After two weeks at LHSA, I have settled in and my internship is well underway.
Having had a good look at the 10 boxes containing material relating to the administrative history of the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, I’ve been able to document exactly what the collection includes. I can now work with Ruth and Laura to prioritise items to be conserved and this will help me to make a structured work plan. Having looked at all the parchment items in the collection, I’ve now got a good idea about the main conservation issues which really helps direct my research. The damage that has occurred to wax seals on a lot of the title deeds gives me another avenue of research which I hadn’t originally considered. I’m looking forward to hopefully finding some solutions to help stabilise the seals.
Damaged seal
My next steps are to carry out a more detailed condition survey of the parchment items, and to start treating some of the more straight forward paper items in the collection.
Alongside the project I’ve been involved with other activities…with Laura I was able to have a little look at cataloguing, and then got involved with a public enquiry. This was really fascinating; and we were able to answer a query from someone searching for records of a relative.
Louise introduced us to her work cataloguing LHSA's Norman Dott case note collection, the scale of the project is huge and I have great admiration for the work she’s been doing!
With additional seminars, and a great photography session with Stephen, it’s no wonder my first two weeks have gone in a flash!
Surprise material: a parchment deed in a leather case
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