The term “archive” has been derived from the Greek word “archeion” in which the word

“arch” refers to a magisterial residence, the public office where Government records are
kept. Archives are an accumulation of historical records or the physical space they
are located. They are the documentary by-product of human activity retained for
long-term. Archives are created by individuals and organizations as they go about
their business and therefore provide a direct window on past events. They come
in a wide range of formats including written, photographic, moving, image, sound,
digital and analogue.

These archival records are the product of everyday activity and have cultural and
historical significance. Researchers use them both for their administrative value as
well as for purposes other than those for which they were created. They are
generally unique or unpublished unlike books or magazines which have multiple
copies and are held both by individual and private institutions around the world.

The Oxford English dictionary defines ‘’archives’’ as a place where public records
or other historical documents are kept and public records other other historical
documents so preserved. In the eighteenth century, however, ‘’archives’’ were
defined ‘’as a place where ancient records, charters or evidences are kept.’’ In
1770 Samuel Johnson defined archives as ‘’the place where records of ancient
writings are kept.’’ And in the 1990’s Charles Richardson defined archives as a
place where public records were kept. In fact it was only in the twentieth century
that archives were defined both as the place where these records were kept and
the records themselves. However since ‘’archives’’ signifies two distinct things-
one the records and the other the building where the records are preserved-
there has been a suggestion that let ‘’archives’’ denote the records only and
‘’archive’’ be used to signify the building itself.

Archives have several attributes according to Syamalendu Sengupta and these

include- authenticity, impartiality, uniqueness and organic link among the
documents.

Authenticity- the record is what it claims to be i.e. it is created at the time

documented, and by the person that the document claims to be created by. 
Impartiality or unself-consciousness- J.H Hodgson thinks that this is the most vital
characteristic of archives because they ‘’are unslef-conscious by products of
human activity, they have the objective formlessness of raw-material compared
with the subjective roundedness of literacy artefacts like books, whether printed
or manuscripts.’’

Uniqueness- An archive qua archive is a unique document. It reflects a particular

event, and a particular transaction or a particular step in the transaction. The
same event or transaction does not repeat itself and therefore the documents
which reflect them cannot be repeated.

Organic Link among the documents of an archival series- This implies that archives
unfold before us, step by step the entire process of events which happened in the
remote or recent past.

As archives, public and private are attracting more and more attention as the face
of their file is changing, it’s definition is getting tuned to their changing physical
characteristics and management. But their four attributes remain the same.

According to Syamalendu Sengupta, the types of archives include-

1. Manuscripts or printed textual material, including public records

2. Printed material

3. Sound archives

4. Cartographic archives

5. Paintings, drawings and prints

6. Photographs and

7. Motion picture, film and video-tape

However it is important to look at the types of archives in order to have a more

comprehensive understanding of archives.
Importance of Archives

Archives are building blocks for understanding history. Their primary importance
is that they are useful for scholarly, administrative and personal research.
Archives identify, appraise, preserve and make available documentary materials
of long-term value essential to the organization or public. They also ensure
accountability of the government by preserving public records and making them
available to the citizens of a country as is legally and ethically appropriate. For
instance in India, thousands of students visit the National Archives every year to
see the section which has been opened up to the public.

They also ensure the accountability of non governmental institutions to their

shareholders, boards and other constituents. By preserving the unique or
collectible documents, they also serve as the memory institution for a culture.

Conservation

Michael Roper in a Records and Archives Management Programme (RAMP)

publication on archival presentation and conservation services (1989) writes that
restoration and repair work embraces active conservation processes that improve
the physical condition of damaged documents and restore its original state. The
restoration and repair work of archival documents never include the replacement
of missing text or any information. Repair of documents is however a part of total
conservation activities which include 1) Preservation and 2) Restoration

Preservation means designing and developing such environmental conditions

which obliterate the factors responsible for the deterioration of paper records.
The measures are adopted to stop the process of decay by controlling and
eradicating environmental and accidental factors which have contributed to the
decay of objects.
Restoration means rehabilitation of deteriorated documents to bring them back
to their original condition as far as possible. This process does not have any set
rules since it depends largely on the condition, nature and extent of damage as
well as the expertise of the restorer.

The main constituent of archival and library collection is paper which being
organic is inherently perishable. The raw material and process of manufacture
determines the permanency of paper to a large extent. There may be internal
factors- like the paper being made from mechanical wood which is intrinsically
weak as well as high lignin content in the paper which makes it prone to
oxidation, leading to decomposition as well as external factors- which include
physical factors like light, heat and moisture as well as chemical agents, biological
agents and insects that contribute to the deterioration. Watermarks can be made
to appear in light and shade degradation if depressed and raised patterns are
impressed on the screen.

Ink is the medium by which words or characters are inscribed on various writing
materials like paper, parchment, vellum etc. There are various kinds of inks like
carbonaceous inks, iron gall inks and printing inks. In order to restore the
documents, preservation of ink along with the paper is necessary. Although the
damage caused by light is irreversible, physical temperatures can be altered. For
instance by lowering the temperature, the process of ageing gets retarded.
Moreover resorting to the use of sweet and starchy material to attract
cockroaches, providing wire net to prevent the entry of rodents as well as
resorting to the use of camphor, sandalwood, clove oil citronella etc are useful in
preventing deterioration.

Also, since a vast collection of palm leave manuscripts are available i