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The British Library Centre for Conservation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 June 2016

Vicki Humphrey
Vicki Humphrey*
Affiliation:
British Library, 96 Euston Road, London NW1 2DB, UK
*
Email: vicki.humphrey@bl.uk
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Extract

On May 16th 2007 the British Library Centre for Conservation (BLCC) was opened, providing Conservation staff and Sound Archive Technical Services staff with a new purpose-built base from which to operate. The new building allowed them to be brought together onto the same site as their colleagues and co-located them with the collections for the first time. A BLCC-based programme of professional development events, special interest group events and public tours is providing Collection Care, Conservation, and the Sound Archive Technical Section with a public profile and a voice for communicating key messages about the Library’s stewardship of its collections and about caring for collections generally. The Centre, already a milestone in the history of collection care at the Library, is continuing an existing and ambitious change programme, giving the perfect opportunity to examine all aspects of operations and make changes of benefit to the Library and its staff.

Type
Research Article
Information
Art Libraries Journal , Volume 33 , Issue 1 , 2008 , pp. 15 - 21
Copyright
Copyright © The Art Libraries Society 2008

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References

1. Collection Care is made up of Preservation, Collection Storage and Security, Conservation, Digital Preservation, Conservation Research, Conservation Training and Development and Collection Care Support. There are about 200 people in Collection Care and 80 people in Conservation.Google Scholar
2. India Office Library and Records contained the entire archives of British India from the foundation of the East India Company in 1600 to Indian independence.Google Scholar
3. The British Institute of Recorded Sound joined the British Library, in 1982, the same year as the India Office. The Sound Archive is internationally recognised, with the largest sound collection outside the US.Google Scholar
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6. The Diamond Sutra is the earliest example of block printing to bear a date: ‘the 13th of the fourth moon of the ninth year of Xiantong’ (i.e. 11 May 868). It was found in a cave in 1907 by the archaeologist Sir Marc Aurel Stein in northwest China. It had been hidden near Dunhuang on the Silk Road, with thousands of manuscripts and printed items. An electronic facsimile of the Diamond Sutra is accessible from http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/ttp/ttpbooks.html. A video showing conservators working on the manuscript is available at http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/whatson/blcc/videos.html.Google Scholar
7. This atlas was put together in the early 1570s by the Flemish cartographer Gerardus Mercator, perhaps the best-known mapmaker of all time. Mercator’s Atlas of Europe has recently been conserved by BL conservators. See http://www.bl.uk/about/collectioncare/new.html #conservation for more information on their work and http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/whatson/blcc/videos.html for a video showing conservators treating the manuscript. For more information about Mercator’s Atlas of Europe see http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/themes/mapsandviews/mercator.html.Google Scholar
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9. VELOXY® (VEry Low OXYgen) is an anoxic system developed as an outcome of the EU-funded project, SAVE ART. More information on the project is available at http://www.heritage.xtd.pl/pdf/full_gialdi.pdf.Google Scholar
10. The Senior User Team was made up of the BLCC Change Manager, the Project Sponsor, the Heads of Conservation, Conservation Research, of Conservation Training and Development, Book Conservation, of Technical Services, Sound Archive, of Collection Care Support and two Book Conservation Team Leaders. These people have been assisted throughout with the hard work of a great many other staff. The Head of Collection Care and the Director of the Sound Archive were involved throughout the project, were on the Project Board, were founder members of the Senior User Team and have steered and championed the project throughout. The Head of Collection Care, Helen Shenton, now also heads up the Project Board. Helen deserves special mention for her determination to see the Centre built and for her vision of what we could achieve.Google Scholar
11. An internal questionnaire provided the mechanism for collecting data on the treatments being carried out. In the interview with each conservator their colleagues on the project team also sought to explore the reasons why the conservation staff used those treatments. At the same time, an external questionnaire collected information from across the world. An internal report has been prepared and a report bringing together all aspects of the review is currently being developed.Google Scholar
12. http://www.bl.uk/about/collectioncare/pdf/webconservation.pdf.Google Scholar
13. Foundation Degrees were introduced by the UK Department for Education and Skills in 2000 to provide graduates to address shortages of workers with particular skills. Foundation Degrees also aim to contribute to widening participation and lifelong learning by encouraging learners who may not previously have considered studying for a higher level qualification.Google Scholar
14. Project partners are the British Library, the National Libraries of Wales and Scotland, Oxford and Cambridge University Libraries, the library of Trinity College Dublin, the National Archives (Kew) and the National Archives of Scotland. Academic partners are the Centre for Sustainable Heritage at University College London and the Department of Pure and Applied Chemistry at the University of Strathclyde. Velson Horie has been employed specifically to work on these projects. See also http://www.bl.uk/about/collectioncare/new.html.Google Scholar
15. Strategic Priority 4 in Redefining the Library: the British Library ‘s strategy 2005-2008 deals with the work we do to ‘grow and manage the national collection’. The full text of the strategic plan is available at http://www.bl.uk/about/strategic/pdf/blstrategy20052008.pdf.Google Scholar
16. A full list of donors is given at http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/whatson/blcc/donors.html.Google Scholar