Drexel University
John James Audubon Birds of America Preservation Project
A grant proposal
Sarah Parnell
December 7, 2010
This is a sample grant proposal for the purpose of preserving John James
Audubon’s work Birds of America
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Sarah Parnell
Dr. Lewis
Grant Proposal
12/7/10
Executive Summary
The Library of the Science Museum of Philadelphia receivied its first volume in 1820.
Dedicated to preserving collections for future generations, we need your help in preserving our
priceless collection of John James Audubon’s double elephant folio of 435 plates, entitled Birds
of America, published over a 14 year period between 1827 and 1832 (Rhodes, 2004, p. 403).
This important and invaluable collection is pertinent to scientific research, and society,
and is unfortunately subject to deterioration. John James Audubon’s Birds of America is a
national treasure and of great importance to the scientific community and society at large. In
order to fulfill our mission and preserve this national treasure for future use and eventual
digitization, we need conservation techniques administered by the Conservation Center for Art
and Historical Artifacts (CCAHA), including better climate control, restoration and preservation
of materials.
With this grant, we will transport the plates to the Conservation Center at the CCAHA.
There, conservationists will restore and preserve the plates so that they can be used for museum
display, for educational purposes, and eventual digitization. The plates will be conserved in a
way to facilitate display and secure storage.
Upon completing the restoration and preservation project, we would like to mount a
major exhibition of selected plates with original copper plates. Patrons of our museum and
scientists will enjoy a continuous display of John James Audubon’s works. We will exhibit the
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plates in a large case. Displaying the plates in such a way will allow everyone to enjoy the
works, while preventing wear and tear of the individual plates. Displaying these plates will
increase enjoyment for the museum patrons, and aid in the inspiration for ornithological studies
for area scientists.
Please help us preserve these ornithological treasures by donating to our project. We are
asking for $51, 886.75 to pay the Conservation Center for Art and Historical Artifacts
(CCAHA) for the conservation experts and supplies, climate control equipment, and steel
cabinets for these double elephant folio size plates. We have $13,500 previously donated for the
project. We plan to start this project in the fall of 2012.
Background
The Library of the Science Museum of Philadelphia has existed since 1820, and has a
mission to preserve sceintific collections in trust for generations to come. As the oldest science
museum in America, we need your help to preserve some of the collections we have at the
library. The Science Museum Library is unique in that it houses some of the rarest and most
important pre-Linnean to contemporary scientific journals and books in the world. The
collection consists of origninal writings of noteable naturalists and scientists, including John
James Audubon, Charles S. Boyer, John Cassin, Edward Drinker Cope, Richard Harlan, Charles
Darwin, James Bond, and Alexander Wilson.
The library staff which consists of three full time librarians including the director, and a
part-time library support staff, work hard to steward these collections. The library director works
cloesly with the museum curator and area scientists to ensure that the collections are relevant to
scientific research, and adequately preserved.
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Our library supports a community of approximately 20,000 scientists and researchers in
the tri-state area who use our collections regularly. Also, many museum patrons, graduate
students, and children use our collections for research projects and enjoyment.
One of the most beloved and requested collections is the John James Audubon’s Birds of
America. The four volume set of 435 double elephant folio sized plates has 497 North American
bird species that are true to size and coloring and represented in their natural habitats (Rhodes,
2004, p. 403). Consequently, it is an excellent resource for understanding the anatomy, behavior,
diet, and preferred habitat of North American birds. It also contains information on American
birds that are now extinct, such as the Ivory Billed Woodpecker, the Carolina Parakeet, the
Passenger Pigeon, the Labrador Duck, and the Great Auk (“Extinct Birds”, 2010, p.1).
Not only is Birds of America an excellent resource, it is also a remarkable work of art. It
took more than 14 years of field observations and drawings, plus his management and promotion
to make this project a success (Streshinsky, 1993, p.328). John James Audubon (1785-1851) had
a mission to paint every known North American bird he could find in the early-nineteenth
century (Pittsburg, 2008, para. 1). He had captured one thousands birds, painted portraits of
them, and had these images reproduced on hand colored plates. Audubon sold these plates in a
subscription series in England, Europe and North America (Pittsburg, 2008, para. 2). The
subscribers to his collection received five plates at a time (one large bird, one medium bird, and
three small birds) over a period between 1827 and 1832 at a total cost of $1,000 (Pittsburg, 2008,
para. 2).
No more than 120 sets exist today (Pittsburg, 2008, para. 2). Each set has 435 plates
that are based on the original paintings (Pittsburg, 2008, para. 2). The work consists of handcolored, life-size prints made from engraved plates measuring around 39 by 26 inches (Pittsburg,
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2008, para.3). It has four volumes, and every volume has 100-135 prints (J.C. Haas, personal
communication, November, 23, 2010).
Many ornithologists, art historians, archivists, and collectors consider Audubon’s
masterpiece Birds of America to be the greatest work on North American Ornithology every
published (Pittsburg, 2008, para.3).This was an amazing achievement and also inspiration for
other ornithological works. His artistry and high standards were admired, and revered by many
famous scientists. Charles Darwin, for example, mentions Audubon’s work in his book Origin
of Species (Rhodes, 2004, p.305).
Unfortunately, Audubon’s works are subject to mold and disintegration. His works of art
are sensitive to light exposure, acidic materials, and moisture. This collection is a valuable
educational and historical asset to the museum and the community. Birds of America is important
to ornithology, and the taxonomy of bird species in North America. If these volumes are to be
useful to future generations, we must work to preserve these great works.
Statement of Need
While we were handling the Birds of America Collection, we noticed that there
are a considerable number of tears, lines, stains, smudges, and mold on various plates throughout
the set. Upon discovering this, we realized that the set needs the professional attention of
conservationists. We would like to restore and preserve the plates, so that they will still be
accessible to museum patrons, research scientists, and students in the future. In order to preserve
these treasures, we’ve employed the best conservationists in the city of Philadelphia, the
Conservation Center for Art and Historical Artifacts (CCAHA).
The CCAHA is a leader in the conservation field. They have innovative approaches,
cutting edge technologies and a highly trained staff. They focus in the treatment of works of art
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on paper and rare books, and have years of experience restoring pieces on materials from
parchment to papyrus (“about”, CCAHA, 2010, p. 1). We have used the CCAHA in the past to
help restore Charles Darwin’s complete works. They did a fantastic job. Thanks to the CCAHA,
Darwin’s complete collection is now available for viewing. Charles Darwin’s pieces are a main
attraction for museum patrons, science enthusiasts and researchers. The attendance of museum
patrons has increased 40% since we’ve put Darwin’s complete collection on display. We hope to
see a similar increase in patronage after we put Audubon’s Birds of America on display. We are
certain that the CCAHA will help us accomplish this goal by bringing the same amount of
professionalism and expertise to this conservation project. We called the CCAHA for an initial
consultation.
The CCAHA did an assessment of our Audubon collection and noticed that the volumes
are sitting on unsuitable wooden shelves. This causes humidity and temperature problems. The
warmth from the wood and the humidity in the room is causing mold growth on the pages. Also,
wood is acidic and the finishes may “off-gas”. It is not good to store valuable items in wooden
furniture, because of acids and other harmful substances exuded by wood and some wood
sealants may damage the items (“Storage furniture”, n.d., p.1). In order to preserve these great
works, it is recommended that we dis-bind the books, thoroughly examine each plate, and treat
each plate individually.
We also need to safeguard the plates for exhibition purposes and eliminate all physical
stress to the individual plates. In order to accomplish this, the plates will be stored in individually
designed acid-free folders with the Mylar overlay and housed in shallow drawers in secure steel
cases (J.C. Haas, personal communication, November, 23, 2010). The sturdy powder coated
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steel drawers will insulate the contents from environmental influences, provide physical
protection, and keep out air-borne dirt.
Another concern of ours is temperature control. We have the necessary H-VAC system,
and heating systems. But, since we’ve had some instances of mold growth, we need to keep a
closer eye on temperature and humidity. This will help us decipher whether or not we need to
turn the heat or air conditioning up or down. It has been recommended by the Minnesota
Historical Society, that we maintain a stable temperature no lower than 70 degrees Fahrenheit,
keep relative humidity levels between 30 and 50 percent, and avoid sudden extreme temperature
fluctuations (“Basic Conservation”, n.d., p.5). It was recommended that the temperature and
relative humidity be systematically measured and recorded. The measurements will let us know
what the conditions actually are, justify a request to install equipment, or let us know if
equipment we already have is operating properly and producing the desired conditions. Data
loggers are available to measure temperature and relative humidity. The CCAHA recommended
that we install HOBO U14 Temperature/RH Data Loggers with LCD display data in our stacks
so that we can keep an eye on temperature and humidity. They also suggested that we have some
on-going monitoring with software to help track seasonal or sudden changes during the course of
the year (C. McHugh, Personal Communication, November 9, 2010). Through the use of this
software, we will be able to see if the humidity is too high, so can do something about it, and the
books will not get moldy. Mold remediation is costly and time consuming.
Conserving the John James Audubon collection is necessary, but costly and time
consuming. We need your support to help us purchase the supplies we need and hire skilled
conservationists to help us handle John James Audubon’s collection with the proper care and
attention. The Science Museum of Philadelphia is an important resource for education and a
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scientific research hub for area scientists, and students. Every month, museum patrons are
invited to attend a wide variety of exhibits, cultural, and educational events that include lectures,
book signings, and displays of scientific artifacts that are integral to the scientific community.
We need your financial assistance so that we can restore these plates, and adequately serve our
community. Conserving these items will not only help serve our population, but will also assist
the museum in creating new standards and procedures for care of its collections.
Proposed Program
We are going to hire the conservationists from Conservation Center for Art and Historical
Artifacts (CCAHA) to help us with this project. They are going to help restore some of the
plates, move the volumes into the specially designed folders in steel cases and install the data
loggers for temperature control.
The CCAHA is located in Philadelphia and is one of the biggest conservation laboratories
in the US. They specialize in the treatment of art and historic artifacts on paper. The CCAHA
examined the plates and determined that because of their fragile condition, they will require
treatment, preservation and accommodation assistance to protect the materials from further
deterioration and support their continued use for educational purposes and display. Local
conservationist specialists from the CCAHA will help us move the items and set up the devices
for evaluating climate control, and create individual acid-free folders with the Mylar overlay for
preservation.
The CCAHA will dis-bind the books, thoroughly examine each plate, and treat each plate
individually. After each plate is treated, we are going to carefully move the plates into
appropriate housing, so that we can safeguard the plates for exhibition purposes and eliminate all
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physical stress to the individual plates. In order to accomplish this, the plates will be stored in
individually designed acid-free folders with the Mylar overlay and housed in shallow drawers in
secure steel cases (J.C. Haas, personal communication, November, 23, 2010). The sturdy
powder coated steel drawers will insulate the contents from environmental influences, provide
physical protection, and keep out air-borne dirt (C. McHugh, Personal Communication,
November 19, 2010).
We also plan to keep a closer eye temperature and humidity. Temperature and relative
humidity will be systematically measured and recorded. We are going maintain a stable
temperature no lower than 70 degrees Fahrenheit, keep relative humidity levels between 30 and
50 percent, and avoid sudden extreme temperature fluctuations (“Basic Conservation”, n.d., p.5).
We are going to install Data loggers to measure temperature and relative humidity and on-going
monitoring with software to help track seasonal or sudden changes during the course of the year.
Through the use of this software, we will be able to see if relative humidity and temperature is
too high, and that way we can adjust it accordingly. In addition to this, a final assessment will be
made to determine what items are needed for long-term care and preservation of this unique
collection.
The staff archivists will be responsible for proper storage and maintenance when the
plates are not on display. The museum’s curator maintains an exhibit schedule and will plan the
exhibit of the fully restored plates.
The time allocated to the project will include transportation of the items to the CCAHA,
time for selection and acquisition of better storage facilities, and work with the museum curator
and archivist for an upcoming exhibition of the plates. There is a proposed schedule mentioned
below. Please see the proposed implementation schedule below for a time line of this project.
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Proposed Implementation Schedule
•
January 2011- Organize schedule with project manager
•
February 2011 take items over to the CCAHA to plan what needs to be done
•
March-April 2011- Purchase supplies
•
April-October 2011-clean up the collection
•
October-January 2011-Move the collection into the steel cases
•
January 2012- Set up Data loggers and appropriate software in stacks
•
February 2012-Set up exhibit of chosen plates
•
March 2012-Exhibition and celebration of the restoration project
Proposed Budget
Item – details
Costs
Paper folders with Mylar Overlay
$2,370.75
Climate control-humidity data loggers HOBO U14 Temperature/RH
12x $168=2,016
Data Loggers with LCD Display
Cost for conservationists to help install data loggers, do the paper
$60,000
conservation and move the collection into museum cabinets
Powder Coated Steel Cabinet
$1,000.00
Total:
$65,386.75
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Program Funding
Source
Amount
US Science Society – one-year grant
$6000/year
The OSSAA (Ornithology Scientific Society Association of
America)
$6000/year
Federation of Scientific explorers
$1500/year
Conclusion:
The disintegration of John Audubon’s Bird’s of America is a disheartening issue.
We must try our best to preserve this collection. Funds will provide the necessary hand cleaning
of the plates, proper storage equipment and climate control. By restoring and preserving these
collections, we can make them available to the public, and scientists for research, admiration and
study. Your contribution of $51, 886.75 dollars to help supplement the $13,500 we have already
secured will truly help preserve this unique and incredibly important collection.
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List of Appendences
Appendix A: Map and Description of the Science Museum
6
Appendix B: Project Justification (the “Need”)
7
Appendix C: Assessment done by the CCAHA
8
Appendix D: Cost of equipment
9
Appendix E: Project Timeline and Workflow
10
Appendix F: Sample Press Release
11
Appendix G: Long-term Sustainability of Project
12
Appendix J:
13
Copy of terms of agreement for US science society grant
Appendix K: Letter of Support from the Center for Archival Collections (CAC)
14
Appendix N: Letter of Support from OSSAA
15
Appendix O: Letter of Support from the federation of Scientific Explorers
Appendix P: Draft Contract for Contract Conservationist
17
Appendix Q: Draft Contract for CCAHA
18
Appendix R: Long Range Plan and Technology Plan
19
Appendix S: Copyright Compliance and Forms
20
Appendix T:
21
Staff Resumes
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References
About. (2010). CCAHA. Retrieved from <http://www.ccaha.org/about>
Basic Preservation Considerations. (n.d.) Minnesota Historical Society. Retrieved from
< http://www.mnhs.org/preserve/conservation/connectingmn/docs_pdfs/BasicPreservatio
nConsiderations_002.pdf
Extinct Birds. (2010). A Birds Home. Retrieved from
<http://www.abirdshome.com/Audubon/extinct.html
Northeast Document Conservation Center. (2007). Northeast Conservation Center. Retrieved
from
<http://www.nedcc.org/resources/leaflets/4Storage_and_Handling/09OversizedArtifacts.
php>
Pittsburg, University of. (2008). Audubon’s Birds of America. Retrieved from
<http://digital.library.pitt.edu/a/audubon/about.html>
Rhodes, Richard. (2004). John James Audubon: The Making of an American. New York: Alfred
A, Knopf.
Storage Furniture. (n.d). Minnesota Historical Society. Retrieved from
< http://www.mnhs.org/preserve/conservation/connectingmn/docs_pdfs/StorageFurniture
_001.pdf >
Streshinsky, Shirley. (1993). Audubon: Life and Art in the American Wilderness. New York:
Villard Books.
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Statement of Academic Honesty
I certify that:
 This paper/project/exam is entirely my own work.
 I have not quoted the words of any other person from a printed source, online source, or a
website without indicating what has been quoted and providing an appropriate citation.
 I have not submitted this paper / project to satisfy the requirements of any other course.
Signature: Sarah Parnell
Date: 12/7/10