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Cristina Morilla, associate paintings conservator, engaged in restoring a portrait of King Philip of Spain at Harvard Art Museums in 2020. “In specific instances, conservators themselves are artisans,” describes Brenda Bernier, the director of Preservation Services at Harvard Library. To comprehend how and why an artifact is deteriorating, understanding its assembly is crucial. “Each piece resembles a miniature puzzle.”
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Campus & Community
‘There are mysteries to unravel’
Harvard’s preservation initiatives are crucial for future studies
Throughout the University and globally, Harvard students, staff, and researchers invest efforts in documenting, organizing, and restoring items, regardless of size. Their tools may include trowels, tweezers, erasers, microscopes, or 3D scanners, yet their aim remains constant: to safeguard works of literature, art, science, and civilization, ensuring accessibility for future researchers, students, and the broader public.
“There are mysteries to unravel,” remarks Brenda Bernier, the Malloy-Rabinowitz Preservation Librarian and director of Preservation Services at Harvard Library. “I find that the most thrilling and invigorating aspect of it, while also being the most intimidating.”
Bernier’s office is located near the Weissman Preservation Center on Mount Auburn Street in Harvard Square. “Whenever you stroll through that lab, there’s always something that will astound you,” Bernier stated.
The Weissman specializes in the handling and treatment of rare book, paper, and photographic collections. Other departments and museums across campus possess their own conservation and archival expertise.
Harvard’s legacy in preservation and conservation is extensive. In 1928, it established the first art conservation laboratory in the United States, known as the Department of Technical Research in the Fogg Museum. It is now referred to as the Straus Center for Conservation and Technical Studies.
Bernier likens the scope of Harvard’s preservation endeavors to that of the Library of Congress. “Harvard has been amassing library materials since the 1600s,” she noted. “It is our duty to carry it forward into the future.”
What renders Harvard’s collections of books, photographs, recordings, digital media, and ephemera so significant? These original artifacts serve as primary resources, catalyzing new research inquiries. “They capture the testimony of the era,” Bernier asserted. “It could encompass scientific data or cultural and historical events. Preserving these powers research immensely, as it brings one closer to genuine truth; it represents what actually transpired.”
Scott Edwards, Alexander Agassiz Professor of Zoology at the Museum of Comparative Zoology and curator of ornithology, studies albatross specimens, evaluating mercury poisoning over time within the species. Pictured in 2011, the MCZ boasts one of the oldest collections of black-footed albatross. The Department offers a wealth of data on both the environment and the avian species.
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In 2020, Dennis Piechota (from left), Adam Middleton, and Joe Green collaborated with a team at the Semitic Museum, opening ancient Egyptian coffins to analyze and photograph them from all angles using scanning technology and 3D photography.
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Edith Young, a camera operator at Imaging Services, scans a rare Chinese book in 2010 within the digital lab at Widener Library. “The library is dedicated to making our collections as accessible as possible,” Bernier noted. “And the digitization process is essential for that. Additionally, materials are now coming in that are ‘born digital.’ Instead of acquiring, for instance, a collection of manuscripts from a well-known author, we are now receiving laptops and hard drives.”
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A storage area at the Museum of Comparative Zoology is seen in 2017.
File photo by Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer
Students from Cambridge Rindge & Latin High School partake in interactive activities in 2022, scrutinizing extensive rows of specimens during Marine Science Day at the Museum of Comparative Zoology.
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As the refurbishment of Harvard Art Museums approaches its conclusion in 2014, a woman strolls alongside the Forbes Pigment Collection.
File photo by Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer
Jackson Kehoe, a research assistant at Harvard Herbarium, showcases collections in 2023 at the Harvard University Herbaria.
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Stuart Heebner, collections assistant (left), and Scott Fulton, conservator, transport casts for cleaning as part of a significant project in 2007 aimed at stabilizing the plaster cast collection in the Peabody Museum. Preservation can manifest in various ways, based on an institution’s priorities or an object’s requirements. Extensive collections necessitate careful and efficient management. “It’s almost like you’re in a field hospital, you know, and each piece must come through your care, as gently but swiftly as possible,” Bernier mentioned. “It could be just a few minutes, or it could take hundreds of hours. It really hinges on what it requires or why it requires it.”
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Inside the Hiphop Archive and Research Institute, Makeda Daniel, media and publications coordinator, plays a record on a turntable in 2019.
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Charles Orta ’16 (from left), Blake Lee ’16, Miye D’Oench ’16, and Sarah Fellay ’16 explore research materials in 2012 at the Harvard-Yenching Library. “There has been a notable increase in interest among faculty regarding object-based learning, allowing students to interact with the original items,” Bernier stated. “It’s a compelling and impactful experience to handle a journal from 150 years ago and observe what someone of their age might have recorded about their experiences at Harvard or elsewhere.”
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Melissa Dole (right) reletters the seat numbers in Harvard Stadium employing stencils. Steve Zarba (left), who leads the two-month project in 2018, remarked, “In 1903, they accomplished this manually; we are attempting to preserve the traditional appearance.”
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Writings by Keats are showcased in 2011 in the Keats Room in Houghton Library, illustrating cross-writing, a resource-efficient method employed during an era when paper was scarce.
File photo by Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer
Richard Ketchen, tasked with caring for and maintaining Harvard’s clocks, is depicted in 2020 working on a clock at the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.
File photo by Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer
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Conservator of the Ware Collection of Blaschka Glass Models of Plants, Scott Fulton, is seen in 2019 cleaning and restoring artifacts from the glass flowers collection.
File photo by Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer
In 2017, Dale Stinchcomb, curatorial assistant in the Harvard Theatre Collection, scrutinizes a figurine by Jean-Auguste Barre depicting the young French dancer Emma Livry (1842-1863) in “Le Papillon.”
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In 2021, the Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments disassembles the legendary Mark 1 computer at the Science Center and relocates it to the SEC for reassembly.
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Sara Frankel, the collections manager for the Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments, clears years of dust from the computer’s internal mechanisms during the move in 2021.
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In 2016, book conservator Katherine Beaty worked on a bound collection of business records, including partnership agreements and related documents from the Baker Library at Harvard Business School. “It’s an exhilarating rush,” said Bernier. “This is what draws many conservators to the profession. It’s a personal process having these items come from past generations, right on our desk. It’s in our custody, and we must protect and maintain it. It’s both humbling and thrilling.”
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In 2016, Book Conservator Catherine Badot-Costello utilizes a microscope to work on an illuminated, bound parchment manuscript from Houghton Library, dated 1464. Conservators safeguard, restore, and preserve rare books and unique library materials at the Weissman Preservation Center. Repairs to items should remain subtle and focus on stabilizing the object, according to Bernier. “We aim to maintain a conservative approach.”
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In 2016, conservation technician Anne Corrsin cleaned an account book for medical services provided by John Perkins (1698-1781) dating from 1744 to 1780. Objects and collections are frequently revisited and examined by new generations of scholars. For instance, a non-destructive analysis of the leather types used in bookbinding could unveil new insights about trade routes, commerce, and civilization histories.
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In 2005, Nancy Lloyd, objects conservator for the Straus Center for Conservation, restored the fallen soldier statue located in the Memorial Room at Memorial Church.
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In 2019, Jun Imabayashi prunes a lilac plant within the bonsai collection at the Arnold Arboretum. The diligent trimming and attention foster the growth of the plant.
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In 2021, the Harvard Yard Archaeology Project progresses as students engage in an excavation on the grounds in front of Matthews Hall. Patricia Capone (left) converses with Sarah Faber ’24 as she examines her findings.
File photo by Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer
In 2021, Robert Shure (left) and Noe Magana restore the John Harvard Statue situated in Harvard Yard.
File photo by Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer
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