Austrian librarians’ views on book protection (early 20th century)

Abstract

At the beginning of the 20th century, the methods of collection protection used by Austrian librarians were related to the availability of materials used for this purpose, i.e., natural, chemical and biological agents. The primary preventive measure was maintaining library cleanliness (reading rooms and storerooms) and extensively vacuuming dust, mold, and dirt from objects. Among living organisms, mold, fungi, and insects were the greatest threat to library collections. Librarians used chemical fungicides (e.g., thymol and formalin) and proposed four methods for destroying insects: mechanical, chemical, physical, and biological. All activities undertaken by Austrian librarians indicate the awareness of the need to protect historical collections and the related use of old and new methods for securing collections.