13th century vellum manuscript

I am exploring the possibility of treating a 13th century vellum
bible of a type know as a 'pocket' or 'portable' Bible. These are
characterised by their small size (this one is 130mm x 90mm) and the
extraordinary thinness of their vellum (sometimes referred to as
uterine vellum).

The manuscript is in an early 20th century binding with copious
animal glue on the spine.  The sewing supports are beginning to
break down and the manuscript opens with great difficultly. This
type of vellum is extremely moisture sensitive, and my concern is
whether the glue can be removed without causing any damage to the
vellum. I would be very interested in hearing from anyone who has
any experience in treating a similar manuscript, whether that
treatment involved the binding or just leaf repair.

Katrina Ben
Conservator, Books
Conservation
State Library of Victoria
328 Swanston Street
Melbourne, Victoria 3000
Australia
+61 3 8664 7331


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 26:20
                  Distributed: Sunday, October 7, 2012
                       Message Id: cdl-26-20-018
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