Signs of Damage in Library Materials

Materials being processed for the SSHL, Annex, SRLF, S&E, AAL and Music collections which are brittle, moldy, smelly, have missing pages or are damaged in some other way, should be referred to the Preservation Department. Decision will be made by the Preservation Dept. staff, in consultation with appropriate bibliographers, regarding repair, reformatting or retention of the material. If there are more than 10 books, contact the preservation librarian to review them in your department.

The following material should be referred directly to the preservation librarian PRIOR to processing or cataloging.

Pest or mold infested items. If there is evidence of live pests or active mold (damp), the item should be isolated immediately and plastic bagged. Capture of live pests is helpful! Take the enclosed item directly to the preservation librarian.

Brittle items. Materials are considered brittle when the paper is not flexible enough to hold a binding. This condition can be evidenced by broken flakes of paper; pages snapping off along the binding or a hard edge; paper failing a doublefold test, i.e. bending about 1/2" of the lower corner of a page near the center of the book back and forth two times. If the corner falls off, the paper is very brittle. If it falls off after a slight pull on the corner, it is also too brittle to bind. Take it to the preservation librarian. It is best not to use the mail services since the book is in fragile condition.

Damaged or missing pages. Contact the appropriate bibliographer for retention decision. If replacement pages or mending are recommended, refer the materials to Preservation Department repair staff for action after cataloging. Be sure to include the bibliographer's notes regarding retention.

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