Textiles

Abstract

Since prehistoric times, textiles and fabrics have played an important role in people’s lives. Most antique textiles are made from wool, silk, cotton and linen. Nitrile gloves should be worn when handling textiles. Most textiles are more fragile than they appear at first glance. Natural and artificial light sources contain visible and ultraviolet light. Both will damage a textile. All materials used for packing and storing textiles should be of archival quality. Insect infestations have the most devastating effects on textiles. Conservation of textiles must be approached carefully. Various analytical methods are available for textiles.