For all the commenters concerned about these conservators handling the books without gloves, please understand that handling rare books with gloves fell out of favor about 20 years ago when conservators with the UK National Archives and The U.S. Library of Congress started noticing tattering and fraying due to the fibers of the gloves snagging the fibers of the pages. Both institutions poured over the research and realized that there was no real scientific evidence that small amounts of skin oils actually damage the book, whereas there was very real evidence that gloved hands caused damage, due to a variety of reasons, including a deadening of sensation in the hands (which reduced dexterity and caused tears) as well as the aforementioned fiber snagging. Also, when you wash your hands it takes hours for your hands to actually replenish the oils. If you want to test this, wash your hands thoroughly with castille soap and don't put any lotion on your hands and note how long it take for your skin to start feeling comfortable again. You may notice that some books, artifacts, and fabrics ARE handled with gloves; that's usually to protect the conservator, as many of these objects were treated with toxic substances like arsenic to prevent insect damage, before people knew how dangerous those chemicals were. These conservators at the Victoria and Albert Museum are highly trained and skilled. They have an extensive, cutting-edge research department for the caretaking of these precious objects and are often consulted by other museums and organizations for their expertise. In other words, they know what they are doing. So everyone can relax and know that these books are being handled with utmost care.
I'm a training archivist and since i've been an intern at a local archive my hands definitely got drier! I have to wash them all the time due to dust and dirt from the old documents. The gloves are no good for handling them.
@@feelmyfreshlyshavedlegs3979 It really is my pleasure. I miss teaching a lot and this helps fill the void. :) Thank you for taking the time to read it!
I didn't know that gloves had fallen out of favour but it makes perfect sense. As a stamp collector I discontinued using tweezers or other handling methods, in favour of having clean hands and only touching the stamps very infrequently and gently. I find this leads to a lot less wear and tear.
It's very soothing/relaxing, so nice to see a printed page after years of viewing material on computer screens, phones etc, not to mention if you are a tactile person, the feel of the different weights of paper and leather covers/binding is very nice as well. When young, I used to go to libraries for these reasons and also it was a very calming experience as well. So I definitely agree with you.
I hadn’t even considered adding “look at antique art books in person” to my Bucket List, but I have seen the error of my ways and adjusted my list accordingly. TOP OF THE LIST NOW, this was MAGICAL!
@@dharmeshamrathlal3752 agree! But these could be mythical worms of epic proportions for such an auspicious occasion as helping rare books to be read 🤗
@@dharmeshamrathlal3752 Not all worms! There are some monstrously sized worms. Anywhere from microscopic to 22 feet long is plausible for worms depending on species. That's not including the marine worms!
I want to smell this Library ! I’ve always liked the smell of Libraries. It’s a good smell for me that reminds me of all the Wonderful Books I’ve read.😊
Man, I wish these were longer. There was a whole library of books to see and listen to! And it's not juuuust about the sounds in this case. Listening to each person talk about their specialty is really interesting, too!
The 1st case of ASMR I experienced for me was as a child before I even knew what ASMR was. It just so happened to be during our elementary visits to our school library. The librarian there had such a sweet soft spoken voice. I used to feel so relaxed & experienced what ASMR'rs refer to as tingles. I just loved her voice & have nothing but fond memories of my trips to the library. Now that I think of it, subconsciously perhaps that's why I fell in love w reading at a young age. Thank you to all librarians all over the world. I appreciate you. 🙏 📚 📖 🌎
Some of these are actually really helpful tips. I have a small collection of books that are over 100 years old . Most were printed from around 1830s - 1880s, though my oldest is a japanese manga dated from around the edo period. Lovely relaxing video. Captures the calmness that books and libraries instil in people .
This brings back memories of journeying into town to use the library and using their reading/privacy cubicles in the study section. I loved that library, but was so sad and disappointed when they got rid of the reading cubicles - I strongly believe they instilled a sense of deeper respect for both the building, its books and other users also always concentrated better, something about knowing you're surrounded by other people also studying seriously (whatever it was). I love old libraries and the smell of the books is so much better. Thank you for posting this.
What a beautiful library and place to work! I never knew this existed at the V and A. Thank you to all the staff who made this lovely relaxing video :)
Books are so magical! I wonder how many people have turned those pages and tied the bow at the front it’s amazing to think about 😊 it’s obviously been so very well look after right from the start too, it’s excellent condition
I love the reverence and respect given to these historic books. It always pains me when I see junk journalers tearing up old books to make “new” junk journals.
this is amazing. I work as librarian at an open access library. Never know how closed access library worked. And from this asmr I know this. I really hope someday I will go there..
I saw this video and thought, well there will be quite a lot comments about gloves from people who propaply never been to a real library, never worked in any paper related job, never studied anything art or book related, never owned any books, that arent paperbacks, but know exactly how things have to be. The comment section didnt disappoint.
This was fantastic. I didn’t even know book snakes existed! Does the museum make any conservation effort to restore the spines of older books? I loved the inclusion too of a book having its own beanbag and being properly tied up!
