Diagnosis of the state of preservation of the old, rare and valuable asset of 19th century in the provincial Public Library “Ruben Martinez Villena” in Havana

Abstract

This paper focuses on a diagnosis useful to determine the state of conservation of 19th century books included in the Heritage, Antique, Rare and Valuable Fund of the Provincial Public Library Rubén Martínez Villena of Havana. The method used was the Diagnosis for Printed Collections of the Institute of Cuban History. By means of the statistic analysis of a sample, this method makes easier an approximation to determine the general conservation state of a collection. The research goals were: to determine the characteristics and physical state of the paper and the texts; to detect the degree of damages caused by biological agents, handling and interventive repairs which may have affected the documents. The research results will enable specialists to take measures in order to decrease, in a long or short term; damages detected in the collection and guarantee its conservation and utility for future generations.