was likely his final visit to the Cincinnati Library, as he is retiring from the field. I should add that a further and perhaps more important purpose for this visit was to advise and inform CHPL (and Preservation Lab) staff to be successful in monitoring and caring for the object in his absence. Fortunately, Wiegandt was able to leave us with a wealth of information and resources that will aid in the continued preservation of this amazing artifact. With an updated preservation plan, knowledgeable staff in both the Genealogy & Local History and Preservation Lab departments, and a commitment to preserving cultural property, we can be confident the Cincinnati daguerreotype panorama will be enjoyed by library visitors for many generations to come.

Matthew McCoy [CHPL] – Conservation Specialist

Sources:

http://photographyhistory.blogspot.com/2010/10/daguerreotype-panorama.html (Fairmount Water Works Photo)

A New Home For the Madisonville Scrapbook

We’re excited to announce that the Madisonville branch is in its final stages to re-open their newly renovated space! Please join the library for the opening event March 18th! At the event, the Genealogy and Local History Department staff member, Chris Smith will talk about Madisonville’s history from 3:30 pm – 4 pm.

During the event, the Madisonville scrapbook will be on view for festivities March 18th.

Because this material is HUGE and considered a rare irreplaceable item, both the book and cradle were hand delivered from one building to another by Preservation Lab and Madisonville staff. Below are “behind the scenes” images showing the delivery of these oversized materials.

View of book in its prior home location, recently cleared of books:

Scrapbook & cradle in room empty of books

For transport, the oversized book was stored in a lightweight (but strong!) custom enclosure:

Two flaps of foam were first sandwiched under a flap of board

The custom enclosure consists of multiple light-weight layers and flaps of foam, all tied together with cotton ties, as shown in Chris’ schematic. This enclosure will be used both for transport and for long-term storage.

Once packaged, both the book and cradle were hand delivered to their new home next door:

Cradle hand delivered next door by Terry Barnum and Chris Voynovich

The book now awaits the re-opening event while staff continue unpacking the rest of collections!

We hope to see you there!

Ashleigh Ferguson Schieszer [CHPL] – Rare book and paper conservator

To read about the conservation of the scrapbook and construction of the book’s cradle, please see the treatment documentation and a prior blog article titled, Madisonville Scrapbook.

As a bonus, to celebrate the completion of the oversized treatment, Chris created a comic you can fold from an 8 1/2 x 11 sheet of paper. Check out the printable file below! Instructions on how to fold can be found on the Preservation Lab’s YouTube channel video titled Preserving Scrapbooks beginning at the 10:42 time stamp.

ScrapbookOnePgWonder_CV_withInterior Download

Print Council of America Paper Sample Book

Cleaning out old historic papers from the lab closet inspired me to investigate finding a reference material that I enjoyed using at other institutions: the Print Council of America Paper Sample Book. A Practical Guide to the Description of Paper, by Roy Perkinson and Elizabeth Lunning, Boston 1996.

*Print Council of America’s Paper Sample Book*

While there are many fine art applications, this book is used in the field of paper conservation when describing papers in an examination report. The reason for this is to establish a visual standard since descriptors can be quite subjective. Cream, beige and light brown to one person could be perceived as opposites to another. However, using this booklet, a large range of colors, textures and thicknesses are definitive and straightforward to select when comparing the samples to the object in person.

I first gained experience using the reference in graduate school and thought it could be a valuable resource for the Preservation Lab, especially for staff and students learning to examine objects for the first time. However, I was under the impression it was out of print because the booklet was created by the Print Council of America a few decades ago and contains a limited number of hand cut paper samples. With the lab’s newly found historic paper samples in mind, I emailed the Print Council Of America to seek permission to create a facsimile. Lo and behold, I was thrilled to learn the books were still for sale and no boot-legging necessary!

Ours arrived just this week and I’m excited to share the tri-fold booklet below! Paper colors are defined on the left, thicknesses outlined in the center, and textures displayed on the right.

How to use:

When describing a paper object (or text block) in the description section of the treatment report, I will now reference this booklet to describe the color, texture and thickness using this terminology. Colors include: Light blue, blued white (which looks gray to me!), bright white, white, cream (1), cream (2), cream (3), beige (2), and brown. There are seven types of thickness and nine types of textures to select for comparison ranging from very smooth to rough (3). The accompanying pamphlet has great information to further define the terms, including a measurement chart for the paper thickness (should you prefer using a micrometer), and provenance of all the sample papers.

Let’s use the booklet to describe a handwritten note by Abraham Lincoln from 1864, owned by the Cincinnati and Hamilton County Public Library:

During treatment, the note is removed from the matting system

Before having my hands on the booklet, I would have described the object as follows: The manuscript is handwritten with brown iron gall ink on a light beige handmade laid paper. Comparing the object to the Print Council of America sample book, the manuscript could be better described as:

…a manuscript handwritten in brown iron gall ink on a cream (1)…

…a manuscript handwritten in brown iron gall ink on a cream (1), medium (2) thick…

… a manuscript handwritten in brown iron gall ink on a cream (1), medium (2) thick, smooth, handmade laid paper.

Much improved from my initial description that indicated the color was light beige!

When using this booklet as a reference for reports or surveys, at the bottom of the report, I’ll begin adding a footnote that says, “[1] All paper descriptions by comparison with Print Council of America’s Paper Sample Book (Roy Perkinson and Elizabeth Lunning, 1996). This will allow other conservators and practitioners familiar with the book to have a point of reference when reading my report, even on the other side of the country! In the future, this can also help in identifying shifts in paper tone caused by aging paper.

Ashleigh Ferguson Schieszer – Lab Co-Manager, Rare Book and Paper Conservator

MISHA: A pilot project to image archival collections ‘on the cheap’ with multi-spectral imaging!

Yesterday we had the pleasure of a visit from Case Western Reserve University Library staff, Andrew Mancuso, Preservation Officer, and Naomi Langer, Digitization Technician.

They are currently winding up a whirl-wind month-long tour, traveling around the state to test a portable (and affordable!) multi-spectral imaging system as part of a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH).

This unique system is called MISHA, which stands for Multi-spectral Imaging System for the Humanities and Archives. The imaging system and software can be used to recover obscured and illegible text on historical documents, such as scraped-away writing:

Lost manuscript writing on a CHPL Book of Hours is a good candidate for multi-spectral imaging

To learn more about the NEH-funded project, please visit: https://www.rit.edu/news/rit-building-imaging-systems-help-libraries-and-museums-uncover-lost-texts.

If you’re familiar with multi-spectral imaging systems, you might be wondering, “How much is ‘cheap’?” Roughly, the entire system cost under $5,000 to create – with the monochrome camera and light boards making up the bulk of the price tag.

LED light boards built by RIT Chester F. Carlson Center for Imaging Science

Copy stand consists of T-slot aluminum framing and black painted wood board base

As you can see, the black Coroplast, duct tape, felt, and binder clips make up a very small portion of the budget, however, they are instrumental for using the system in a room that cannot be fully darkened. We also observed that the lights were extremely bright, and the light shield made it easier on our eyes.

Felt is clipped with binder’s clips to keep out light

To test the portable system, Ohio institutions with medieval parchment documents from Otto Ege collections were asked if their manuscript leaves could be imaged on-site with this equipment. With the entire glamour shot studio fitting into a 40-pound rolling suitcase, Andrew and Naomi traveled to various cities from Cleveland to Cincinnati, making our photographic imaging dreams come true!

This tightly fitting suitcase has packing instructions to protect all the parts.

Since the Cincinnati and Hamilton County Public Library (CHPL) own multiple Ege collections and a variety of other worthy imaging candidates, the Preservation Lab was fortunate enough to participate. In the CHPL collection, manuscript 32 (of Fifty original leaves from medieval manuscripts, Western Europe, XII-XVI century) was thought to be the most promising to reveal hidden information.

Naomi demos the imaging procedures to lab staff

Images are captured at 16 different wavelength bands ranging between 365 nm – 940 nm

A white MA CLP2036 99% reflectance disk is placed in every image to aid in image processing later

CHPL music manuscript is cradled for imaging by an adaptable book conservation support (ABCS)

Now that the photographic capture is complete, we’re looking forward to processing the images next with the open access software called Hoku, provided by the Rochester Cultural Heritage Imaging, Visualization, and Education (R-Chive) community.

We were thrilled to see how easy this equipment was to set up in person. And special thanks to Andrew who brought his handy adaptable book conservation support (ABCS) to cradle our bound collections. Everyone should have one!

Please stay tuned as we share any info revealed.

Ashleigh Ferguson Schiezser (CHPL) – Conservator, Co-Lab Manager

Creating Order Out of Chaos: Storing a Collection of 19th Century Political Ephemera

Introduction

In libraries, we traditionally house rectangular, book-shaped materials. So when a collection of buttons, ribbons and medals entered the lab from the Public Library, our eyes widened as we peered inside the chaos filled box! Initially, we were unsure of how to make order of all the parts for better storage.

*Collection of political ephemera before preservation housing, call number 737.242097 C6971 1841*

This collection of political ephemera was received in a non-archival black banker’s box. It consisted of approximately 13 ribbons, 17 pinback buttons, and 9 metals dating to the late 1800’s and onward.

In the late 19th century, political ephemera like this was once prolific and cheap to produce. It wasn’t until the rise of the celluloid (plastic) button that political ribbons fell out of fashion. After many years of storage, the ribbons were creased, crumpled and interspersed with heavy medals, sharp pins, and acidic envelopes. All components were in need of archival storage containers for long-term preservation, to separate the parts to keep them from damaging each other and to make them easier to handle.

Ashleigh and Chris took on the challenge of housing these non-traditional library materials so as to facilitate future display and exhibition.

Evaluation

Being a book and paper conservator (not an objects or textile conservator!), Ashleigh first started by brainstorming housing options:

Prior storage solutions by the lab were referenced, such as:
- Medals mounted with polyester strapping to a cloth covered mat
- A collection of steamboat keys mounted with ties to corrugated board supports
- A pin mounted to a cloth covered support, stored within a pamphlet binder
After consulting with the Cincinnati Art Museum textile conservator, Obie Linn, Ashleigh quickly ruled out placing silk ribbons into polyester sleeves or bags since static cling issues could be detrimental to fragile fabric. Storing the items within foam recesses was suggested as an alternative.
Some of the buttons and medals were magnetic, so magnets were considered to prevent parts from sliding (such as how tin type photographs can be non-adhesively mounted with rare earth magnets).
Other components that were not magnetic could be secured with ties or straps.
Small metal buttons without fabric (that could easily become lost!) were candidates to store in baggies, similarly to how the University of Kansas Libraries describe housing this collection of pins on their blog.
It also became clear that minor treatment was needed including surface cleaning and humidification to reduce creasing in the ribbons and to encourage proper orientation of the parts during storage. This would also help prepare the items for future exhibition.

Since many parts had varying needs, the items were first grouped by size, type, and if they were magnetic. Once grouped, standardized mount sizes were determined so that no matter what size the ribbons were, they would all fit together inside the same sized box. Additionally, a few ribbons were grouped together on one mount to save space.

*Items being evaluated and grouped into standardized support sizes*

Rudimentary plans were drawn to decide how the groups and parts would eventually be configured into one enclosure. For example, what would make more sense for library storage on a shelf – to orient the final enclosure as a rectangle or square? We went with a rectangle since many shelves at the library have a narrow depth.

Custom Mat Board Mounts with Foam

Chris’ first task was to cut sink mats made with custom Plastizote and Volara polyethylene foam spacers to protect the ribbons from shifting during storage. Ashleigh had previously mounted a few ribbons to museum rag mat board as models, giving him a head start and model for packaging the remaining ribbons. After adhering the polyethylene foam to the mat board with PVA, the mounts were pressed for over a week allowing them to off-gas and dry flat.

Many of the ribbons were adorned with metal parts such as metal tassels, anchors, eagles or portraits embossed on discs like coins. Using the Our Standard ribbon as our standard for mounting (see image below), the ribbons were stored similarly, but with slight variations. Our Standard was first protected within a polyethylene foam custom cut spacer. The metal eagle pin was then secured to the mat board backing with 18/3 linen thread. After looping around the pin, the thread was threaded through holes punched in the mat board backing. Tyvek tape sealed the thread knot at rear. To hold the unruly metal tassels securely to the mat, a 3/16 inch polyethylene strap was inserted into slits cut into the mat board backing and was secured on the back with Tyvek tape.

Similarly, Chris mounted a Democratic metal with an anchor using 18/3 linen thread tied to the mat board mount. In addition, a scrap of a CoLibri jacket was repurposed and customized into a large polyester strap. It was placed between the metal anchor and ribbon to prevent abrasion as the anchor is affixed by a small chain and swings freely upon the ribbon.

*This frayed ribbon needed protection from a metal anchor attached to a chain.*

The largest item, a six-inch diameter coin with the bust of McKinley, was sewn to the mat board as previously described; however, this big old coin also came with a detached pin. Chris creatively added it to the corner with tiny spacers and polyethylene straps.

A smaller McKinley medallion was tension mounted alongside another small presidential ribbon. No other mounting solution was needed for this round object other than a circular cut-out in the foam that held the object snugly in place.

*The round McKinley medallion was secured with tension inside a circular foam cutout.*

Flat Ribbons vs. 3-Dimensional Ribbons

Flat silk ribbons without any added pins or components were stored flat within folders of unbuffered interleaving tissue. The folders were placed on top of unbuffered rag mat board for storage. To prevent the folders from sliding off the mat board when handled, polyethylene strapping was wrapped around the boards and adhered to itself with double stick tape (similar to strapping a book). In the future, the ribbons could be pulled out of the folders and exhibited on the provided mat board supports with the strapping.

Flat ribbons were stored in unbuffered interleaving.

Ribbons with dimensionality were stored with extra layers of foam surrounding them. The foam was built up to the height of the highest point of the object to prevent them from getting knocked during storage. Ribbons also needed interior supports to keep their shapes over time, and to prevent the fabric from flattening. In these cases, unbuffered interleaving tissue was inserted below cloth badges with pleated cloth. Rolls of polyester film were also inserted inside the loops of a black cloth ribbon. The rolled polyester film is intended for storage and can be removed for display.

Extra supports were added to badges with dimensional fabric parts.

The set of badges with extra dimension were also challenging to mount. They did not have convenient places for strapping or tying with thread. Instead, rare earth magnets were attached to the back of the mats to hold the parts in place. Weak rare earth magnets were also used on the front of Andrew Jackson’s badge. The magnets on the front were wrapped with unbuffered interleaving tissue to provide handles for lifting that can easily be removed for exhibition. Magnets on the back were covered with Tyvek tape. These magnets gave just enough hold to secure these in place for storage.

Magnets helped hold this group of badges to their support.

Buttons

In addition to ribbons, this collection had many buttons, coins and trinkets such as these:

These parts were not matted. Instead, the loose metals and coins were sealed individually in polyethylene bags. Within the bags, the pins and coins were given support with thin cardstock. Because metal objects and photographs share similar long-term preservation needs, buttons were pinned to unbuffered cardstock that is traditionally used for storing photographs. Once bagged, they were grouped together by size and type in preparation for the next phase of boxing.

Metal buttons and badges were pinned to cardstock and sealed from humidity inside baggies.

Putting It All Together As One Collection

Now that all the parts were individually protected for storage, it was time to group them together in boxes.

Ribbons were grouped together inside tuxedo boxes.

Mourning ephemera were housed together within a tuxedo box. Pins in honor of Lincoln’s death were stored in an envelope while ribbons were stored on mat board sink mats with polyester strapping

A corrugated banker’s box holds the bagged buttons and coins. Removable spacers make flipping and viewing the buttons easier.

*A custom cloth covered clamshell holds all the parts together.*

All contents of this collection were then assembled by Chris in a beautiful cloth covered clamshell. A foam bumper was added along the outer edge of the bottom tray to add space for hands to slide out the tux boxes.

Chris Voynovich (CHPL) – Conservation Assistant

Ashleigh Ferguson Schieszer (CHPL) – Conservator, Co-Lab Manager

To learn more about political ephemera, check out this article by the House of Representatives titled, What Killed the Political Ribbon?

No-stick protective Mylar jacket for CD compilation

The purpose of this blog is to show a relatively easy long-term solution for strengthening and protecting the packaging for shallow banker’s box enclosures. There are two notable benefits to using this solution. The first being that in some cases little to no repairing needs to be done to damaged parts of the box and the second is at no time does any adhesive come into contact with the original piece. I have developed this system down to a science. If I make my measurements correctly, from start to finish, the lid and base jacket can be made from the custom stencils in about 180 minutes.

Ultimately you’ll be cutting 2 pieces of 4 mil Mylar to the following dimensions (W+thx4+4inches x H+thx4+4 inches) with the help of stencils.

To make a stencil I just place the lid in the center of the wastepaper and adding about 1mm all around, trace the width and height. Add 1 wall thickness all around followed by 1 wall board thickness all around then another wall thickness all around. Draw each of these added lines all the way to the edge of the paper.

You may notice little adaptations to the tabs that will be cut out of the Mylar. I make the tabs on opposite sides to create symmetry. Here is a close-up of one.

After scoring and cutting out the Mylar to match the pattern, fold on the lines using either a ruler and bone folder or your fingers.

When you are all ready, place the box in the center of the Mylar sleeve and place double stick tape where the tabs will secure the corners. Start with the outside corners first.