A day in the life of a Graduate Diploma Conservation Studies student, specialising in Books and Library Materials.

MA Conservation Studies: Books and Library Materials student Maria Borg, alongside her colleague Nayla Maaruf, worked on the conservation of a Cartes-de-Visite Victorian photo album. Find out more about the project in this blog post.

Book conservators are often faced with the challenge of working with unfamiliar, idiosyncratic, and complex books. In such cases making a model of a binding can be of great benefit and insight into previous binding practices. This is especially true when presented with a book found in a fragmented state.

Step-by-step instructions for a herringbone endband-with a video!

Among the various nineteenth century case bindings that rest on the shelves in the West Dean Books department awaiting treatment was one that was different to the rest. It was particularly appealing as its binding was completely covered in pressure-sensitive adhesive tape and it was therefore an interesting challenge to take on for a beginning book conservation student.

So many people were interested in Chanelle's work that we asked for a follow-up. These were the results of her experiments at removing the permanent ink from parchment.

Much to my surprise, the second object that arrived on my bench in the Book Conservation Department was not a book at all, but a nineteenth-century French carriage clock travelling box.

In book conservation we often have to face situation where the handling, opening and consultation of a book could cause irreversible damage. We have to find solutions to both protect the book as an historical object and to restore its usability as a repository of knowledge.

Sussex Modernism: Retreat and Rebellion a major new exhibition, is created by the Bulldog Trust in partnership with nine Sussex museums and galleries, including West Dean College.