Frequently Asked Questions about Conservation
- What's the difference between preservation and conservation?
- Why is conservation important?
- What is the training to become a conservator?
- Does the Library of Congress provide conservation training?
- How can I get my collection item conserved/treated?
- How can I learn more about conservation?
Answers
What's the difference between preservation and conservation?
Preservation emcompasses all efforts -- including conservation -- to keep and maintain or improve the condition of collections to counter manmade damage or the natural effects of time. Conservation focuses on understanding the material, fabrication/construction, strengths/weaknesses, history, and significance of collection items to advance their preservation, through documented examination, research, treatment (see examples of treatment), and preventive conservation measures.
Why is conservation important?
Alternative access options for preservation (e.g., physical facsimile, digital copy) cannot fully substitute for the actual physical object. This is especially true for unique and rare objects. The physical object bears information (e.g., marks and compounds of construction; residues of handling) beyond content (e.g., words in a book) that remains inaccessible or is lost in the alternative access option.
What is the training to become a conservator?
Conservation training can begin at the college/university level, where students have the greatest access to the required cross-disciplinary coursework for admittance to conservation graduate school. Following graduate school, conservators often complete one or two post-graduate fellowships for a total of 3-7 or more years of graduate and post-graduate training. For more information about becoming a conservator, including a list of the graduate schools in North America and the different kinds of work conservators do, please see A Guide to Conservation Education and Training 
, put together by the American Institute for Conservation, the national professional association for conservators in the U.S.
Does the Library of Congress provide training in conservation?
Yes. The Library of Congress boasts one of the longest-running conservation graduate internship programs in the U.S. and has hosted interns in their final year of graduate school as well as other advanced conservation internships since the 1970s. Interns in the Conservation Division of the Library of Congress have gone on to hold senior positions and head conservation labs in the most prestigious collecting institutions both in the U.S. and abroad.
The Library continues to train young conservators today and hosts book, paper, or photograph conservation students in their final year of conservation graduate school and a post-graduate fellowship.
How can I get my collection item conserved/treated?
Two main options for obtaining conservation services are with a conservator in private practice or at a regional conservation center. The American Institute for Conservation offers information on How to Choose a Conservator and a directory to Find a Conservator by region, specialty, type of service, etc. The Regional Alliance for Preservation maintains a list of U.S. regional conservation centers by geographic area (note: not all RAP members, such as the Library of Congress, offers conservation services to the public).
How can I learn more about conservation?
The American Institute for Conservation , the national professional association for conservators, offers a lot of information about the field of conservation, including what is conservation, a directory for finding a conservator who can examine and treat your collections, access to conservation publications and research, and on-demand streams of preservation webinars.
