Almost 100,000 euros in funding for the preservation of written cultural heritage at the SPK
Press release from 08/14/2017
"East Prussian folios" and "Schriftkunst" receive protection
The Secret State Archives of Prussian Cultural Heritage will receive funding of 50,000 euros to protect the "East Prussian Folios" from the "Special Programme 2017 for the Preservation of the Written Cultural Heritage" of Minister of State for Culture Monika Grütters. The Art Library of the National Museums in Berlin will receive around 40,000 euros for the restoration and conservation of a collection of written art in a model project of the Coordination Centre for the Preservation of Written Cultural Heritage (KEK). In both cases, the funding will be supplemented by own funds.
Hermann Parzinger, President of the SPK: "The care and preservation of written cultural heritage is a major issue in our archives and libraries. I am delighted that we are able to tackle the work on two important groups of holdings thanks to the funding from the CEC."
East Prussian folios in the Secret State Archives PK
The approximately 16,800 East Prussian folios (16th-18th century) in the Secret State Archives PK are invaluably rich sources for the history of the Duchy, then Kingdom of Prussia and the later Province of East Prussia. They originate from the registries of Königsberg authorities, which organised their documents according to old traditions in "folios", a transitional form between late medieval official records and early modern files. They therefore also have great archival-historical value in formal terms. They currently stand in long rows in the GStA PK stacks.
Ulrike Höroldt, Director of the GStA PK since 1 August 2017, explains: "As part of the project, the volumes are now being cleaned and appropriately packaged for preservation. The funding, which we are supplementing with our own funds, also confirms the efforts that have been made in recent years to restore and conserve archival material at the museum."
The large-format and particularly heavy-weight folios will be given customised special packaging made of long-term stable corrugated cardboard boxes suitable for archiving. As before, they will continue to be stored upright, but now in a gentle manner, as the book blocks will be stabilised by the dimensionally stable packaging. The smaller volumes in common "book sizes", on the other hand, will in future be stored in standard archival storage: horizontally in an archive box, wrapped in a long-term stable "Jurismappe" for special protection. Thanks to the standardised packaging, the folios will be protected from light and dust in future and can be stored in the best possible way in accordance with archiving laws.
Writing in the Art Library of the National Museums in Berlin
The "Typeface Art" collection group in the Art Library was established between 1880 and 1930. As a model collection for typography and type design, it includes examples of type as a form of artistic expression. In most cases, the conservation condition of the objects means that they can no longer be used for academic purposes, although the collection is still intended for research and teaching, particularly for the "Visual Communication" degree programme.
Joachim Brand, Head of the Art Library, explains: "The years of intensive use can be seen in the collection: Soiling, cracks and missing parts are just some of the damage that has occurred. Outdated methods of mounting the objects have also taken their toll on the writing and painting materials. With the restoration, we can now make them permanently accessible again."
The "Art of Writing" collection primarily comprises rare, unique handwritten items - from Carolingian minuscules to 20th century calligraphy from various cultures, including outstanding examples of Islamic writing. There are also many examples of script drawings in special formats, such as cut-out initials and pages from medieval manuscripts or script patterns on documents, teaching letters, album pages and wall sayings. These show an unusually wide variety of materials and techniques used - parchment, paper, ink, colour pigments, gold leaf, collages, woodcuts, drawings, letterpress printing and much more.
In the project, some of these different objects are to be modelled in such a way that the causes of damage are removed, mechanical damage is repaired and the objects are protected from accelerated chemical decomposition through the use of new materials. Independently of the model project, numerous other objects in the inventory group will undergo conservation and restoration work. Digitisation is also planned.
Preservation of written cultural assets in the State Library
With the establishment of the nationwide Coordination Centre for the Preservation of Written Cultural Heritage, KEK, at the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin - Preußischer Kulturbesitz in 2011, the sponsors of the KEK, the federal government and the Kulturstiftung der Länder, have underlined the library's particular expertise in the field of conservation. As in the other institutions of the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation, the museums, archives and research institutes, preventive care and conservation measures are given high priority at the Berlin State Library.
In 2015, the CEC budget, which is used to fund exemplary projects throughout Germany, was used to treat a very special collection at the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin: An ancient Javanese manuscript made from leaves of the Gebang palm, an extremely rare testimony to early writing. The palm leaves contain a Sanskrit text in Kawi script entitled Darma Pātañjala. In it, the Hindu deity Bhattara and his son Kumara explain the cosmology of Shivaism and the concept of yoga and karma. Only a few dozen Gebang palm leaf manuscripts have survived the test of time. The Berlin Gebang manuscript, created in 1407 or 1467, is one of the oldest copies in the world.