Wunsch Conservation Lab

The MIT Libraries’ Wunsch Conservation Lab provides comprehensive care for materials held by the Department of Distinctive Collections. The staff is equipped to carry out a variety of conservation duties in accordance with the code of ethics and guidelines for practice set forth by the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works.

Conservation does not make decisions around the state of an artifact or its housing by themselves. It is always 100% a conversation and decision made with the custodial liaison (member of the processing team). 

Common Supplies

TBD.

Workflow

Pre-Custodial

Before transfer of materials, photos of the material in situ and notes describing their condition should be created. Notes created by the curator or collections staff should indicate any concerns about where the materials came from (e.g., basement, garage, leaky attic, specific building on campus). Wunsch staff can be called upon to assess collections before they are moved to DDC or immediately after if there any concern. Appraisal decisions may be influenced by the presence of moldy, odorous, and/or water damaged material.

During Accessioning or Processing

Make note of items that may need conservation treatment (large, fragile, odorous) in a work plan or in ArchivesSpace (use processing notes). Flag the item and box using strips of acid free paper so it can be located later. Paper strips for flagging materials are provided by conservation staff.

Consulting with Conservation

When processing collections, it is better to bring multiple items and/or concerns to conservation for a consult rather than each item as it is found. An appointment can be made by emailing conservation staff. Wunsch Lab also has a drop-in consultation time on Thursday mornings.

Tracking Materials

Chain of custody, as well as a list of actions to be taken are documented in a sign-in book in Wunsch Lab. Additional information forthcoming.

When to Bring Materials to the Conservation Lab

Materials should be brought to conservation staff when they...

• ...cannot be foldered or fit in standard size boxes. Custom housing and interior retrofitting can be done by appointment. Staff will want to know the space in which the materials will be ultimately housed, and any limitations to container dimensions (maximum, height, width, depth).

• ...smell bad. Materials that smell bad may be moldy and should be processed under the fume hood. 

• ...have visible mold or mildew. Conservation will want to view the materials under the fume hood and place carbon pieces with it.