The Codex Atlanticus, the largest collection of drawings and writings by Renaissance master Leonardo da Vinci, has been infested with mould, according to Italian authorities.
"We need to find sponsors to come forward to help pay for analysis to establish the necessary therapy, and then do the treatment," says Monsignor Marco Navoni, a historian at the Biblioteca Ambrosiana in Milan, which houses the Codex.
Various types of mould, in colours ranging from black to red, were identified on the drawings.
The 1,120-page Codex is bound in 12 volumes and kept in a temperature- and humidity-controlled vault.
Navoni says conservation measures would be very expensive and there are no funds to do the work. Restoration would involve drying the volumes, cleaning the pages and removing the spores of mould.
Four expert restorers from Florence have travelled to Milan to carry out what has been termed a "minimum emergency restoration" to limit the damage. The restorers have done the work for free.
The Codex contains designs and writings of the Renaissance master from 1478 to 1519 with topics ranging from flying machines to weapons to botany.
Mould first discovered in 2006
Italy's conservation institute, Opificio delle Pietre Dure, revealed on Friday the mould was first identified in April 2006 by an American scholar.
Opificio officials say a scientific analysis is underway to determine the extent of the mould and to figure out how the mould came to be.
"I feel a moral responsibility now that we are aware of the problem, because it belongs to the whole world, not just Italy," Opificio's deputy director, Cecilia Frosinini.
Frosinini said the mould could be result of exposure during exhibits of the Codex or when people were allowed to study it. There was also a restoration from 1968 to 1972 in which the pages were varnished with a glue to give them a shine.
The Codex was last on public exhibition in 1998 at the Biblioteca Ambrosiana. Very rarely are people allowed to examine it.
Research is now done using photocopies, and 400 pages are available for viewing on the internet.
Recent exhibits featuring models of the machines and other contraptions imagined by da Vinci have been hugely popular.
With files from the Associated PressRelated
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