March 28, 1996

Press contact: Helen Dalrymple (202) 707-1940
Public contact: Robert Muens (202) 707-1131

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Library of Congress Holds Preservation Awareness Workshop for the Public on April 16

Are you interested in talking to experts about how you should be storing valuable family papers? Have you wondered about what you should do to preserve the leather bindings of the old books that you inherited from your grandmother? Are you confused about the best ways to preserve and store your old photographs or your favorite family movies? What is the real storage life of sound recordings, cassette tapes and CDs?

On April 16, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., members of the public will have an opportunity to learn the answers to these questions from conservators and other specialists at the Library of Congress. The daylong free event, part of the Library's celebration of National Library Week, is co-sponsored by the Library's Center for the Book and the Preservation Directorate. It will take place in the Mumford Room, sixth floor of the Madison Building, 101 Independence Ave. S.E.

Throughout the day, visitors will be able to see live demonstrations of gold tooling, paper mending, book sewing, and matting and hinging of works of art on paper. Table displays, manned by Library staff, will provide answers to your questions and printed information on the handling, cleaning and storage of books, papers and documents, fine prints, photographs, CDs, sound recordings and motion picture film.

In addition, nonprofit professional associations in the preservation field and companies that manufacture and distribute conservation products will be on hand to answer questions and offer other information on preservation products and issues.

The emphasis of the workshop will be on the preservation and storage of books, paper, newspaper, magnetic media and film; there will be no provision for evaluation services. Persons who have old books or rare prints whose worth they would like to have assessed should consult with a reputable rare book or print dealer.

The Library of Congress is the largest library in the world. It contains 108.4 million items that include more than 16 million books, 4 million maps, 14.5 million visual materials, 2 million sound recordings and 46 million manuscripts. The mission of the Library's Preservation Directorate is to preserve these collections for future generations. Founded in 1972, the preservation program has trained innumerable distinguished scientists, conservators and other experts in the preservation field; the program is also open to interns from all over the world, who learn while working with the Library's professional staff. Many of the methods developed at the Library have become standard procedures in libraries and archives worldwide.

The Center for the Book in the Library of Congress was established in 1977 to stimulate public interest in books, reading and libraries and to encourage the study of the book as an artifact, art form, and means of communication. Its projects are supported by contributions from individuals, corporations and foundations.

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PR 96-50
3/28/96
ISSN 0731-3527