Anoxic Treatment for the Eradication of Insects in the Choral Books of the Museo del Convento de los Descalzos, Lima, Peru

Intervención ISSN 2448-5934 ENERO-JUNIO 2024 JANUARY-JUNE 2024 OJS Anoxic Treatment for the Eradication of Insects in the Choral Books of the Museo del Convento de los Descalzos, Lima, Peru Academic report Ir a versión en español Índice / Contents DOI: 10.30763/Intervencion.296.v1n29.75.2024 • YEAR 15, ISSUE NO. 29: 167-184 Submitted: 27.09.2023 • Accepted: 04.03.2024 • Published: 31.07.2024 Javier Nakamatsu Jhonatan Arízaga Departamento de Ciencias, Sección Química, Departamento de Ciencias, Sección Química, Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú (pucp), Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú (pucp), Peru Peru orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7721-7716 orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5752-1032 Ivon Canseco Patricia Gonzales Escuela Nacional Superior Autónoma de Bellas Departamento de Ciencias, Sección Química, Artes del Perú (Ensabap), Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú (pucp), Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Lima (mac- Peru Lima), Peru orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0136-5813 orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0181-3153 Translated by Fernanda Andablo ABSTRACT One of the main causes of loss of historical heritage in museums is an insect attacks. At the Museo del Convento de los Descalzos in Lima, Peru, this is a severe problem, particularly in its choral books, which date from the 17th to 19th centuries, due to the materials used in their manufacture. Some disinfestation treatments for objects require compounds that either damage them or are toxic. A non-aggressive and effective alternative to disinfestation is anoxic treatment. In this case, the books were placed in laminated aluminum bags filled with nitrogen and an oxygen inhibitor. The treatment's efficiency was confirmed through X-ray images of the books. This inexpensive and easily adaptable disinfestation method, was successful and constitutes 167 CONVOCATORIA 2024 CALL FOR PAPERS 2024 Academic report Intervención ISSN 2448-5934 ENERO-JUNIO 2024 JANUARY-JUNE 2024 a noteworthy way to stop the deterioration caused by xylophagous infestation, both of choral books and other objects of artistic and historical value. KEYWORDS choir books, anoxia, disinfestation, inert atmosphere OJS Índice / Contents INTRODUCTION horal books (also known as choir books or cantoral books, libros de coro o cantorales in Spanish) are those which contain the chants for the divine office and the Mass. Usually, they include both the text and the musical notation of the chants. Their large size is one of their distinguishing features since the singers had to read them from a distance, from a lectern placed in the center of the space intended for the choir spaces in the churches (Sierra, 2014, p. 43). Often the production of choral books coincided with the construction of monasteries, where the monks, assisted by scribes and illuminators, oversaw their creation. On other occasions, new monasteries acquired their choral books from the existing collections from another one (García, 2005, p. 152; Sierra, 2014, p. 52). The dimensions and quality of the books and their origin depended on the size of the choir and their lectern, and, mostly, on the resources available to the monastery (Estrela, 2015, p. 10). In addition to the text and musical notation of the songs, choral books feature different types of illuminations, including illustrations and metallic applications: such as full-page decorations, borders, ornate capital letters, among others. These books were in use from the 15th century through the first half of the 20th century (with production declining from the 17th century onwards), and although their content was always the same (Catholic Church chants), the style of their illuminations evolved over the time (Sierra, 2014, p. 48). Due to the elements that comprise these books, such as text, music, and illuminations, they are of significance across disciplines from history to musicology. For their production, a wide variety of materials were used, such as tanned leather, wood, nails, and brooches for the covers, as well as hemp and linen threads for the seams. Initially, parchment was used for writing, later replaced by paper. Inks were used for writing, pigments of mineral and vegetable origin for the illustrations, binders for the pigments and inks, and metallic applications for the illuminations (Crespo, 2014, p. 91). The presence of this diversity of heterogeneous material and the interactions between them can C Anoxic Treatment for the Eradication of Insects in the Choral Books of the Museo del Convento de los Descalzos… CONVOCATORIA 2024 CALL FOR PAPERS 2024 168 Academic report Intervención ISSN 2448-5934 ENERO-JUNIO 2024 JANUARY-JUNE 2024 OJS Índice / Contents become a starting point for the deterioration of choral books (Bueno-Vargas, 2006, p. 44; Crespo, 2014, p. 105). Additionally, since the books would be used permanently in Catholic rituals, their constant manipulation contributed to their wear and tear, apart from the fact that in many cases they underwent modifications over time; including addition of pages, scrapings, corrections, and patches (Bueno-Vargas, 2006, pp. 5154; Crespo, 2014, p. 105; Sierra, 2014, p. 55). Finally, environmental conditions, such as lighting, temperature and relative humidity (RH) fluctuations, and biological factors (fungi and insects) also contribuited to their deterioration (Bueno-Vargas, 2006, pp. 4445; Crespo, 2014, p. 97). The Museo del Convento de los Descalzos (at Rimac district, Lima, Peru) has a collection of nearly 14,000 ancient books, among which 30 choral books dating from the 17th to 19th centuries stand out. The smallest one measures 53 cm x 46.7 cm, while the largest one measures 63 cm x 45.5 cm. They are crafted from parchment and paper, with wooden covers bound in leather, and are sewn with hemp fiber. Written in Gothic script and square musical notation, they feature black ink on staves with lines in red ink. In some of them, the capitulars are decorated while others also present polychrome floral designs and lacework (Figure 1). The books are located in the Choral Book Room in the San Francisco Cloister. This is a non-air-conditioned room, with limited lighting and ventilation; nonetheless, it is subject to the moderate temperatures and high humidity typical of Lima. Although the access to this room is restricted to avoid excessive exposure of the books to light and other factors that could accelerate their deterioration, these environmental conditions provide a climate conducive to the development of xylophagous insects. One of the main threats to the collection are the termites Cryptotermes brevis. They feed primarily on cellulose, particularly wood, and produce a characteristic excrement, in the form of very small spheres, which helps to evidence their presence. These termites, unlike their subterranean counterparts, do not need to be in contact with moist soil. As long as the environmental humid (...truncated)