Preserving our Collections

The Trustees and staff of the Edward Worth Library are committed to preserving our collections to the highest possible standard. We were honoured to be awarded Full Accreditation in the Museum Standards Programme for Ireland on 17 July 2024.

Due to the history of the collection the vast majority of books in the Worth Library are in excellent condition and in many cases present the historian of the book with a superbly preserved book. There are, however, a small group of volumes which are in urgent need of conservation. A small exhibition, exhibited at the Worth Library in 2008 and called ‘Battered Books’, drew attention to the range of conservation problems.

To date three important items have been sent for conservation. We are immensely grateful to benefactors such as Mr. Brendan Prendiville, one of the Trustees of the Edward Worth Library, who made possible the conservation of the following two items: Pietro de Crescenzi’s Ruralia Commoda and William Thynne’s celebrated 1532 edition of the Works of Geoffrey Chaucer; and to Drs Peter Genovese and Rick Sargeant whose donation ensured the preservation of Worth’s beautiful copy of the Etymologicum Magnum (Venice, 1499). We welcome any others interested in the conservation of such a remarkable library. All enquiries should be addressed to the Librarian of the Worth Library, Dr Elizabethanne Boran.