Kathleen Mullen's conservation portfolio summarizes various housing and treatment projects for collections materials including architectural drawings, daguerrotypes, wax seals, books, and more. Projects included individually housing items in acid-free paper for storage and exhibition, creating cradles and boxes for oversized materials, repairing bindings, removing acidic mats and tape, reversing cellulose acetate lamination, and more treatments to preserve and protect important collections.

1. KATHLEEN MULLEN CONSERVATION PORTFOLIO

2. HOUSINGS Traditional and Innovative housings for collections materials

3. REHOUSING AND SHIFTING ARCHITECTURAL RECORDS AFTER The results of a project to individually rehouse architectural drawings in acid free paper and provide full support while shelved BEFORE

6. HOUSING FOR WAX SEAL This wax seal, hanging by a thread from an oversize, folded, parchment document, had been badly damaged from exposure. The seal was removed and a housing constructed for it so it could be stored safely with the document, but not be subject to the same handling.

7. LC-STYLE PORTFOLIO Useful for housing unbound sheets of material, this LC-style portfolio (shown closed, ¼ open and completely open) was used as a presentation case for a first printing of Lincoln’s second inaugural address.

8. CORNELL STYLE CLAMSHELL BOX A typical clamshell or “drop spine” box, this one with the addition of a ribbon closure. The Cornell-style box tray is made out of scored and folded barrier board covered with cloth, while the LC-style clamshell is made by adhering pieces of carefully cut binders board together: a somewhat lengthier process.

10. CIRCULATING COLLECTIONS REBACK WITH MORIKI JAPANESE TISSUE

11. NEW CASE

12. RECASE Before treatment (top left), the text block of this book had completely separated from its case. It is shown reattached, below.

13. DOUBLE FAN ADHESIVE & NEW CASE, INLAID COVER

14. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS The boards on this 17 th century book had shifted into a manner of opening that was damaging to the textblock. The book was rebound in half calf with false raised bands and a period appropriate marbled paper.

15. This chromolithograph had an acidic mat attached to the recto with double sided tape. The picture on the left shows the print after mechanical removal of the mat and solvent based removal of the tape. BACKING AND TAPE REMOVAL

16. CELLULOSE ACETATE DELAMINATION DURING Lamination with cellulose acetate, or “Barrow Lamination” was common mid-century. Time has proven that the cellulose acetate used in this treament leeches damaging plasticizers into the paper. Here, the lamination is reversed with the use of solvents.

17. PUBLISHER’S CLOTH BINDING – REBACK This late 19 th century publishers binding case was rebuilt with toned cloth and the textblock was consolidated. The inset at the bottom right shows the opening before and after.

18. LEATHER REBACK; BOARD AND TEXTBLOCK TREATMENT This early 19 th century American imprint, seemingly having been through flood and fire as evidenced by soot, water damage, broken sewing and warped boards is shown at the top being washed and resewn. The boards were flattened, reattached and the book rebacked with leather, shown before and after in the inset (right).

19. This ledger, a port log from the city of Galveston, had been reused as a scrapbook. The pages were washed, the clippings removed by lifting them off onto a spun polyester sheet while wet, and they were retained, in order, by lining with japanese paper (shown right). The inset on the left shows the clippings being removed.

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