New chapter for collection

By Andrew Humphries

When some books in a library date back to the early 1500s, it’s obviously important that they are looked after properly.

Books of that vintage require housing in a specially controlled environment, ensuring that they can still be viewed for many years to come.

With that in mind, August 18 proved to be an important date for Dalton McCaughey Library staff, as they welcomed the opening of a purpose-built facility in the library’s basement for its rare books collection.

The official opening, and an exhibition of the collection, was marked by library staff, Ormond College members, other guests, and representatives from the library’s founding organisations, the Uniting Church in Australia and the Society of Jesus in Australia.

The exhibition, ‘The Christian Imagination: Persisting Through Time and Space’, showcased highlights from the rare books collection, while tours of the new facility provided a behind-the-scenes look at how the library is caring for the collection.

The purpose-designed space will safeguard the library’s most significant and fragile books, consisting of about 2100 volumes ranging from 1500 to beyond 1800.

The collection includes subjects such as theology, church doctrine, church history and philosophy, and also has a liberal arts orientation, including subjects such as geography, the natural sciences and the arts.

Featuring finely controlled climate conditions, specialised storage and enhanced security, the rare books facility ensures that the materials will remain protected, conserved and accessible for generations ahead.

Executive Officer of equipping Leadership for Mission, Rev Duncan Macleod, told those at the opening of a conversation he had overheard which illustrated the importance of preserving the library’s theological collection.

“Someone serving in the café next door to the library asked one of our young theologians a question: ‘what happens when people come up with brilliant ideas?’,” Duncan said.

“I said that’s why we have a theological library.

“We actually write down our ideas and pass them on, and, of course, we want to make sure that those books that we write in are not just for one person to read, but for a whole community.

“We have centuries of philosophical, societal and spiritual development here in this space, so we have made an attempt for the sake of future generations to ensure long-term preservation of these fragile books.”

Representing the Australian Jesuits, Fr Brendan Byrne said it was wonderful to see the library, with which he had enjoyed a long association, ensuring the wellbeing of its rare books collection.

“These rare books have been beautifully displayed for us this evening, and I must express my great gratitude on behalf of the Jesuits to Cindy and her staff, and to the Uniting Church,” Brendan said.

Library Manager Cindy Derrenbacker said the exhibition theme of ‘The Christian imagination persisting through time and place’, was a nod to imagination, citing “Plato, Aquinas and others who identified the imagination as part of the soul”.

“What is the Christian imagination? It is, as 14th century mystic Meister Eckhart has written, to grasp God in all things, to acknowledge God is present in the whole of creation, that even material can become channels or sources of God’s grace.

“Objects, places and people can be revelations of grace.

“This exhibition focuses on the imagination, highlighting images, stories, heroes and places drawn from our collection.”

Anyone interested in viewing the rare books or taking a tour of the library is invited to phone 03 9340 8888 or email library@dml.vic.edu.au

Project required detailed planning

A project as substantial as the one involving the creation of the rare books facility within the Dalton McCaughey Library requires plenty of planning.

Library Manager Cindy Derrenbacker says numerous meetings were held with the project team, which sometimes included an external architect.

“Library staff calculated the number of rare books, taking into consideration their wide-ranging sizes and the amount of compact shelving needed to house the collection,” she says.

“The staff consulted with Special Collections at the University of Melbourne to determine the best location for the facility and the proper temperature and humidity controls.

“The sprinkler system was removed in the area of the rare books facility and an alternative safeguard for fire was found. Lighting was also improved throughout the basement.”

Cindy says many books and journals had to be shifted in the basement stacks to make room for the purpose-built facility.

“The rare book materials were shifted to the main floor of the library for safe-keeping during the construction phase and then re-homed in the new facility once complete,” she says.

“The staff were assisted by a Preservation Officer trained at the Grimwade Centre for Cultural Materials Conservation. She was a tremendous help in ensuring best practices in the moving of the rare books and creating documentation for the staff and patrons when handling such materials.

“The rare books are shelved in two sequences (one for larger materials and one for smaller materials).

“Given the specialised space, some of the larger books, especially those that are in need of repair, are shelved lengthwise to ensure better support and less strain on the bindings. Over time, more fragile materials will be placed in individually created phase boxes for better preservation.”

Cindy says having a dedicated facility ensures that the materials are better cared for in the long term.

“The grand opening of the facility was intended to highlight some of the library’s rare books and to draw connections between students’ current theological study and materials from the past,” she says.

“Moving forward, we hope that students and faculty will use these rare books for classroom teaching and research purposes.

“One of our staff members has digitised several of our rare books which have been used in classes related to church history and the New Testament.

“Ultimately, the idea is to both preserve our stakeholder’s rare books as well as make them accessible to the public. In today’s digital world, there are many who appreciate that which is material.”