Comments on: Magna Carta

By: Bryan

Bryan — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 04:33:58 +0000

I thought so. The paper of the time was unlikely to have lasted without very special handling.

By: hipparchia

hipparchia — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 04:16:43 +0000

[can’t find the link now]

the declaration, constitution, and bill of rights are all on parchment [found it at some official site, like the smithsonian, or something related].

By: Bryan

Bryan — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 16:14:26 +0000

I know that for years they were in the Secretary of State’s keeping with no effort at preservation of any kind and they were on display in the open for a long time, not even protected by glass.

They are probably parchment, as that was the procedure for the time for all official documents.

By: Michael

Michael — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 13:24:26 +0000

Heat and humidity are less of a problem than light. I confess I’m not certain what the originals of the Declaration and the Constitution are written on. If it’s parchment and not paper, a little humidity isn’t such a bad thing–and they need to be handled more. The oils on human skin actually help keep parchment supple, whereas they can be very bad for paper.

By: Bryan

Bryan — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 04:04:23 +0000

The Magna Carta is a very late addition to our archives, and was kept in the dark in a cool cellar for most of its existence, while the other documents have been stored in the heat and humidity of Washington for most of their life.

It has only been recently that we have figured out how to preserve them properly.

By: Kryten42

Kryten42 — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 03:12:06 +0000

Ahhh… so the Magna Carta was a far more respected document than the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, or the Declaration of Independence? Well, that certainly sheds light on the current, and to some degree, past Administrations willingness to ignore them. 🙂

By: Bryan

Bryan — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 18:22:19 +0000

Better materials, both the ink and what it was written on, it also wasn’t as exposed to the light as the other documents, which certainly caused a lot of their degradation.

By: Michael

Michael — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 13:06:18 +0000

What's sad is that the Magna Carta on display in the National Archives is far more legible than either the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, or the Declaration of Independence, despite being half a millennium older than any of the latter three.