Leather bloom

I've been interested in this for a long time in a desultory sort of way,
but never had a chance to pursue it.  You might look at two papers in the
conservation literature if you have not already done so:

    Jean S. Gottliev, "A Note on Identifying Bloom on Leather Bindings,"
        Journal of the American Institute for Conservation
        22(1982):37-40.

    Ellen Pearlstein, "Fatty Bloom on Wood Sculpture from Mali," Studies
        in Conservation 31(1986):83-91.

Simplistically, it seems to me that there must be a logical relationship
between the mechanisms (largely the polymorphic behavior of fats) of
bloom formation on bindings and other materials, and ultimately the
explanation and the cure have to due with climate control.

Karen Motylewski
Director, Field Service
Northeast Document Conservation Center
100 Brickstone Square
Andover, MA 01810
508-470-1010

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                  Conservation DistList Instance 7:67
                  Distributed: Friday, March 25, 1994
                        Message Id: cdl-7-67-004
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