Rare books are not just valuable, but also highly delicate. Due to the same reason, you should figure out how to store and preserve the rare books accordingly. We often see how people end up with ruining their collections of rare books as they don’t have a clear understanding on how to preserve the books. In this article, we will share details with related to the most common problems that people face when preserving rare books, and the solutions that are available for them to consider.

Handling rare books

It is important to ensure proper handling of rare books at all times. The rare books are quite fragile as they have been published many years ago. Without proper handling, there is a high possibility for the rare books to end up being damaged. This is why all the people should have a clear understanding on how to handle rare books.

Rare Book Seller – Shapero told us that before you handle any of the rare books that you have under your collection, you should make sure that your hands are clean. If there is dust on your hands, you will end up with transferring them to the pages of the book. It is better if you can invest your money to buy some white colored inspection gloves. You can put on the gloves and proceed with handling all the rare books. Then you can make sure that no books are damaged while you are handling them. On the other hand, using gloves will help you to prevent seepage that can take place from the oils that are available naturally on the skin.

As you go ahead with inspecting and reading the books, you should learn how to open the books as well. For example, if you open the books too wide, you will be causing additional stress on the spine of the books. Therefore, you should be careful when opening the books. On the other hand, you will be able to use non-toxic and clean items, such as other books or dusting cloths to prop up the sides of the book when you are viewing it.

Make sure that you are not using any pens or paper when you are working with old books. If you want to mark or edit the books, it is a good idea to use pencils at all times. That’s because markings left on the rare books would ruin their overall value along with time.

Dusting

Rare books are kept on a specific location for an extended period of time. On the other hand, these books are rarely touched. Therefore, you should make sure that the books are not exposed to any natural oils or other elements along with time. Otherwise, there is a possibility for the dust to accumulate. Dust will accelerate the spur insect and mold infestations that the rare books can go through. This is something that you should be mindful about when you are trying to take good care of the books.

In order to preserve the books in perfect condition, you should go ahead with regular dusting. This is where you will need to understand that the top part of the book is mostly vulnerable to dust and dirt. Therefore, you should gently dust the top part of the book. You will be able to use a soft cloth or a soft paint brush to get the job done. At the time of dusting, you should proceed in the opposite direction of the spine.
You will be able to hold the book tight. Then you can prevent the slippage of dust into the book and its pages. On the other hand, you should make sure that you are wiping down the shelves, before you return the books back to the place where they were stored.

Don’t expose the books to sunlight

Light has the potential to create chemical changes in the binding of books and even on the surface of the books. These chemical changes can create permanent effects, and you will not be able to restore books back into their original condition. This is something that you should be mindful about as you preserve and store rare books under your collection.

To protect the books from light, you should select an appropriate location for storage. In fact, the place you select to store the books should not get direct sunlight. Otherwise, you will have to experience rapid deterioration of the old and expensive books.

However, it is important to keep in mind that your books can be subjected to sunning or UV damage even if you take out the book from direct sunlight. Some of the most common signs associated with UV damage in the books include yellowing, bleached looks, and browning paper. On the other hand, you will have to experience cracks in the binding and fabric deterioration as well.

In order to protect the rare books, you should minimize the overall exposure of them into light. You should specially be careful not to expose any of the rare books into direct sunlight. The best thing you can do is to store all the rare books in a dimly lit room. Or else, it is possible for you to invest your money and get a UV-filtered coating for all the windows that allow sunlight to fall into your house. You should get them for all the light fixtures that you have at home.

There are some dust jackets that come along with UV protection capabilities. You may think about purchasing such dust jackets as well.

Final words

These are some of the biggest challenges that people face when they are storing and preserving rare books. If you can follow our guidance and recommendation to store rare books, you will be able to overcome these challenges. Then you can get the maximum returns that the old and rare books are offering to you.