O processo de restauração se caracteriza por um conjunto de medidas com o objetivo de reverter os danos físicos ou químicos sofridos pelos documentos ao longo do tempo, de modo a devolver sua integridade física e restituir seu caráter histórico. A restauração passa a ser necessária quando a degradação atinge um grau tão elevado que passa a comprometer a estrutura e o próprio conteúdo da obra. A restauração é uma atividade técnica considerada onerosa, pois exige equipamentos e materiais de alto custo, além de mão de obra especializada.
The Brazilian National Library has a Restoration Laboratory that treats, primarily, works that most suffered for the action of time in the heritage of Rare Works, Manuscripts, Cartography, Iconography and Music and Sound Archives. With high technical qualification, its professionals also act as instructors, researchers and consultants in trainings and projects in the segment of heritage restoration.
Steps of the restoration process:
- Entrance (arrival of documents and photographic register)
- Diagnosis (form fulfilling containing information about the work)
- Sanitation
- Numeration
- Disassembly of the work (in case of books)
- Sanitation with rubber powder
- Tests for observation of pigments solubility
- Baths (cleansing and deacidification)
- Central reinforcement with Japanese paper/ methylcellulose
- MOP – Leaf casting machine (refibering of the losses/gaps)
- Revision
- Microfilming
- Digitation
- Binding / packaging