Inherent vice
Inherent vice is the tendency in physical objects to deteriorate because of the fundamental instability of the components of which they are made, as opposed to deterioration caused by external forces.[1][2] All objects have some kind of inherent vice as a result of the baseline law of entropy.
Preservation issues
The term is broadly used in archival practice to recognize the material constraints of preservation activities. For example, many kinds of paper have acid in them that makes them chemically unstable. Over time, the acid will eat away the text on the page and cause paper to turn yellow or brown and become brittle. As the acid continues to break down the cellulose fibers, the paper disintegrates.[3] In the world of philately, the adhesive on the back of stamps is both an inherent vice—any exposure to moisture will compromise their ability to be preserved—as well as the purpose for which the stamps were made.[3] In the case of film, an example of inherent vice is the innate chemical instability of cellulose acetate film, which can result in the degradation known as "vinegar syndrome" due to the distinctive vinegar odor it produces.[4]
Slowing this tendency of objects to self-destruct requires an understanding of how materials interact. This includes not just an understanding of the intrinsic qualities of the materials themselves, but also the way that they affect and are affected by the other materials that they come into contact with.[5] For example, leather and metal are two materials which are frequently used in combination with each other, but react to each other over time to cause corrosion on the metal.[3]
The presence of deteriorating agents is a problem which can be tempered by selecting archival quality materials, such as acid free paper.[5] However, frequently the objective of manufacturers is to make a process (i.e. papermaking, book binding, etc.) faster and easier; the longevity of the items they produce is not their primary concern.[2]
Legal definition
The term inherent vice is used in law as well as in library and archival science. One legal definition of inherent vice is "an exclusion found in most property insurance policies eliminating coverage for loss caused by a quality in property that causes it to damage or destroy itself."[6]
Inherent vice can be used as a justification for refusing to insure an item, as its intrinsically self-destructive nature may make it unacceptable risk to a carrier or insurer.[7]
References
- ^ Pearce-Moses, Richard (2012). A Glossary of Archival and Records Terminology, Entry for Inherent Vice. Society of American Archivists. Retrieved 18 October 2012.
- ^ a b "Session 2: Inherent vice: Materials". Preservation 101: Preservation Basics for Paper and Media Collections. Northeast Document Conservation Center. Archived from the original on 24 July 2012. Retrieved 19 October 2012.
- ^ a b c "Inherent Vice". National Postal Museum. Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved 18 October 2012.
- ^ "Session 3: Inherent vice: Film Supports". Preservation 101: Preservation Basics for Paper and Media Collections. Northeast Document Conservation Center. Archived from the original on 20 June 2011. Retrieved 19 October 2012.
- ^ a b Jill Snyder (27 November 2001). Caring for Your Art: A Guide for Artists, Collectors, Galleries, and Art Institutions. Skyhorse Publishing Inc. pp. 7–. ISBN 978-1-58115-200-5. Retrieved 18 October 2012.
- ^ International Risk Management Institute Insurance Glossary, http://www.irmi.com/online/insurance-glossary/terms/i/inherent-vice.aspx
- ^ "Inherent Vice". BusinessDictionary.com. WebFinance, Inc. Archived from the original on 18 July 2012. Retrieved 19 October 2012.
External links
- The dictionary definition of inherent vice at Wiktionary
- v
- t
- e
and issues
- Agents of deterioration
- Archival processing
- Archaeological science
- Archaeology
- Archive
- Bioarchaeology
- Calendar (archives)
- Conservation and restoration of cultural property
- Conservation and restoration of immovable cultural property
- Conservation and restoration of movable cultural property
- Conservation science (cultural property)
- Collecting
- Collection (museum)
- Collection catalog
- Collections maintenance
- Collections management
- Collections management system
- Cultural heritage
- Cultural heritage management
- Cultural property
- Cultural property documentation
- Cultural property exhibition
- Cultural property imaging
- Cultural property storage
- Cultural resources management
- Database preservation
- Deaccessioning (museum)
- Digital library
- Digital photograph restoration
- Digital preservation
- Disaster preparedness (cultural property)
- Film preservation
- Finding aid
- Fonds
- Found in collection
- Heritage asset
- Heritage science
- Inherent vice
- Intangible cultural heritage
- Integrated pest management (cultural property)
- Inventory (library and archive)
- Inventory (museum)
- Media preservation
- Midden
- Mold control and prevention (library and archive)
- Museum
- Optical media preservation
- Preservation (library and archive)
- Preservation metadata
- Preservation survey
- Provenance
- Repatriation
- Ruins
- Sustainable preservation
- Treasure
- Web archiving
and expertise
- Archivist
- Art dealer
- Art handler
- Auctioneer
- Collection manager
- Conservator-restorer
- Conservation scientist
- Conservation technician
- Curator
- Exhibition designer
- Mount maker
- Objects conservator
- Paintings conservator
- Photograph conservator
- Preservationist
- Registrar (cultural property)
- Textile conservator
and techniques
- Aging (artwork)
- Anastylosis
- Arrested decay
- Cradling (paintings)
- Cultural property radiography
- Detachment of wall paintings
- Desmet method
- Display case
- Digital repository audit method based on risk assessment
- Historic paint analysis
- Inpainting
- Kintsugi
- Leafcasting
- Lining of paintings
- Mass deacidification
- Overpainting
- Paleo-inspiration
- Paper splitting
- Reconstruction (architecture)
- Rissverklebung
- Textile stabilization
- Transfer of panel paintings
- UVC-based preservation
- VisualAudio
and restoration
of immovable
cultural property
by item type
and restoration
of movable
cultural property
by item type
- Aircraft
- Ancient Greek pottery
- Bone, horn, and antler objects
- Books, manuscripts, documents and ephemera
- Ceramic objects
- Clocks
- Copper-based objects
- Feathers
- Film
- Flags and banners
- Fur objects
- Glass objects
- Herbaria
- Human remains
- Illuminated manuscripts
- Insect specimens
- Iron and steel objects
- Ivory objects
- Judaica
- Lacquerware
- Leather objects
- Lighthouses
- Metals
- Musical instruments
- Neon objects
- New media art
- Paintings
- Painting frames
- Panel paintings
- Papyrus
- Parchment
- Performance art
- Photographs
- Photographic plates
- Plastic objects
- Rail vehicles
- Road vehicles
- Shipwreck artifacts
- Silver objects
- South Asian household shrines
- Stained glass
- Taxidermy
- Textiles
- Tibetan thangkas
- Time-based media art
- Totem poles
- Vinyl discs
- Woodblock prints
- Wooden artifacts
- Wooden furniture
cultural heritage
preservation
- Ancient music
- Applied folklore
- Dance notation
- Early music
- Endangered language
- Ethnochoreology
- Ethnomusicology
- Ethnopoetics
- Family folklore
- Folklore
- Folk art
- Folk dance
- Folk etymology
- Folk instrument
- Folk medicine
- Folk music
- Folk process
- Folk play
- Foodways
- Folklore studies
- Heritage language
- Heritage language learning
- Indigenous intellectual property
- Indigenous culture
- Indigenous language
- Language death
- Language preservation
- Language revitalization
- Living history
- Oral history preservation
- Preservation of meaning
- Primitive music
- Tradition preservation
- Traditional knowledge
projects
- Conservation issues of Pompeii and Herculaneum
- Conservation-restoration of Ecce Homo by Elías García Martínez
- Conservation-restoration of The Gross Clinic by Thomas Eakins
- Conservation-restoration of Leonardo da Vinci's The Last Supper
- Pompeian frescoes
- Conservation-restoration of the Shroud of Turin
- Conservation-restoration of the Sistine Chapel frescoes
- Conservation-restoration of the Statue of Liberty
- Conservation-restoration of the H.L. Hunley
- Conservation response to flood of Arno, Florence
- Modern and Contemporary Art Research Initiative
- Preservation Metadata: Implementation Strategies