this post was submitted on 25 May 2024
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has paper gotten significantly worse or something? books are one of the few things that seem to have a lifespan well beyond what capitalists and consumers would consider their utility
It really depends on the paper. Like you can get "archival" paper that has low lignen levels and won't yellow and deteriorate as fast. At the other end you have like newsprint and cheap paperbacks (the pulp in pulp fiction refers to the low quality of the paper in the books) and they really don't last. In general though, I think most of the old texts we have as books are written on parchment, which is leather. I do think there are ways to preserve paper, but it probably involves periodic maintenance and replacement and specific conditions.
Yeah only the modern paper that advertises itself as archival can last as long as a normal sheet of paper could a few hundred years ago. Also the parchment thing. And papyrus.