Rescuing tsunami-damaged photographs in Japan

Abstract

The Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami on 11 March 2011 caused tremendous damage to photographic materials and memorial objects owned by people located in the area. It was an unprecedented disaster over a vast area of Tohoku. Creating an orderly recovery programme for the privately owned materials, such as family photographs, seemed impossible at first. Soon after the earthquake, however, many volunteers staying at the evacuation shelters spontaneously started to wash photographs and albums. This shorter notice is a personal review of how the disaster recovery took place in Ofunato, Iwate prefecture, Japan. It identifies typical damage to the photographs, treatment methods used, the impact of broader issues during the initial recovery period, and how other rescue projects were carried out. © 2013 Icon, The Institute of Conservation.