Sat, Mar 31, 2018 page4

• PROFILE: ‘Book doctor’ hopes to preserve history

  PERSONAL TOUCH: Hsu recommends against wearing gloves, as they can affect the sense of touch, and said many of the most common problems can be fixed with glue

  • By Hsieh Chia-chen and Sherry Hsiao / Staff reporter, with staff writer
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  “If I had to say whether there is a quality that book restorers need to be born with, it would be to have hands that do not sweat,” said Hsu Mei-wen (徐美文), a book restorer at the National Taiwan Library’s Book Hospital who specializes in the restoration of ancient books and calligraphy.

  Originally responsible for managing the library’s ancient books and special collections, Hsu took over for her teacher, Yang Shih-jung (楊時榮), after he retired.

  Although Hsu has a master’s degree in classical philology and often interacts with ancient works, she had never deeply understood the structure of ancient books, she said.

  

  Book restorer Hsu Mei-wen works on a book at the National Taiwan Library’s Book Hospital in an undated photograph.

  Photo: Tai Ta-hsiang, Taipei Times

  Thus, when she first started learning how to restore books, she felt insecure, but Yang told her that perseverance can be nurtured.

  “My only advantage is that I am a librarian,” Hsu said. “My interest is my job, but apart from this I am just like everyone else.”

  Book restorers, or “book doctors,” are responsible for repairing not only books, but also pieces of paper, maps and other documents.

  Hsu said that when restoring books, she does not recommend wearing gloves, because they affect the restorer’s sense of touch when performing delicate tasks or working with very thin paper.

  “Besides, even if you wear gloves, the sweat from your wrists could still make the books wet,” she said.

  The most frequently encountered problems include pages that have fallen out and papers that are ripped — many of which can be fixed with glue — or mold due to humidity, she said.

  Some tips for preventing damage include storing books in a proper environment, placing books neatly to prevent pages from being bent and retrieving books by their spine rather than by the pages, Hsu said.

  She recommended maintaining humidity at about 60 percent.

  After nearly 10 years of experience in book restoration, Hsu occasionally offers classes and has been invited to teach in Hong Kong.

  The library also offers one-month internships to college students during the summer.

  Hsu said that in her book restoration career, two events have left a great impression on her.

  On an afternoon in February 2013, she received a call from a student at Tainan’s National Cheng Kung University.

  The student had borrowed a hardcover book from a professor to photocopy, but the owner of the photocopying store had damaged the book during the process.

  The student found the Book Hospital online and decided to travel to New Taipei City to seek Hsu’s help.

  Although the Book Hospital does not offer its services to the public, Hsu decided to show the student how to remove the book’s tape and use leather paper to strengthen the structure.

  Hsu kept the book to apply the final touches — applying pressure and drying — and early the next month the student returned to New Taipei City to pick up the book and thanked Hsu for her help.

  The other event involved a request from Nauru, she said.

  In April 2015, Nauru sent three hardcover books on the history of its country to Taiwan for restoration. The books are of the utmost significance to Nauru, but their covers were damaged.

  Restorers could not find the same material that had been used in the production of the books and it took them a lot of effort to find a similar material.

  Restoring the three books required two months of work.

  Hsu said that through that experience, she witnessed the friendly relations between Taiwan and Nauru.

  She has slowly come to understand the importance of classical works, she said.

  However, the market for book restorers in Taiwan is smaller than those of other nations, Hsu said, adding that there are only about 20 book restorers in the nation.

  Even if people have no intention of taking up the profession, she still encourages them to understand the skill required.

  Hsu said she is proud of her profession and hopes that she can use her own skills to contribute to the preservation of classical works so that the books and artifacts that future generations hold in their hands will still be complete.

  “I want to preserve the marks of history on paper and preserve the old scent that history has left us,” Hsu said.
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