The artifacts and documents from the concentration camp at Majdanek constitute the exceptional testimony of history and tragic fate of thousands of people of various nationalities. Gathered for over 60 years, they form a valuable collection of movable relics, which requires specialist conservation conditioned upon their peculiar lot.

The collection includes about 300 historical exhibits and over 25 thousand archives directly connected with the camp’s functioning. It consists mainly of the objects found in the area of the camp, including 280 thousand children’s and adults’ shoes, nearly 2800 items of camp clothing, the so-called stripes, 1800 items of civilian clothing and 1530 metal number badges. What forms an especially valuable historical document is 78 camp boards, 240 metal bowls with the inscription "Kgl Waffen SS Lublin" and 968 Cyclone B cans of different sizes.

The collection of the archives contains mainly camp office documents, i.e. 18 thousand sheets of paper, including personal files of the prisoners and staff members, documents written out by the command, like for example notifications of death and release, prisoner transport lists and documents concerning the state of employment in the camp, warehouse and money files, and one of the most precious artifacts – The Book of the Dead dated 1942. Moreover, the collection includes 1870 secret letters written by Polish prisoners and 1200 private documents of different kind.

The present condition of the relics, especially the camp files, is to a large extent determined by what happened to them. A big part of the documentation was destroyed while the camp was being evacuated or while the Germans were covering their tracks when leaving the camp. For example, they burnt down the camp office records. The process of destroying the objects lasted for several months after the camp had been closed down. Then they were collected from all over the area and placed in rooms allotted for the newly established museum.

Camp relics in the State Museum at Majdanek require special care, protection and preservation. A lot of camp relics were found in rubbish dumps so they were dirty and badly damaged, facing total destruction as a result of the mouldering process and the fact they were made of acid paper. Their condition made it impossible for them to be exhibited. Some documents were partly burnt and the paper was very thin and brittle. Some others were damaged by rust and mold. The covers of some books were damaged and consequently the pages inside were not protected properly. The sheets showed the traces of damp, mold and insects. The documents in the collection of Majdanek are characterized by these qualities. The camp records are particularly difficult and risky. They are covered with a great deal of mold and fungi which are difficult to diagnose as they have created new bacterial and fungal cultures. Microbiological and chemical examinations are often indispensable to recognize the problem and choose the appropriate solution. The examinations also aim at identifying the materials and assessing the degree of their degradation. Besides, they reveal how the object was produced.

Conservation-restoration of the most valuable collections of the State Museum at Majdanek is a continuous process aiming at keeping the relics in good condition. The low quality materials used to produce the artifacts and documents are gradually deteriorating, which requires repeated conservator’s intervention.