Conservation Center for Art & Historic Artifacts

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Conservation Center for Art & Historic Artifacts

CCAHA is a nonprofit facility located in Philadelphia offering comprehensive conservation and preservation services.

We are experts in the preservation of the world's cultural heritage. The Conservation Center for Art & Historic Artifacts (CCAHA) is a nonprofit conservation facility specializing in the treatment of works on paper, photographs, and books, as well as state-of-the-art digital imaging services. Founded in 1977, CCAHA serves nonprofit cultural institutions, private individuals, and other collecting o

rganizations. CCAHA’s preservation services staff present educational programs, conduct preservation assessments, and develop emergency preparedness plans. CCAHA also offers fellowships, fundraising support, and disaster assistance.

08/26/2026

These 1841 property deeds, held by Lafayette College’s Skillman Library, document the transfer of land on College Hill that gave the school its permanent home. Their history is tied to the Marquis de Lafayette, whose 1824 tour of the U.S. reignited the spirit of 1776 across a nation approaching its 50th anniversary. Inspired by meeting the last surviving major general of the Revolution, citizens of Easton, PA, founded a college in his honor, chartered in 1826.

To preserve these records of the institution’s founding, our team surface-cleaned the fragile deeds, washed them in calcium phytate and calcium bicarbonate baths to reduce iron gall ink corrosion and acidity, and lined them with mulberry paper to mend losses and stabilize split creases. After a final round of high-res digital imaging, they were encapsulated in polyester film.

Happy 200th to Lafayette College! (And a special shout-out from our Manager of Communications, Marissa Halderman, a proud Lafayette alum! 🐆)

Follow as we continue to go behind the bench to explore the objects and stories that connect us to the nation’s complex founding.

08/25/2026

Join us September 17 for an in-person workshop at CCAHA, Workshops at the Center: Preparing Collections Materials for Digitization. This hands-on workshop will provide practical tips on safeguarding your collection before, during, and after the digitization process.

Digital Archives Specialist, Kaitlyn Pettengill, will introduce concepts of practical, hands-on preparation of physical materials to ensure safe handling and high-quality capture. You will have the opportunity to practice handling techniques with a study collection of various material types. As a bonus, the workshop will include a tour of CCAHA's conservation lab.

Learn more and register: https://ccaha.org/events/workshops-center-preparing-collections-materials-digitization

08/19/2026

Happy ! Celebrated every August 19, this day commemorates the moment in 1839 when the French government purchased the patent for the daguerreotype process and declared it a “free gift to the world,” paving the way for the widespread use of photography.

To celebrate, CCAHA staff gathered personal photos around the theme of what “sparks joy.” Take a look at a few moments, places, and everyday details that make our team smile.

What’s a photo in your camera roll that brings you joy? Share it in the comments or tag us so we can see!

08/14/2026

Working on an oversized book can be challenging. Not only can it be hard to get your arms around it, but standard equipment is too small. Here the conservator is using bar clamps instead of a traditional sewing frame to hold the book in place while sewing. Large books need sturdier materials such as these vellum tapes to support their movement. This book is part of a series of insurance maps of the city of Philadelphia, held by the Free Library.

Free Library of Philadelphia Free Library of Philadelphia Rare Book Department

08/11/2026

In preservation, the term acid migration refers to the movement of acidic substances from an acidic material to a less acidic material through direct contact or exposure to acidic vapors. Over time, acid migration can cause materials to weaken, discolor, and deteriorate.

High summer heat and humidity can accelerate the chemical reactions that contribute to this deterioration. You might see the effects of acid migration when an acidic newspaper clipping discolors the scrapbook page behind it, or when non-archival mat board causes a dark, brittle border to form around a print or photograph.

Using acid-free, lignin-free enclosures and appropriate archival barrier materials can help protect collection materials from acid migration and other forms of deterioration.

🔗 Explore this term and more in our Preservation Glossary: ccaha.org/PreservationGlossary

📸 Background image: Notebook page from the papers of economist Allan George Barnard Fisher, darkened and yellowed by acid migration from the acidic book board. An inserted note protected a section of the page, where the paper remains lighter. Courtesy of the Hocken Blog, University of Otago.

08/07/2026

Despite unprecedented challenges facing the cultural heritage sector in 2025, CCAHA continued to make an impact through resilience, innovation, and collaboration. Thanks to the support of our clients, partners, donors, and friends, we advanced conservation treatment, supported collecting organizations nationwide, and invested in the next generation of conservation and preservation professionals.

Discover the stories behind our work in CCAHA’s 2025 Year in Review: bit.ly/4xnVQoF

08/04/2026

This summer, CCAHA Paper Conservation Intern Sophie Henry helped conserve a late 19th-century poster promoting Ernest Hogan and Black Patti’s Troubadours, one of the most influential Black touring musical companies of its era. The poster, from a private collection, is being prepared for exhibition at The Morgan Library & Museum.

As one of the final steps in the treatment, Sophie inpainted areas of loss to visually reintegrate the missing printed design, helping preserve an important piece of Black performance history.

Learn more about the Morgan’s upcoming exhibition, Ragtime: Cakewalk in Pianoland, opening this November: https://www.themorgan.org/exhibitions/ragtime

The Institute of Fine Arts, NYU

07/29/2026

We’re Hiring! Join CCAHA’s Preservation Services team as our next Preservation Services Coordinator. This full-time, Philadelphia-based position supports educational programming, communications, and administrative operations for both CCAHA and the Documentary Heritage and Preservation Services for New York (DHPSNY) program. Applications received by August 5 will receive priority consideration.

Learn more and apply: https://bit.ly/4bnizc6

07/23/2026

Wishing a fond farewell to Senior Photograph Conservator Barbara Lemmen! Having recently concluded her 25-year tenure at CCAHA, we’re celebrating an extraordinary legacy of care, mentorship, and scholarship. While she has stepped away from her day-to-day work with us, Barb isn’t leaving photo conservation behind. She continues to teach and contribute her extensive knowledge and skills across the field.

Thank you, Barb, for 25+ wonderful years!

📖 Read a special Q&A with Barb, where she reflects on the experiences that defined her time at CCAHA, the people and projects that shaped her career, and what she’s looking forward to next: https://bit.ly/3TAcOBA.

📸 Barb receiving a photo history tree illustration at her CCAHA farewell party; Closeup of the unique illustration by Mark Osterman; Barb in the lab providing hands-on instruction; Barb speaking to a group about NASA lunar orbital photographs; Barb with Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation (WUDPAC) students.

University of Delaware University of Delaware Art Conservation Programs

07/14/2026

As the heat climbs this week, a trip to the beach might sound perfect — but a tideline in your collections is a different story. 🌊

In preservation, the term tideline refers to a stain that forms when a liquid gets inside an object and dries, leaving a line where the liquid stopped. Dissolved material collects along the edge, creating a stain that usually appears darker than the original object.

Flooding from summer storms, leaky pipes, and condensation from air-conditioning systems can all lead to tidelines if moisture reaches collections. Keeping indoor conditions stable, checking storage areas regularly, and addressing leaks quickly can help protect collections.

🔗 Explore this term — and more than 400 others — in CCAHA’s Preservation Glossary: ccaha.org/PreservationGlossary (link in bio).

📸 Background image: Tideline on an original 1980 draft of a handwritten constitution by the Chinese Sportswear Workers Social Association, Heung Sang Tam, Museum of Chinese in America (Museum of Chinese in America): https://bit.ly/4aTVkGf

Address

264 S 23rd Street
Philadelphia, PA
19103

Website

http://www.ccaha.org/

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