When you are working in the search-room, please follow the guidelines listed below, which will help to halt the process of deterioration when a document is consulted. We must all take responsibility for the damage caused by poor handling, which is cumulative and not immediately apparent.

• Carefully remove packaging and remember if possible how to replace it.. If in doubt, please ask a member of staff, who will be happy to help, especially if it is a large map or full box. Be careful when unrolling documents which have been rolled for a long time, any force may crack or tear them. Report uncut books and pages to staff.

• Handle with care. Please be careful not to mark or lean on any of the items issued to you. Jewellery and belt buckles can make dents and holes unintentionally. Perfume/hand cream can stain paper, and may not be evident for months or years causing irreparable damage. Check your hands for transferred dirt.

• PLEASE USE A PENCIL WHEN WRITING YOUR PERSONAL NOTES.
  Ink is almost impossible to remove if an accident happens. Do not fold or lick corners of paper pages, or press/run your finger along lines of text. This is especially important for parchment. Use a softly folded sheet of scrap paper to aid reading.

• Please do not eat or drink in the search-room.

• Cameras can be used with permission but  scanners cannot generally be used. Ask staff for reprographic arrangements.

• There are several items to help you:

• Book pillows and foam wedges are available to rest volumes on, which ease the pressure on the spine. Make a dent in the middle of the pillow to accommodate the book spine or use a foam wedge under each cover. Please do not force books open this can crack the glue or weaken loose stitching, rope weights can be used to hold pages down.

• Felt bottomed weights to secure springy parchment or to hold maps down.

• A clear sheet of ‘Melinex’ or polypropylene used as a barrier when tracing maps, protects it from the pressure of the PENCIL.

• Cotton gloves are issued when unprotected photographic materials are consulted.  

The Conservation of archives has been part of the Devon Record Office since the 1950’s and the conservators who have worked here have treated literally thousands of documents, manuscript, volumes, maps, plans, seals and photographs.   Using their expertise and skills, and with your co-operation, we are helping to preserve Devon’s written history.

The Conservation staff are happy to advise members of the public on the preservation and conservation of their own documents. It is easy to forget that old documents are extremely vulnerable and irreplaceable. Please do not attempt to repair them without taking professional advice.

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