Catholic School Manuscript

book page with handwritten Latin text with paper breaking at corroded ink border and held by a person's two fingers before conservation treatment
book page with handwritten Latin text after conservation treatment

Series 1, volume 2 of the Catholic School Manuscript Book Collection; Booth Family Center for Special Collections.

Due to humidity over time, the iron gall ink in this "book in manuscript" had corroded through the paper in several locations throughout the volume. In addition, the book covers were detaching from the text block; and the overall sewing structure was failing. To treat this volume, conservators mended the paper throughout with Japanese paper and wheat starch paste. As the corrosion related to acidity, the leaves were “deacidified” with a non-aqueous (that is, not washed in water) magnesium oxide treatment. Mending the textblock caused some distortion, which made it necessary to resew the volume fully. The parchment covers were repaired and restored, with Japanese paper toned with watercolors and colored pencils. Prior to conservation, the volume was digitized and is now available to access and read online in DigitalGeorgetown.