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Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: http://hdl.handle.net/2429/4378

Title: The German archival system 1945-1995
Author: Landwehr, Regina
Degree: Master of Archival Studies - MAS
Program: Library, Archival and Information Studies
Copyright Date: 1996
Abstract: After World War Two, Germany became divided into two countries commonly called East and West Germany. This thesis describes how the two countries, one communist and one pluralistic, developed distinctly different archival systems with respect to the organization, legislation and appraisal methods of government archival institutions. East Germany's archival system was organized and legislated into a rigorous hierarchical structure under central government control with the mandate of fulfilling in a systematic way primarily ideological objectives. Although professional collaboration between the archivists of the two countries had been officially severed since the early years of separation by East Germany, because of irreconcilable political differences, they influenced each others' thoughts. Specifically, East German archivists borrowed and implemented extensively appraisal concepts formulated in West Germany, such as the documentation profile idea. The examination of the archival system in West Germany reveals organizational characteristics typical of federalist countries. The development of archival legislation in West Germany was clearly the outcome of initiatives from the archival profession itself, and West Germany's appraisal methods reflected a diversity of theoretical considerations which, because of the pluralistic nature of the discussions, were marked by a lack of professional consensus. The description of the discussions that took place over time illustrates an ongoing struggle to identify and respect the perceived demand for sources, and to formulate appraisal methods focusing on the contextual and functional analysis of records creators' activities and competencies. The discussion of the. developments that followed Germany's political reunification in 1990 shows that East Germany's archival system was absorbed by the West German system. The thesis concludes that the main effect of reunification was a search for a balance between East and West appraisal concepts and methods, and a renewed constructive debate characterized by a reexamination of previous archival contributions supporting contextual and functional appraisal approaches.

http://blog.librarylaw.com/librarylaw/2009/05/alert-action-needed-in-new-york-state.html

Peter Hirtle writes

There is a proposed new law making its way through the New York State legislature that would regulate how museums deaccession items in their collections. While ostensibly about museums, the law could have a major impact on how libraries function. All libraries and historical societies in NY should write to the legislation's sponsors and ask that passage be delayed until definitions are clarified.

The bills are A06959 (introduced by Richard L. Brodsky) and its identical counterpart S04584 (introduced by José M. Serrano). They would govern how museums acquire and dispose of objects. You can learn more from a hearing on the topic found here.
The proposal has generated some discussion and concern within the museum community (see, for example, the letter from the Art Law Committee of the New York City Bar or the posts on the bill in the Art Law blog). My concern is with its potential impact on libraries and archives. The problem is that while the bill discusses the issue surrounding collecting in museums, it defines museums so broadly that most libraries and archives would fall under its sway. Here is the definition:

"MUSEUM" means any institution having collecting as a stated purpose in its charter, certificate of incorporation, or other organizing documents, or owning or holding collections, or intending to own or hold collections that is a governmental entity, education corporation, not-for-profit corporation, or charitable trust.
Since almost every library in the state owns or holds collections, for the purposes of the law they would be museums. The law would sharply limit their ability to dispose of any material (other than returning it to the donor). Everything the library or archives gets would have to be accessioned before it could be discarded. And instead of throwing unwanted items into the trash or putting them in the local library book sale, a library would first have to offer the material to other "museums" in New York state and then the rest of the country. Proceeds from any sale could only be used to support further acquisitions.

I appreciate the NY efforts to prevent damagages to cultural heritage by deaccessioning historical collections. If real damages for the cultural heritage could prevented by the law I woould accept some minor disadvantages i.e. that deaccessioning which makes sense is'nt possible.

Museums, libraries and archives are memory institutions. They should preserve the items they own for the posterity.

For damages by deaccessioning historical collections see

http://archiv.twoday.net/search?q=deaccess

Hirtle-Update:

http://blog.librarylaw.com/librarylaw/2009/06/update-deaccessioning-in-new-york-state.html

http://blog.librarylaw.com/librarylaw/2009/08/ny-deaccessioning-update-some-good-news-for-libraries-but-less-so-for-historical-societies.html

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/31/AR2009053102262.html

On Sunday, staff from the National Archives called me from all over the country: Philadelphia, New York, Suitland, Maryland. No, they didn't want to archive some of my recent poetry or conduct an archival survey. These staffers were trying to access their voice mailbox, and they got me -- over and over and over again. [...] Makes me wonder what's really happening to all that valuable historical material they handle.

http://creativecommons.org/weblog/entry/14678

Aaron from the Flickr Development team explains their rationale for using CC Zero:

We want people (developers, researchers and anyone else who wants to play) to find new and interesting ways to use the shapefiles and we recognize that, in many cases, this means having access to the entire dataset.

We want people to feel both comfortable and confident using this data in their projects and so we opted for a public domain [waiver] so no one would have to spend their time wondering about the issue of licensing. We also think the work that the Creative Commons crew is doing is valuable and important and so we chose to release the shapefiles under the CC0 waiver as a show of support.

We want people to create their own shapefiles and to share them so that other people (including us!) can find interesting ways to use them. We’re pretty sure there’s something to this “shapefile stuff” even if we can’t always put our finger on it so if publishing the dataset will encourage others to do the same then we’re happy to do so.

http://sbdsproto.nla.gov.au/

You can find here the whole OAIster stuff!

State Archives Launches La Escuela Electrónica/The Electronic
Schoolhouse
www.archives.nysed.gov/projects/escuela

The New York State Archives and Archives Partnership Trust are proud to present La Escuela Electrónica/The Electronic Schoolhouse, a bilingual website for teachers focusing on the Latino experience in New York.

Using historical records such as photographs, letters, flyers,
broadsides and more dating from 1861 to the present, the website
combines historical records and technology to promote the development of critical thinking skills, reading and writing skills, understanding historical content and context.

" ...... I want to especially thank our Acting Archivist of the United States, Adrienne Thomas. .....
But I believe with every fiber of my being that in the long run we also cannot keep this country safe unless we enlist the power of our most fundamental values. The documents that we hold in this very hall — the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights — these are not simply words written into aging parchment. They are the foundation of liberty and justice in this country, and a light that shines for all who seek freedom, fairness, equality, and dignity around the world.
I stand here today as someone whose own life was made possible by these documents. My father came to these shores in search of the promise that they offered. My mother made me rise before dawn to learn their truths when I lived as a child in a foreign land. My own American journey was paved by generations of citizens who gave meaning to those simple words — "to form a more perfect union." I've studied the Constitution as a student, I've taught it as a teacher, I've been bound by it as a lawyer and a legislator. I took an oath to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution as commander in chief, and as a citizen, I know that we must never, ever, turn our back on its enduring principles for expedience sake. I make this claim not simply as a matter of idealism. We uphold our most cherished values not only because doing so is right, but because it strengthens our country and it keeps us safe. Time and again, our values have been our best national security asset — in war and peace; in times of ease and in eras of upheaval.
Fidelity to our values is the reason why the United States of America grew from a small string of colonies under the writ of an empire to the strongest nation in the world.
It's the reason why enemy soldiers have surrendered to us in battle, knowing they'd receive better treatment from America's armed forces than from their own government.
It's the reason why America has benefited from strong alliances that amplified our power, and drawn a sharp, moral contrast with our adversaries.
It's the reason why we've been able to overpower the iron fist of fascism and outlast the iron curtain of communism, and enlist free nations and free peoples everywhere in the common cause and common effort of liberty.From Europe to the Pacific, we've been the nation that has shut down torture chambers and replaced tyranny with the rule of law. That is who we are. And where terrorists offer only the injustice of disorder and destruction, America must demonstrate that our values and our institutions are more resilient than a hateful ideology. ....."
Link

For a German abstract see:
http://www.nzz.ch/nachrichten/medien/obama_guantanamo_1.2602356.html

Two interns from University of Southern Maine and Montserrat College of Art working at the Maine Historical Society Research Library in Portland, Maine, demonstrate how to safely humidify and flatten rolled Coombs Brothers architectural drawings.

UPDATE

Comment from a paper conservator via Archives List:

The dusting off was a bit harsh for public viewing, though actually those starch cloth things are pretty tough. But still, it's best to put your BEST and gentlest foot forward for the public. The dust was just going on the table; that's ok. (We usually surface clean things on a "tray" made of craft paper folded up on three sides, and then we can throw it away or empty it out without having dust and crumbs going all over the table. We often surface clean with grated eraser crumbs rubbed across the paper, and they tend to get everywhere.) A bit more worrying was all the rust and crumbly green verdigris powder on the fasteners, and then on her hands, and the same surface cleaning brush, and all the pages as she was taking them apart. Abrasive!

So here are the bullet points of the main things I don't like in the theory, setting aside the rough practice demonstrated there:

* Humidifying things while rolled up and vertical is dangerous because
o it can dent the "bottom" edge of the roll that's in contact with the trash can
o any condensation buildup will form drops that will run down the surface of the paper - especially if hot water is used, as suggested
o the object might stick to itself while rolled
* Its very slow, which makes it impractical for a big collection

However, to be fair, the slowness of that method can be a good thing that prevents condensation. And those starch cloth things they were working with can be tricky, so whoever came up with that scheme may have had starch cloth's characteristics particularly in mind. I think the interns were just doing and filming what they were taught to do without necessarily knowing the reasons for all of the steps. (Such as saying at the beginning, "Only drawings on linen should be humidified.") Now back to the bullets.

* Humidifying by spraying with a standard plastic spray bottle is dangerous because:
o The water droplets are large, which can cause tide-lines, bleeding and uneven humidification
o It's always best to humidify front and back evenly, but spraying only on the back doesn't do that, and spraying on the front with such large water droplets defeats the purpose of using spray as a safer method
* Items shouldn't be sprayed while lying on the blotters, because it dampens the blotters that need to be dry
* Items put between blotters should be weighted down by heavy boards or put in a press to avoid uneven expansion and contraction when drying, and to ensure that they dry flat (which the ones in the video were not)
* It's preferable to have three layers of blotter between each layer of objects being flattened, to better absorb the moisture and prevent mold growth
* It's also preferable to put the object between layers of nonwoven polyester (eg Hollytex, Reemay, or Bondina) to prevent the object from sticking to the blotter or the media from transferring to the blotter
* The objects should be left flattening for much more than 8 hours that they recommend, ideally 2-3 days or more to make sure they're completely dry - otherwise they might get moldy in storage or they might revert to their previous wrinkles.