Caring for Cultural Material 1
Caring for Cultural Material 2
Damage and Decay
Managing Collections
Managing People
Handling, Transportation, Storage and Display
Glossary
Index
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Caring for Cultural Material 1
In this volume:
arrow Paper
– Books
– Photographs
– Paintings
– Electronic Information Media
– Acknowledgments
Paper
In this chapter:
– Objectives
– Introduction
– Paper in collections
arrow What is paper?
– Ingredients and properties of paper
– What are the most common types of damage?
– Common causes of damage
– The do’s and don’ts of handling flat paper
– The do’s and don’ts of repair and labelling
– Guidelines for storing and displaying flat paper
– Materials suitable for the storage and display of paper
– Preparing flat paper for storage
– Housing flat paper
– Mounting/hinging flat paper
– Protective enclosures for flat paper
– Storage boxes for flat paper
– Displaying flat paper
– Framing flat paper items
– Paper items with special needs
– Papyrus and Parchment
– Some miscellaneous information
– Summary of conditions for storage and display
– Paper in Australia’s climatic zones
  MORE ABOUT PAPER
– Cellulose fibres and paper quality
– Acidity and alkalinity
– For further reading
– Self-evaluation quiz
– Answers to self-evaluation quiz

 

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Paper

What is paper?

Paper is made from cellulose fibres. Cellulose consists of long ribbon-like molecules held together in tightly-packed layers to form microfibrils. The microfibrils group themselves in bundles and numerous of these bundles go to form the paper fibre.

The fibres are suspended in water in the proportions of approximately 5% cellulose fibres to 95% water. The fibres are picked up on a mould, in the case of handmade paper, or on the web, in the case of paper-making machines. The mould and web are sieve-like in structure and allow the water to drain away, leaving a felted sheet of paper.

This fundamental process of paper-making has not changed since the first sheet of paper was produced in China around 200 BC.

Early European papers were made from the cellulose fibres from old rags. Later, fibres were extracted specifically to be used in paper-making. Paper fibres come from a range of plants, including:

  • flax—also used to make linen;

  • hemp—also used to make rope and military uniforms;

  • cotton—also used to make fabrics;

  • paper mulberry, daphne—Japanese paper-making fibres; and

  • trees.

For more information
For more information on cellulose and paper, please see the section More About Paper, later in this chapter.
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