COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - State archivists are seeking $200,000 to fight the effects of old conservation techniques that threaten South Carolina’s copies of seven constitutions dating to 1776.
The Post and Courier of Charleston reports (https://bit.ly/2iwX8w0) the copies are in various states of disrepair. Some appear to be in good condition but were conserved using a 1940s process that is slowly degrading the documents housed in the temperature-controlled archives.
The cellulose acetate lamination needs to be removed before it breaks down into acetic acid, said Eric Emerson, director of the S.C. Department of Archives and History.
“Up through the 1960s they thought this was the best way to conserve a document,” Emerson said while touching the 1776 constitution without protective gloves. “This has been encapsulated, so I’m not touching paper itself, just the cellulose it’s encapsulated in.”
State archivists are requesting $200,000 from the state to reverse the process, restore the documents and preserve the constitutions in natural rice paper. The actions should sufficiently stabilize the documents for display and travel.
While conserving will help the documents, it won’t solve all the problems.
The 1776 constitution and some others are missing their seals. The 1895 constitution, the bones of which still govern modern South Carolina, is in good condition but was preserved by the cellulose process. The constitution of 1861, approved just four days before the start of the Civil War on April 8, is partially tattered. The state, like other Southern states, was poor after the war ended in 1865 so the constitution of that year was written on paper instead of vellum.
The conservation money is a small request among $1.9 billion in additional requests agencies are asking lawmakers for in the upcoming budget. However, lawmakers only have an additional $446 million to address those requests.
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Information from: The Post and Courier, https://www.postandcourier.com
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