Restoration of a Steinbeck First Edition Dust Jacket

Restoration of the dust jacket of a 1st edition Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck.

The Grapes of Wrath, 1st edition, front cover before restoration.

To collectors of modern first editions, condition of the dust jacket is of the utmost importance. The flimsy paper sheath takes the brunt of handling and exposure and is always the first to suffer. However, when a copy can’t be found (or afforded) in good condition, there is always the option of restoration.

Background

Several months ago a collector brought to us his recently acquired copy of the first edition of Steinbeck’s classic The Grapes of Wrath. The book had special meaning to him; it was the first novel he had read as a young adult and had opened his eyes to the world beyond his immediate experience, and inspired in him a civic responsibility to his local community. He felt he had made a good purchase with this copy of the first edition, but there was some damage to the dust jacket that he wanted to see improved.

restoration & ethics

Restoration work goes hand in hand with conservation, and as long as the methods used follow the Code of Ethics of the Canadian Association for Conservation of Cultural Property (CAC) and the Canadian Association of Professional Conservators (CAPC), it can be effectively applied when suitable to the situation of the artifact. In the case of rare books, if the work is done by a professional, and is properly documented and reversible, it can bring satisfaction to collectors as well as increase the value of a volume.

The Grapes of Wrath, 1st edition, front cover and spine before restoration.

The Grapes of Wrath, 1st edition, dust jacket in raking light before restoration.

Book and Paper Conservation Services was thrilled at the chance to work on this project, being fans of Steinbeck ourselves, and we knew that a little repair and inpainting would go a long way on the ratty pictorial dust jacket of the book.

TREATMENT process

An infill paper was selected that matched the weight and texture of the original, and fills were created with chamfered edges to exactly fit the jagged losses. Tears were repaired with Japanese tissue adhered with Jin Shofu wheat starch paste, and abrasions on the paper where printed colour had flaked off were sealed with a barrier layer of methyl cellulose. Working from a scale reproduction of the intact cover art, losses were traced in and then inpainted to match the original material. Abrasions and flaked areas were also inpainted to restore unity to the image, and the dust jacket was humidified to gently return it to the shape of being wrapped around the covers of the book.

Preparing for inpainting of damaged areas.

A scale copy of an intact dust jacket was used to recreate the lost areas.

Careful inpainting of losses matches the original material.

After Treatment

This type of repair works with the original materials of the specific volume to recreate an aged, but intact dust jacket, in keeping with the history of the book. A full reproduction of the jacket by mechanical means would appear brand new, and that is not the object of the collector. Instead, we restored the obvious damage but kept the patina of age of the paper, and the finished volume looks warm and authentic. The repairs however, are evident under careful examination, so there is no chance of mistaking it for an undamaged copy and faking its condition, and the thorough Conservation Treatment Report and documentation photographs will stay with the volume as a record of its restoration. If necessary, the nature of the methods and materials used means the restoration can be reversed.

After restoration, losses are filled and matched to the original material, and the dust jacket looks warm and authentic.

After restoration, losses are filled and matched to the original material, and the dust jacket looks warm and authentic.

Before and after restoration, showing the spine and front cover of 1st edition of The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck.

The restored dust jacket was encapsulated in an archival mylar sleeve and fitted back around the book. The book can now be displayed and enjoyed by the collector as it was meant to appear. It has rejoined his collection where it enjoys a position of importance and is appreciated daily!

Rare Book Restoration

If you are interested in conservation or restoration of rare books in your own collection, you can contact us for further information or a cost estimate at no charge. You can also view a portfolio of our other treatments on rare books belonging to both public and private collections.

Conservation Treatment of a Hand-Drawn Map of Sarnia, Ontario, 1848

A watermark from the notable papermaker J Whatman is visible in transmitted light. The map is drawn on hand-made laid rag paper.

Archival materials see some of the hardest use and wear of all paper objects, because their original purpose was usually utilitarian. Sometimes ephemeral, often consulted, maps are no exception. The maps that come in to Book and Paper Conservation Services for treatment show damages typical of handling and haphazard storage, such as tears, breaks, creases, soiling, and evidence of previous restoration as owners have performed DIY repairs in order to return functionality to an item in frequent use.

1848 Map of Sarnia, Ontario, Canada. Before conservation treatment, the map suffers surface dirt, tears and losses, as well as previous repairs with damaging adhesive tape on the verso.

An 1848 map of the town of Sarnia, Ontario that we conserved last year is a perfect example. The map, now part of the collections of the Lambton County Archives, shows several streets close to the shore of the St. Clair River, with specific lots carefully laid out and numbered and buildings and geological features marked.

The map is an original, and has been hand drawn with pen and ink, with roads and waterways highlighted in watercolour. It’s a utilitarian, yet beautiful object, with elegant penmanship and a green silk ribbon folded and sewn around the perimeter of the paper. It may be a thoughtfully designed piece, but it was meant foremost to convey information, and the handling and use it has seen are evident in the damages it now presents.

Lambton County Archives brought the map in for conservation treatment in order to preserve a delicate piece of Sarnia’s history, and make it safe for researchers to access and study.

Map in raking light, showing severe planar deformation.

The map suffered a variety of condition and damage issues caused by use and age, dating from it’s lifetime before entering the Archives. A heavy layer of surface dirt, tears and losses, and adhesive tape residue on the verso were present and needed to be addressed. After thorough condition reporting and photo-documentation, an essential step in all our conservation projects, the treatment began.

Surface cleaning using a smoke sponge is a slow and tedious process, but one which in this case yielded dramatic results. The time lapse images of the cleaning show the grime coming off section by section, brightening the paper beneath.

Surface cleaning the verso of the map.

Time lapse video showing the process of surface cleaning the map.

Next, the remains of the repair tape applied by a well-intentioned soul was addressed. The tape carrier had long since flaked off, but the adhesive residue remained, brittle and yellowed and crosslinking with the paper fibres on a microscopic level. Some solvent tests revealed a match, and by careful swab application, over suction to draw out the dissolved residue, we were successful in removing the disfiguring material. Luckily there was not much staining left in the paper after this was removed, and more stable repairs could now be applied.

Solvent removal of adhesive tape residue.

In keeping with conservation aims and ethics, a new, stable and reversible repair method was chosen, that of Japanese tissue adhered with wheat starch paste. Wheat starch paste is a clear, strong and flexible adhesive that will not fail, discolour or become brittle with time. It is used by paper conservators to attach thin strips of handmade Japanese tissue to paper objects, to repair tears and breaks. The long-fibred, acid-free tissue holds together the breaks and can be selected to match the colour and thickness of the artifact, being nearly invisible after application so that it won’t disturb the aesthetics of a piece. These repairs were performed on the verso of the map, and fills were added to the losses with a similar process, completing the repair of the mechanical damages on the map.

Japanese tissue repairs applied to the verso of the map, with LED light pad underneath.

After conservation treatment, the map is clean and stable.

After treatment the map is bright and clean, the damages are repaired and damaging materials have been removed so as not to cause further long-term deterioration. Conservation treatment has restored stability and aesthetic integrity to the map.

It was returned to Lambton County Archives as good as new, and is now kept in their newly renovated storage facility, ready to serve researchers interested in Sarnia’s early history. Please visit the Archives in person or online to learn more about their collections and the preservation strategies they undertake for artifacts in their care.

To learn more about archival conservation at Book and Paper Conservation Services, check out our portfolio section or read about our process.

Conservation of a 19th Century Family Photograph

Antique family photograph before and after conservation treatment.

If you're lucky enough to have mementos and photographs of your ancestors, they are probably treasured family heirlooms. But although your family considers them precious items now, there is a good chance they have seen many years of wear, handling and questionable storage conditions. 

Antique family photograph, with damage to the board and photographic emulsion.

Family photographs come into our studio regularly, exhibiting everything from cracked and broken support boards to stains and surface dirt, to scratches or loss of emulsion. Digital restoration professionals can help you make copies that are touched up by computer, but our studio can restore the original item using safe and reversible treatments, and preserve it for many more generations of your family to appreciate. 

Damaged antique photograph in raking light.

We recently treated this charming 19th century black and white gelatin photograph for a private client. The card support had suffered a break across the lower corner, narrowly missing the mounted photograph, and the photograph itself presented deep scratches and loss of emulsion across the image. Many of these losses were caused by biological damage, the munching of insects on the starch-based gelatin and paper of the object.

The break in the mounting board was repaired with wheat starch paste.

Treatment was begun by first addressing the crack in the board. This was repaired with wheat starch paste and the board then flattened in a press to reduce the planar deformation. Some losses in the board material were filled with paper pulp to even out the surface.

A barrier layer is applied to the damaged areas before inpainting.

Next, the damage to the photograph was addressed. The losses were first covered with a barrier solution in order to consolidate the paper surface and facilitate removal of the inpainting if necessary in the future. Then, the lost information in the image was carefully in-painted using watercolours, a procedure performed under magnification to ensure accuracy. 

Applying watercolour to the lost emulsion of the photograph.

Inpainting set-up for conservation treatment of the photograph.

Finally, cracks and lifting flakes of the emulsion were adhered back down with a photo grade gelatin solution, the same material as the original emulsion. This helps restore a smooth surface to the piece, and reduces the chances of further damage.

After treatment, the visual unity of the image is restored, and the portrait can once again be fully appreciated as a record of a the family's history. Perhaps a family resemblance can be traced to today's descendants of this matriarch?

The photograph after conservation treatment. The inpainting restores the visual unity of the image, and the portrait is whole once again.

Do you have family heirlooms that have suffered damage over the ages? If you're interested in having them conserved, don't hesitate to get in touch with our studio. There is no cost for an estimate. Or, visit our portfolio section to see other examples of conservation of archival materials.