A New Kind of Salvage: The Emergency Container of Cologne

ABSTRACT The Cologne Emergency Association of Archives and Libraries’ roll on/ off container represents an innovative approach to salvaging collections affected by disasters. Designed in close cooperation with the Cologne Fire Brigade, the container provides both workstations for documentation, cleaning and preparing for freezing along with storage for most required materials and equipment. This allows for on-site salvage and processing of objects to begin almost immediately in all weathers upon the delivery of the container. This article details the project’s background and conception, a description of the container’s features and its intended use. The final section covers the container’s first salvage operation in the town of Stolberg, Germany in the wake the terrible floods in summer 2021 and the future developments planned.