The Library of Congress Conservation Division is pleased to announce a lecture given by Rachel Wetzel, Photograph Conservator, Conservation Center for Art and Historic Artifacts, on “Conservation Science and the Daguerreotype: Preserving Our Earliest Photographic Treasures” Thursday, September 1, from 10:00 – 11:00 am, Library of Congress James Madison Memorial Building, Pickford Theater (Third Floor), 101 Independence Ave SE. The lecture is part of the Library’s Topics in Preservation Series.

Conservation Science and the Daguerreotype: Preserving Our Earliest Photographic Treasures

Tracing the history of the daguerreotype from Paris to Philadelphia, this lecture explores the various improvements made to Daguerre’s process and the ways in which it was used, examines the importance of Robert Cornelius as an American photographer, explains the history and ethics of conservation treatment, and expands upon why conservation science-based research is necessary for the long-term preservation of our earliest national photographic treasures.

Speaker: Rachel K Wetzel, Photograph Conservator, Conservation Center for Art and Historic Artifacts