Hello Elizabeth,
I’d echo Dave’s advice. Even if they documents have not been exposed to low humidity for an extended period of time they may be very fragile due
to the nature of the paper and the storage conditions. Since the time capsules are glass there’s minimal protection from light that may deteriorate the paper even further if they’ve been in the open; as well, being sealed without any sinks for the acidity
of the paper, assuming it’s wood pulp, could create a fairly acidic environment. If you open them without a paper conservator present I would not try to unfold them. The strain on the creases/folds from unfolding could easily tear the papers and if they are
very fragile information could be lost. Have a paper conservator humidify and flatten the papers if the Board feels they are valuable enough. Depending on the number of papers it likely wouldn’t be that expensive. If there is a high value, historic or sentimental,
I would even go as far to suggest sending the unopened jars to a paper conservator to open and carry out any conservation work. That way you know that no unnecessary damage will occur.
William Shepherd
Collections Officer
Swift Current Museum
44 Robert Street West
Swift Current, Saskatchewan
S9H 4M9
Phone: 306-778-4815
Fax: 306-778-4818
From: Museum discussion list [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
On Behalf Of topladave .
Sent: Friday, October 16, 2015 4:30 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [MUSEUM-L] Opening a Time Capsule
Elizabeth,
The documents may have become desiccated in the jars, so the paper may be very brittle and friable, so they should take great care in removing and handling them, and not immediately try to unfold them. They
should be stored in acid-free archival folders and boxes, and if they are brittle then a paper conservator should be contacted to see if they can be humidified and carefully unfolded and stabilized.
I am an objects conservator, a paper conservator can tell you much more.
Cheers!
Dave
David Harvey
Senior Conservator & Museum Consultant
Los Angeles CA USA
On Fri, Oct 16, 2015 at 1:53 PM, Elizabeth Thrond <[log in to unmask]> wrote: