Board Attachment and Spine Repair
The Proceedings Relative to Calling the Conventions of 1776 and 1790: the Minutes of the Convention that Formed the Present Constitution of Pennsylvania, together with the Charter to William Penn, the Constitutions of 1776 and 1790, and a View of the Proceedings of the Convention of 1776, and the Council of Censors. Harrisburg: Printed by John S. Wiestling, 1825.
Less than two weeks after the Declaration of Independence, the citizens of Philadelphia drafted a constitution for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The first Pennsylvania Constitution was adopted in 1776 and ultimately provided a framework for the U.S. Constitution. While the Constitution of 1776 reflected the radicalism of the Revolution, the Constitution of 1790 was more conservative. The imprint appears to have survived in fewer than 100 copies.
Brief Summary of Conservation Treatment
Conserved by: Rebecca Smyrl Length of Treatment: 15 Hours
Ms. Smyrl began by cleaning the textblock edges with a sponge and brushing away interior accretions. To attach the text block she threaded three strands of seaming twine through the sewing stations of the outermost sections of the text block; and frayed out ends of twine and glued them to the boards beneath the covering material with wheat starch paste in order to provide a connection between the text block and the boards. After toning the twine, she pasted tissue across the joints for added strength. More tissue mended spine tears and cracks. She then re-attached lifted portions and toned the repairs with colored pencil. She then consolidated corners with wheat starch paste. Finally, to protect the book, she constructed a book shoe with a textblock support of corrugated board covered with Tyvek.
For more information see the full Conservation Treatment Report