Special Collections is home to several portfolio volumes of Pages from the Past: Original Leaves from Rare Books and Manuscripts. Created by The Foliophiles, Inc., Pages from the Past is a collection of “original pages of great 1st Editions, beautiful medieval illuminated manuscripts, ancient papyrus, the works of famous early printers and artists, and precious incunabula ornamented with rare woodcuts.”

The practice of biblioclasty (book-breaking) is a very controversial practice. For many, the idea of breaking apart original books, particularly old ones, is abhorrent. However companies like Foliophiles Inc. approached the practice from an altruistic point of view. The purpose of these broken manuscript sets, as stated by Foliophiles, was to “see placed in libraries and institutions fine leaves of books that might otherwise be entombed in glass cases where none would have the great tactile sense of holding, feeling, reading, and being inspired by a work in the original, as it was created centuries ago.”

While the practice of biblioclasty is itself an interesting topic, I will save that for another time. This post is actually about the variety of preservation issues arising from the Pages from the Past portfolios.

When they were created around 1964, the construction of the portfolios was described by Foliophiles as “encased in a very fine handmade portfolio case. Every leaf is hand-mounted on a uniform sheet of mounting board and attached beneath is a scholarly, printed descriptive label providing complete data and authentication on that particular leaf.” This housing method has created a variety of preservation problems in the years since 1964, both in terms of storage and usability.

At the core of it’s purpose, this collection was meant to be a teaching collection, and that is exactly how it is used here in Special Collections. The large black mounting boards, measuring approximately 13 x 20 inches, make handling the collection difficult and can cause damage to the underlying items. The adhesive used to attach the descriptive text has failed in many cases.

In addition, not every specimen in the portfolios is a flat sheet of paper or vellum. In particular, portfolio one contains several three dimensional items. These items combined with the soft sided portfolio structure has created warping and disfigurement over the years.

The collection was brought to my attention by our Special Collections librarian, and I was asked if there was anything I could do to make handing the collection easier and less damaging. While there were a few different possibilities I could pursue, I had to take into account several things when deciding how to proceed. I did not want to alter the original structure too much. Regardless of how one feels about book breaking, the portfolios do have some artifactual value as objects themselves and as specimens of broken manuscript collections. I also wanted to take a less is more approach. The items could always be revisited later if my solution did not solve the main preservation issues.

 

The first thing I did was create a tray for the three dimensional tablets. This effectively separated them from the flat leaves in the collection in order to eliminate warping.

 

Next I created tabbed dividers to insert between the remaining flat leaves. These dividers were made of acid-free folder stock and serve two purposes. The numbers on the tabs correspond to the collection inventory list, making it much easier and less damaging to find specific items within the portfolio. The second purpose is to add a protective barrier between the original leaves and the black mat board of the item above.

 

Lastly, I created a new clamshell box to house the entire contents of the portfolio. The flat leaves fit into the bottom of the box, while a small ledge around the sides holds up the top tray, so that it does not rest on the leaves below.

Hopefully, these changes will help preserve the condition of the materials found within, while also preserving the original intent of the collection.

Ashley Jones
Preservation Librarian

Special Collections and University Archives celebrated its newest exhibit – Steam Boats and Steam Ships: Oceans, Lakes & Rivers with a reception and presentation by exhibit curator Jack White.

Miami University Libraries Dean Jerome Conley welcoming the attendees.

Miami University Libraries Assistant Dean John Millard introducing curator & speaker Jack White.

Jack White captivating his audience with stories and questions about water transportation during his “traveling” presentation of the many materials in his exhibit.

A “portal” view of Jack White and attendees examining the materials in the cases.

This is an original luggage tag from an ocean voyager the S.S. Resolute, 1931. Tag courtesy of Jack White’s colleague Steve Gordon.

This is a replica of a deck blanket from the Titanic worn by those ill-fated passengers as they braced the cold northern Atlantic Ocean waiting for the rescue ship Carpathia.

Please visit the exhibit and discover the fascinating stories of these steam ships, adventures of the people who traveled the waters and the crews who worked on these ships.

In our renovation update this week, we are excited to announce that walls are being painted, carpet is being laid, and ceiling tiles are getting installed. We have selected some pictures to show off some of this progress.

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Jim Bricker
Senior Library Technician
The Walter Havighurst Special Collections

Most of the digitization work I do here involves old books and postcards. Don’t get me wrong, the Shakespeare Folios are amazing just to hold and the postcards collection is my favorite project, but every once in a while I’m lucky enough to get to do something a little different.

Enter Passing Reality.

I’ll be curating an exhibit beginning April 18th on the history of student-produced radio and television broadcasts. We already have some pretty cool stuff thanks to donations from Rick Ludwin, who was very active in broadcasting during his time as a student at Miami. Studio 14, a variety show produced by Miami students between 1968-1970 has some great material, including some pretty memorable guests on air – ranging from Phillip Shriver to Timothy Leary. It was in a conversation with Mr. Ludwin that I learned about some of the shows produced more recently, including one he had remembered in the early 2000’s called Passing Reality, a student-produced sitcom that ran for five episodes in 2002, satirizing both Miami life and reality television.

With Mr. Ludwin’s help, I was able to get in touch with Chad Wollett, one of the show’s creators, who is now a producer at NBC. Mr. Wollett graciously agreed to let me digitize the masters he had kept of the show and add them to our collection. As someone who remembers both college and reality television in the early 2000’s, they get both of them hilariously accurate.

In addition to the 5 episodes, directors’ commentary of each episode, outtakes, and reflections on the show are also Passing Reality.

Happy viewing!

Marcus Ladd
Special Collections Digital Librarian

We want to share some of the progress that has being made on the new Special Collections and Archives facility. Special Collections continues to be open during the renovation, though we do not have access to some of our collections. With the help of our student, Danielle Owens, we will peek behind the construction curtain to see how things have changed this week.

New walls have been constructed around our stacks area.

And here are a couple of views of our office and processing areas on the inside of the curtain.

Jim Bricker
Senior Library Technician

Renovation of the third floor of King Library has begun. Offices around the perimeter of the floor were moved and the demolition of walls has been completed. In Special Collections we started physically preparing for the renovation last July. We began shifting most of our books and manuscript boxes, took down some shelving, and did some reorganizing. In mid-December we wrapped the book ranges in plastic. When the renovation of the floor is finished the University Archives will move into our new shared facility. Special Collections and Archives will occupy the whole north end of the third floor. I thought that you might like to see what things look like in Special Collections as the New Year begins.

Jim Bricker
Senior Library Technician