If you have always wanted to work in archives and have finally gotten your chance, the next thing will be how to be excellent at your new job. That means thinking about what you need to bring with you when coming to work.
We have made this easier. In this post, we have put together some essentials we think you would need to be efficient as a modern archivist.
Things You Need As a Budding Archivist
A Quality Desktop Scanner
A scanner de bureau or desktop scanner will give written documents new life as their electronic counterparts are stored on a network that can be accessed from anywhere.
Desktop scanners take the document you want to archive and change it. It will completely change the number of possibilities that are available when it comes to using that document.
If you want to use the original document from an archive for something, you may not even be able to take it off the premises. And if you are, there are a ton of regulations that you will need to follow to ensure that no harm comes to that document until it is safely back where you got it from.
Alternatively, if you use a desktop scanner to create an electronic copy, that document can be used in various ways that the original document cannot, all without having to worry about properly taking care of it.
Several Pairs of Gloves
If you have ever seen someone who deals in old or fragile things, you might have seen them wear gloves when they were moving things around or retrieving them for display purposes. Because you will be dealing with a lot of paper documents and other assorted items, and a lot of those things, if not all, would suffer if they were damaged.
You need to bring several pairs of gloves to wear when handling them, as the oils on your skin could unknowingly cause damage. Remember also, when you go to wash your gloves, make sure you use an approved detergent.
Many detergents have harsh chemicals that can also affect the things in the archive. So, it is better not to take that risk.
An Affinity for the Dark
Because some documents can be particularly sensitive, especially to light, it is not good to have a lot of light sources in the archive environment. If you cannot adjust to working with lower light levels on a regular basis, you might want to consider another line of work.
However, if you are the type of person who thrives in a dimmer environment, this might be the perfect position for you. You will need sharp eyes to analyze the documents that the archive holds.
Final Note
Archivists are the unsung heroes of historical and academic preservation. As such, it is important that an archivist gets everything they need before they start making their own contributions to this vital process.
Keep this article in mind so that when you become an archivist, you will not show up clueless and unprepared. An archivist has many places in the world, and each will have its own specifications that you will need to remember. However, as long as you have these essentials, you will be ready to get started.
