So, what exactly is preservation? And is it the same as restoration and conservation? Despite how often the terms preservation, conservation, and restoration and used interchangeably, they are different.

• Preservation actions deter future damage to materials.
• Conservation actions deal with current damage.
• Restoration actions attempt to return an item to its original state through invisible repairs.

Preservation actions include things like rehousing, building enclosures, and environmental monitoring. Conservation actions include paper mending and repairs, and stabilizing items. Restoration of items can include actions like book rebinding and restoring color and paint in artwork.

At UNT, our Preservation Unit mostly does preservation actions, creating enclosures and safe spaces for our collection materials. Occasionally, we will do some basic conservation like paper mending, but the golden rule we always follow when working directly on collection materials is IT MUST BE REVERSIBLE.