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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA">Dear colleagues:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">I would like to solicit your advice on a project that we are undertaking at the natural history museum in Berlin, Germany (Museum für Naturkunde, MfN) – myself, Steffen Bock, collections manager and Christiane Quaisser,
the head of our collections. The project is about the deterioration processes in skins and hides of mammal collections, in particular on flat study skins (not in mounted or stuffed specimens). The huge part of our skins are brittle and crumble and as easily
hand-tearable as paper. The last 2 years, I did my master’s thesis about this topic, yet many questions remain. I found out that over 80 % of the flat skins in several German and Swiss collections are in such bad conditions. There are few publications on this
topic; most of the literature investigates degradation processes in tanned leather and parchment, but these skins are untanned – in fact the original preservation technique/method for these skins is not really known but we suspect the use of potash alum (so-called
white leather, tawing) or sulfuric acid (pickling) and salts. In the literature we found mention that excess acids from the preservation methods are the main reasons for skin decay (missing or insufficient deacidification after tawing/tanning, degradation
of alum to sulfuric acid, also sulfur dioxide from air pollution, etc.). </span>
<span lang="EN-CA"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">We would like to know if you could help us with the following questions:</span><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent:-18.0pt"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:Symbol">·</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:7.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">
</span><b><span lang="EN-US">Have you, or anyone you know, investigated this kind of problem of deteriorating study skins?
</span></b><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent:-18.0pt"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:Symbol">·</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:7.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">
</span><b><span lang="EN-US">Is there a technique or treatment to rescue our skins from further degradation processes?</span></b><span lang="EN-US"> In literature we couldn’t find any recommendations for treating such old skins. Our skin collection contains
over 30.000 flat skins, small mammals up to skins of giraffes, and most collected in 1900. A mass treatment method to treat many skins simultaneously would be helpful. Another huge problem in our collections is the contamination with different pesticides.</span><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent:-18.0pt"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:Symbol">·</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:7.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">
</span><b><span lang="EN-US">Do you know publications and studies about degradation processes in flat study skins?</span></b><span lang="EN-US"> We know of Marion Kite’s book (Leather and related materials, 2005), very informative and helpful, and about the
STEP leather project and ENVIRONMENT project with René Larsen (1994, 1997) but other studies would also be helpful.</span><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent:-18.0pt"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:Symbol">·</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:7.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">
</span><b><span lang="EN-US">What techniques could be used to investigate the original preservation techniques?</span></b><span lang="EN-US"> Which modern technique would be the best? Does anyone have experiences with
<b>Raman spectroscopy or XRF</b> to evaluate original preservation methods?</span><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent:-18.0pt"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:Symbol">·</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:7.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">
</span><b><span lang="EN-US">Which easy to use, non-invasive methods should we consider using</span></b><span lang="EN-US"> in the day-to-day business in the collections? Ideally everybody should be able to handle such techniques and fill out the elaborated
profiling matrix.</span><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph"><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Our project, to be done within 24 months, has 4 working packages:
</span><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left:53.4pt;text-indent:-18.0pt"><span lang="EN-US">1.</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:7.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">
</span><span lang="EN-US">Cause analysis: finding out the causes for degradation of the skins, acid concentration, acid composition, metabolites, establish a small reference collection with skins conserved with different techniques, artificial aging etc.</span><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left:53.4pt;text-indent:-18.0pt"><span lang="EN-US">2.</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:7.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">
</span><span lang="EN-US">State analysis: profiling, in which condition is our collection, identification of possible parameters to assess every single specimen, establish a matrix for a profiling, profiling).
</span><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left:53.4pt;text-indent:-18.0pt"><span lang="EN-US">3.</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:7.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">
</span><span lang="EN-US">Action plan: recommendations for the care of flat study skins of mammal collections, ideas for best practice guidelines for conservation, storage, etc..</span><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left:53.4pt;text-indent:-18.0pt"><span lang="EN-US">4.</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:7.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">
</span><span lang="EN-US">Knowledge pool and knowledge transfer: creating a free access online data base (wiki), with detailed archive and literature references , workshops, publications, etc.</span><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">I know it’s a huge program. We are currently writing the main project proposal. We are associated with two other partners: the ZFB – Zentrum für Bucherhaltung in Leipzig, Germany (a book restauration institute) investigating
the mass deacidification in books and archival material; and FILK – Forschungsinstitut für Leder und Kunststoffbahnen in Freiberg, Germany, which is a research institute of leather and plastic sheeting. We will also work together with the natural history
museum in Bern, Switzerland, as in the past, they did experiences with the mass deacidification of their collection.</span><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent:-18.0pt"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:Symbol">·</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:7.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">
</span><b><span lang="EN-US">If you are interested in pursuing further discussions</span></b><span lang="EN-US">, we would be happy to have your input. Please contact me directly using the following contact information below.</span><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Best regards,</span><span lang="EN-CA"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-fareast-language:DE">Steffen Bock</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";mso-fareast-language:DE"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:8.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-fareast-language:DE">M.Sc. in Biodiversity, Evolution and Ecology<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:8.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-fareast-language:DE"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-fareast-language:DE">Collection Management - Recent Mammals<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-fareast-language:DE">Sammlungsentwicklung und Kompetenzzentrum Sammlung<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size:8.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-fareast-language:DE"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:8.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-fareast-language:DE">Museum für Naturkunde<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:8.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-fareast-language:DE">Leibniz Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity Science<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:8.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-fareast-language:DE">Invalidenstr. 43<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:8.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-fareast-language:DE">D-10115 Berlin</span></i><i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:8.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-fareast-language:DE"><o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:8.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-fareast-language:DE">Germany</span></i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:8.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-fareast-language:DE"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";mso-fareast-language:DE"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:8.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-fareast-language:DE">phone:
</span></i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:8.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-fareast-language:DE">+49-(0)30 2093 8506<i><o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size:8.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-fareast-language:DE">e-mail: steffen.bock[at]mfn-berlin[dot]de</span></i><i><span style="font-size:8.0pt;mso-fareast-language:DE"><o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
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