Paper is known to degrade principally by acid hydrolysis and by oxidation. A non-destructive method for detecting oxidation by means of sensitised photographis film is explained. The theory by which the image is produced the so called russell effect is explained, with a brief of its use. Preliminary testing on paper treated in various ways is described. The primary disadvantage is that there is as yet no way of making the method quantitative. Therefore every time the technique is used it is necessary to include a standard sample. Also development time can change the intensity of the image. The technique is however extremely useful as a non-destructive test for checking when oxidation is occuring. Photographs, photographs.