Treasured National Trust books damaged by water leak set to be restored
TREASURED books that were damaged and stained by a water leak at a National Trust hall have started to be restored by paper experts near Cambridge today.
Specialist paper conservators have begun the painstaking task of restoring 259 books that were stained by dirty water at Wimpole Hall near Cambridge.
Individual pages will be treated by adding hot water to the stained paper before blotting away moisture to remove marks to remove tide marks.
It is believed the leak in 2010 that caused the damage was sparked by thawing snow and ice, and measures have been taken to prevent future damage.
House and collections manager, Lisa Voden-Decker, said: "The paper conservators use a simple, but startlingly effective process.
"When I first saw the team flood a page with water it was shocking.
"But the results speak for themselves.
When I first saw the team flood a page with water it was shocking. But the results speak for themselves
"Their skill and patience with the process is absorbing, and they are so good at explaining what they are doing.
"Our visitors can get right up to their work bench and are intrigued to be able to see a page being treated and transformed in front of their eyes ."
Wimpole Hall is one of the National Trust's largest and most varied libraries and features 6,000 books including 4,000 from pre 1810.