Rare Book Monthly

Articles - October - 2015 Issue

The Boston Public Library's Summer of Discontent: One More Problem - Mold

Moldspores are far more attractive under a microscope than on a book.

Moldspores are far more attractive under a microscope than on a book.

This has been a tough summer for the rare books and prints departments of the Boston Public Library. It seems that pretty much everything that can go wrong did go wrong. The issues they have experienced provide a microcosm of the problems libraries face today, though few experience so many of them all at once.

 

Last April, the library's President, Amy Ryan, was informed that two prints, one valued at $600,000, had been missing for almost a year. After a couple weeks of frantic searching, she concluded they must have been stolen and the police and FBI were called in. Boston's Mayor was not pleased, and after a meeting between the library's Board of Directors, President, and the Mayor's representative, Ms. Ryan handed in her resignation (click here). Astonishingly, the next day, the missing prints were found, misplaced among the 1.3 million items in the prints section of the library. Still, there was too much water over the dam. Ms. Ryan did not withdraw her resignation, but left a month later anyway.

 

Then, a few weeks later, a study commissioned by the library to evaluate its situation was released. It revealed that the library was plagued with problems (click here). It found the prints area was terribly disorganized, with records incomplete and hard to follow. Locating material depended on the memories of veteran staff. Quarters were cramped, almost no space was available for storing items or doing any work, helping to explain why things could readily get lost. The report's criticism was hardly limited to current staff. It found that previous administrations had proven better at obtaining collections than caring for them, and that the city provided insufficient funds and personnel to manage such a collection.

 

Now, one more major problem has befallen the library, in its Rare Books Department. It is the fear and scourge of librarians everywhere – mold. On September 14, a staff member retrieving a copy of the British Museum Catalogue of Printed Books discovered mold on it. This led to immediate surveying of the collection and the discovery of additional volumes showing signs of mold. Library officials quickly called in an outside firm specializing in mold containment to evaluate the situation. They also brought in several dehumidifiers to assist the central air conditioning which is the main source of climate control. A second group of dehumidifiers was placed on order.

 

There are 1,000,000 manuscripts and 500,000 books in the library's Rare Books Department. Fortunately, most of the manuscripts are housed in archival boxes which protect them from mold. Cleaning efforts will be focused on the books which are kept on open shelves. A vacuuming process is used to clean spores off of the books. An extensive effort will be employed as the library announced that it will be closing the Rare Books Department from public use for an estimated 5 to 10 weeks. The library has not said how much the clean-up will cost, but an undertaking of this magnitude will not be inexpensive.

 

Historic collections are not easy to maintain. Libraries have taken on much of the task of preserving our history. It is not their main purpose in being, but it is essential that someone do it if we are to maintain a connection to our past, if we are to know who we are and learn the lessons our ancestors taught us. However, preserving these collections is extremely expensive. The Boston Public Library's misadventures this summer have demonstrated this stark reality to the bright light of day. For decades, funding for libraries has been getting tighter, even as collections expanded. Now, access to information digitally has reduced usage of most rare book rooms, making public willingness to fund their operation even tighter. We have a dilemma here, one still seeking an answer.

Rare Book Monthly

  • Sotheby’sBooks, Manuscripts and Music from Medieval to ModernNow through July 10, 2025 Sotheby’sBooks, Manuscripts and Music from Medieval to ModernNow through July 10, 2025
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    Books, Manuscripts and Music from Medieval to Modern
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    Books, Manuscripts and Music from Medieval to Modern
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    Sotheby’s, Ending July 10: Book of Hours by the Masters of Otto van Moerdrecht, Use of Sarum, in Latin, Southern Netherlands (Bruges), c.1450. £20,000 to £30,000.
    Sotheby’s, Ending July 10: Albert Einstein. Autograph letter signed, to Attilio Palatino, on his research into General Relativity, 12 May 1929. £12,000 to £18,000.
    Sotheby’s, Ending July 10: John Gould. The Birds of Europe, [1832-] 1837, 5 volumes, contemporary half morocco, subscriber’s copy. £40,000 to £60,000.
    Sotheby’s
    Books, Manuscripts and Music from Medieval to Modern
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    Sotheby’s, Ending July 10: Ian Fleming. A collection of James Bond first editions, 8 volumes in all. £8,000 to £12,000.
    Sotheby’s, Ending July 10: J.K. Rowling. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, 1997, first edition, hardback issue. £50,000 to £70,000.
    Sotheby’s, Ending July 10: J.R.R. Tolkien. Autograph letter signed, to Amy Ronald, on Pauline Baynes's map of Middle Earth, 1970. £7,000 to £10,000.
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  • DOYLERare Books, Autographs & MapsJuly 23, 2025 DOYLERare Books, Autographs & MapsJuly 23, 2025
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    DOYLE, July 23: WALL, BERNHARDT. Greenwich Village. Types, Tenements & Temples. Estimate $300-500
    DOYLE, July 23: STOKES, I. N. PHELPS. The Iconography of Manhattan Island, 1498-1909. New York: Robert H. Dodd, 1915-28. Estimate: $3,000-5,000
    DOYLE, July 23: [AUTOGRAPH - US PRESIDENT]FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT. A signed photograph of Franklin D. Roosevelt. Estimate $500-800
    DOYLE, July 23: [ARION PRESS]. ABBOTT, EDWIN A. Flatland. A Romance of Many Dimensions. San Francisco, 1980. Estimate $2,000-3,000.
    DOYLE, July 23: TOLSTOY, LYOF N. and NATHAN HASKELL DOLE, translator. Anna Karénina ... in eight parts. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell & Co., [1886]. Estimate: $400-600
    DOYLE, July 23: ROWLING, J.K. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. London: Bloomsbury, 2000. Estimate $1,200-1,800
  • Freeman’s | HindmanWestern Manuscripts and MiniaturesJuly 8, 2025 Freeman’s | HindmanWestern Manuscripts and MiniaturesJuly 8, 2025
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    Western Manuscripts and Miniatures
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    Western Manuscripts and Miniatures
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    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. FRANCESCO PETRARCH (b. Arezzo, 20 July 1304; d. Arqua Petrarca, 19 July 1374). $20,000-30,000.
    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. CIRCLE OF THE MASTER OF THE VITAE IMPERATORUM (active Milan, 1431-1459). $15,000-20,000.
    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. CIRCLE OF ATTAVANTE DEGLI ATTAVANTI (GABRIELLO DI VANTE) (active Florence, c. 1452-c. 1520/25). $15,000-20,000.
    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. FOLLOWER OF HERMAN SCHEERE (active London, c. 1405-1425). $15,000-20,000.
    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. An exceptionally rare, illuminated music leaf from a Mozarabic Antiphonal with sister leaves mostly in museum collections. $11,500-14,000.
    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. Exceptional leaf from a prestigious Antiphonary by a leading illuminator of the late Duecento. $11,500-14,000.
    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. CIRCLE OF THE MASTER OF MS REID 33 and SELWERD ABBEY SCRIPTORIUM (AGNES MARTINI?) (active The Netherlands, Groningen, c. 1468-1510). $10,000-15,000.
    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. Previously unknown illumination from one of the most renowned Gothic Choir Book sets of the Middle Ages. $6,000-8,000.

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