The main collection of posters are stored chronologically, to keep similar materials together. Keeping like with like makes for better storage conditions.Here is the 1921 drawer- stone lithographs of a silent danish Hamlet sitting atop a beautifully rendered Buster Keaton.
The prints look astonishingly good. Apparently the paper is disintegrating with age, but the inks (loaded with lead and a bunch of things that wouldn't fly these days) keep on shining. The colours still pop.
The Margaret Herrick Library has a policy of not restoring these materials- they archive them in optimal conditions, but are wary of manipulating the originals. Any touching up is bound to age in a wholly different way to the rest of the work, and ultimately ends up a mess.
These lovely objects are artefacts, and are allowed to remain true to form.
