Praktické zkušenosti s průzkumem fyzického stavu knihovních fondů v Národní knihovně České republiky za posledních 12 let

Abstract

The poor physical condition of paper carriers, not only books but especially older newspapers and magazines, significantly limits their use by the readership and, in the event of their disintegration, leads to an irreplaceable loss of part of the national cultural heritage. The reduced lifespan of manufactured materials, their lower mechanical resistance and frequent visual changes prevent interlibrary loan, limit user copying, and, most importantly, reduce the ability of curators of library collections to retain such damaged documents for future generations or at least until they are digitised. A survey of the physical condition of the collections is the first step in planning the activities of the preservation and conservation of large collections and holdings. It makes it possible to evaluate the most endangered parts of the collection and to plan the sequence of individual interventions for the stabilisation of library collections. The paper presents the survey procedure on the example of the collections of the National Library of the Czech Republic, the form of recording and the possibilities of implementation.