TOPIC ONE

CONCEPTS OF PRESEVATION AND

CONSERVATION
By Mr. MOMA
0622420677
 TOPIC CONTENT
Definition of terms related to records
preservation and conservation.
Deference between preservation ,conservation
and restoration.
Factors affecting the life span of records.
 Introduction ........
 Preservation and conservation slow down the rete of
deterioration of archival materials and ensure their
longevity and accessibility to the public. Since access to
archives is key to the existence of any archival
institution, preservation and conservation of archival
materials become very important for accessibility of
archival materials and the existence of an archival
institution.
 This topic therefore, seeks to make learners aware of
various terms related to preservation and conservation of
archival materials and records in general.
 Definition of terms.......
Preservation
All managerial, financial and technical
considerations applied to prevent damage and
extend the useful life of material and objects
in collections to ensure their availability
(Williams, 2006: 168)
 Definition of terms....
 Preservation refers to processes and operations involved in
ensuring the intellectual and technical survival of authentic
records through time (ISO 15489-2001).
Preservation is a crucial element in the whole
operation of a records program. The aim of
archival preservation is to prolong the usable and
life span of records so as to be useful for
organization operations, protecting right of
individuals as well as to be useful for research
purpose
 Definition of terms.......
preservation may be applied in two ways
 First, preventive preservation seeks to reduce
risks of damage and to slow down the rate of
deterioration. usually accomplished by
selecting good quality of materials and by
providing suitable storage environments and
safe handling procedures.
 Definition of terms....
 Secondly, prescriptive preservation is a means of
identifying and treating or copying damaged
materials to restore useful access to the
information.(IRMT,1999)
 Conservation refers to specific work undertaken
to protect archival materials and improve the
environment. Conservation activities include
examination, documentation, treatment, and
preventive care, supported by research and
education.
 Definition of terms....
Restoration
means measures undertaken to return selected
damaged archival material to its original
condition.
Restoration
refers to the repair of an item when aesthetics
and reproduction of original appearance is more
important than the preservation of the integrity
of the original.
 Definition of terms....
Restoration
Treatment procedures intended to return
cultural property to a known or assumed state,
often through the addition of non-original
material.
Examination
Refers to the preliminary procedure taken to
determine the original materials and structure.
 Definition of terms....
Maintenance
refers to day-to-day care of records in an
archival institution. This is the daily care of
archives particularly in the current and semi
current records. When they are housed in
offices or records centres. Maintenance
ensures the general protection of records
against hazards or other physical dangers .
 Definition of terms....
Archives
i. Are records usually but not necessarily
noncurrent records, of enduring value
selected for permanent preservation.
ii. Refers to the place (building/room/storage
area) where archival materials are kept.
iii. It also refers to the organisation responsible
for appraising, acquiring, preserving and
making available archival materials.
Relationship between preservation and
conservation
 Preservation and conservation slow down rate
of deterioration of records and archival
materials and ensure their longevity
 preservation and conservation ensure
accessibility of archival material.
 Relationship between preservation and
conservation
• General
 Preservation: A term referring to the passive
protection of archival material in which no
physical or chemical treatment to the item
occurs.
Conservation: The intrusive protection of
archival material, by the minimal physical and
chemical treatments necessary to resist further
deterioration, which will not adversely affect
the integrity of the original.
Importance of preservation and
conservation
 To ensure the longer life (longevity) of records.
 To ensure future reference of records.
 To ensure records availability for evidence in legal
proceedings and protecting individual rights.
 To assist in decision making.
 To maintain the quality of records to its originality
 Making records accessible and to be easily
obtained.
Factors affecting the life span of records
 Number of factors influencing deterioration of
records and hence the life span of records become
shorter than it was expected when they are created .
Those factors ;
 Biological factors
 Disasters
 Chemical Factors
 Temperature and humidity
 Human factors and Environmental factor
Factor affecting life span ...
Biological factors mostly caused by micro
organism such as
 Insects (pests)
 Cockroaches
 Mouse
 Bookworm
 Rats + Mice
Factor affecting life span ...
 Disaster
It includes both man made and natural disasters and this
may affect life span of records and archives through
 Fire: is one of the greatest disasters in registry and
archives.
– Can occur accidentally through poor wiring or
intentionally.
– Can arise from equipment's;
– The methods and tools used to fight for fire break
(e.g. water) are harmful to documents.
Factor affecting life span ...
disasters
 Floods
 occur through broken pipes, poor drainage,
heavy rainfall/stone, overflow of river banks.
– In order to minimize floods, we have to
limit and reduce the number of pipes
 Earthquakes
 Strong winds
Factor affecting life span ...
Chemical factors
 Pollutants: usually come from industries that
emit chemicals which are pollutants.
– Pollutant does not act on its own;
– when combined with other factors like high
temperature, high humidity it is when it
starts destroying the records.
 acidity
 Factor affecting life span ...
 Human factor
 Abuse and mishandling of records and archives
 poor photocopying practices
 poor retrieval and filing practices
 inappropriate storage of oversized materials
 inappropriate equipment for transporting
materials writing on documents, particularly
archival materials
 spilling food or drink on records and archives
 Factor affecting life span ...
Environmental factor
 Light from the sun
 Air pollution
 Improper choice of building area
 ANY QUESTGION

END OF TOPIC ONE

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