Rachel A. S. Menzel
Phase Boxes
In Creighton's Rare Books Room, many of the books are extraordinarily fragile with detached or deteriorating covers and spines. To contain and better protect the fragile books from further damage, the department has an ongoing project to create and house the most vulnerable books in custom phase boxes.
Working with student worker Olivia, I measured, scored, and folded acid-free cardboard to create several custom phase boxes for some 18th century books.
Folding to custom dimensions
Scoring the acid-free cardboard
Folding along the score lines
Finishing the first box envelope
After measuring, scoring, and folding the acid-free cardboard for the first "envelope" enclosure of the book, we repeated the process to create a second envelope, this time wrapping horizontally around the book. To protect the book from any migrating or off-gassing adhesives, no glue, tape, or other adhesive is used in the construction or fixing of the materials. The finished box is secured with acid-free twill tape.