Tree house
This summer, the library’s Conservation Lab was handed an interesting challenge: create a safe home for a sprig of cypress that the Marquis de Lafayette plucked from George Washington’s grave.
The sprig had been kept in an archival envelope that caused damage whenever it was removed for viewing. Book conservator Michele Brown matted it and created a hinged structure to house it. Not only is this piece of history preserved safely, but it can be viewed through a clear film window so that it can be handled frequently without additional damage.
The library’s conservators are recording this and other behind-the-scenes stories on the Cornell University Library Conservation blog.
The blog also features posts about paper and photographs, updates on the department’s grant-funded projects, and a blogroll of other conservation activities and organizations at Cornell’s library and beyond.