• Address:

    Iraqi National Library and Archive, Baghdad, Iraq

  • Client:

    Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic

  • Description of the works:

    Course and equipment for the Iraqi National Library and Archive

  • Realization:

    2006

The course and the supply of equipment and materials for the Conservation Unit of the Iraqi National Library and Archives (INLA) was carried out in three phases. The equipment was first delivered to Iraq, then unpacked in Erbil and a course for Iraqi specialists was held there, and finally the equipment was delivered and installed at INLA.

The aim of the project was to assist in the rescue of Iraqi funds, mainly on a technical and professional basis. The project, implemented on the basis of a monetary donation from the Government of the Czech Republic, included the supply of technical and material equipment and the training of specialists to work with the equipment. Based on a Memorandum of Cooperation signed between GEMA ART and Salahuddin University in Erbil, the supplies were first transported to the Central Library of Salahaddin University in Erbil, where the course took place.

Four specialists from INLA in Baghdad and five from different Kurdish institutions attended the training. During the 6-week course, they were introduced to the procedures of conservation and restoration of paper archival material (cleaning, disinfection, measuring paper acidity, de-acidifying paper, topping up with paper slurry, different types of paper repairs) and the basics of preventive care. The second part of the course was focused mainly on the creation of models of historical bookbinding and the issues of its restoration.

At the end of the course, the equipment was placed back into its crates and delivered to the Iraqi National Library and Archives in Baghdad, where it is still in use today.