Identification of physical problems of major palm leaf manuscripts collections in Sri Lanka

A survey of the largest collection of palm-leaf manuscripts was carried out in order to find out its maintenance, flaws, problems relating to the preservation and conservation programmes in Sri Lanka. Altogether, 717 manuscripts were taken to study the collections. The main research tools were a record sheet, a self administered questionnaire followed by interviews. 10% of each collection was selected as samples of the study and a simple random sampling method was applied. Data analysis was done by using SPSS statistical analysis package. The survey of visual observation and the viva-voce interviews revealed that most flaws of the manuscripts have taken place due to lack of awareness of the condition of the storage area, lack of experts in the field and insufficient equipment to control the hazards of the environment of the stack areas of some repositories. In the management process, application of new technology is not much practiced due to non availability of the infrastructure and the trained personnel in these repositories. The significant finding of the study revealed that a workable preservation and conservation policies and establishment of conservation units and cleaning programmes are needed.  

doi: 10.4038/jula.v10i0.318

Journal of the University Librarians Association of Sri Lanka (Vol. 10) 2006 p.54-65