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KEEPING IT TOGETHER: CONSERVATION, CONTEXT AND CULTURAL MATERIALS

Abstract In 1900 a small group of Galician immigrants in New York City formed a self-help association. They displayed their state certificate of incorporation in a paperboard mat ornamented with textual and pictorial elements. In 2004 this wall plaque received conservation treatment for exhibition at the Library of Congress. Over the course of a century, this object went from representing a community to itself to representing a mechanism for self-preservation to the public. This paper explores context and interpretation; material integrity and cultural identity; and preserving the potential for discovering and creating meaning. It analyzes how context influences conservation and how conservation influences the historical trajectory of cultural materials. As an example it will consider the cultural context in which conservation has developed and its influence on the conservation treatment of the wall plaque.