Environment vs. Inherent Vice

 

If there is one constant that holds true for all collections, it's this: all objects deteriorate. Thankfully, for most this occurs very slowly, and this gives us time to determine if deterioration is causes by the environment - and is therefore something we can control - or by "inherent vice" - and is therefore something we can slow, but never stop. These articles by the Indiana Historical Society discuss the difference between environment and inherent vice, and the basic steps we can take to preserve our collections.

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