Cambridge University Library approached us to assist with the safe storage of a collection of three hand-painted 1860’s Burmese Maps.
The Maps are fascinating and very attractive. Colourfully painted on cotton fabric they depict the land with rivers, temples, towns, footpaths and illustrations of river animals and the distribution of rice and leguminous crops in the Shan provinces and other districts of Upper Burma. The maps were presented to CUL in 1910 by Louis Allan Goss Esq, who was Inspector of Schools in Burma around 1886.
The maps were sound and flexible, but also creased and soiled with various staining. There were numerous small holes showing how they used to be hung on nails.
The maps were surface cleaned and humidified to ease the creases. They were rolled onto custom-made acid-free cardboard rollers, interleaved with acid-free tissue, and wrapped in down-proof cotton covers to protect them from light and dust.
In the Library the rollers are suspended on blocks so that the maps are safely stored and accessible for research.
Hand-painted Burmese Map (Maps.Ms.plans.Rc.1) during the humidification process to ease the creases.
The Burmese Maps (Maps.Ms.Plans.Rc.1-3) stored on their new custom-made acid-free cardboard rollers, protected by labelled cotton covers.
