Commentaries to the Guidelines for Practice of the AIC

A. RATIONALE

• Documentation is an integral part of the conservation process; therefore, it must be preserved so that the information it contains is later available to conservators and others.
• For a specific cultural property, documentation may be used to:
  • evaluate the cultural property's present condition;
  • plan its further treatment;
  • expand appreciation and understanding of it;
  • study it even if it is lost, destroyed, or otherwise made inaccessible.
• More generally, the documentation may be used to;
  • evaluate treatment methods and materials;
  • support scholarly research;
  • provide a record of "current accepted practice";
  • study the history of the conservation profession and the thought processes and rationales applied to the care of cultural property.
• Documentation:
  • reduces the need for direct intervention (e.g., sampling, handling, re-excavation, pretreatment testing) when future study and treatment are undertaken;
  • serves as an important educational tool for owners/custodians, students, scholars, and the general public;
  • serves as a record that can help avoid misunderstanding and unnecessary litigation;
  • enhances the credibility of the conservation profession by setting a positive example for allied professionals and the public.

B. MINIMUM ACCEPTED PRACTICE

• Documentation must be produced on and with permanent, stable media, and be legible. Storage only on electronic media is unacceptable. The most permanent photographic systems reasonably available must be utilized for the photographic component of the graphic documentation.
• Records should be organized and maintained to ensure their preservation and their retrieval in a timely manner, by appropriate individuals. The records must be stored under the best environmental conditions feasible.
• Two copies of the documentation must exist: one (the "record copy") with the owner/custodian (curatorial office or registration department in an institution), the other with the conservation professional. The conservation professional must stress to the owner/custodian the importance of storing these records properly and maintaining them with the cultural property, even if ownership changes.
• To allow access to the documentation without violating confidentiality, the owner/custodian should be asked to sign a written agreement governing access to the information by conservation and allied professionals and by future owners/custodians. Conservation professionals working in public institutions may not need to obtain such an agreement, since access to documentation created within such institutions is governed by federal and state statutes.
• When requested, copies of documentation should be provided to future owners/custodians or conservation professionals in a timely fashion.

C. RECOMMENDED PRACTICE

• Written and graphic documentation other than photographic should be executed on paper that meets ANSI Standard Z39.48-1992.
• The conservation professional should retain an original photographic record (e.g., negative or original color transparency) so the highest quality of graphic information is available.
• Electronically or magnetically recorded documentation and documentation requiring the use of other specialized retrieval apparatus can be useful adjuncts to the permanent record but should not be relied upon as permanent records.
• Recommendations should be made to the owner/custodian regarding the maintenance and use of the documentation. Attaching a summary of critical information (e.g., name of conservation professional, identification or job number, treatment summary) to the cultural property may be a useful way to ensure that documentation accompanies the cultural property over time.
• Within institutions, conservation documentation should be regarded as part of the institutional archives, and conservation professionals should work with archivists and records managers to develop sound policies for their permanent retention.
• Private practitioners should maintain documentation during the lifetime of their practice. If ownership of a practice changes hands, the documentation should be included in the transfer. If the practice closes, the conservation professional should make an effort to place documentation in an institutional archives. (AIC provides information on how to identify archives and place collections.) If this proves impossible and records must be discarded, their final disposition should be reported to AIC for future reference.
• The conservation professional should strive to keep informed about and to follow practices for the preservation and organization of records currently recommended by archives professionals.

D. SPECIAL PRACTICES

• In certain situations when no substitutes are available, non-permanent materials (e.g., color Polaroid¨, blueprints) may be used for documentation. Efforts should be made to transfer the information to a more permanent medium.
• It is advisable to obtain legal and other professional advice when establishing records policies.

Approved by the AIC Board October 1996.