Combat Acetate on a Map

[NKOMO]

I just received a map in the mail that I won off of Ebay. It appears to be a captured map used by the US Rangers during the invasion of Grenada. It is of the southern part of the island and that is where most of the action for the Rangers took place. That being said, whoever used it covered it on both sides with combat acetate or laminating sheets. I undersatnd why they did this (tropical island = RAIN), but over the last 23 years, the map has begun to turn yellow from the laminating sheets. Is there anything I can do to stop the deteriation of the map? It is a black and white map, so the yellowing can be seen quite readily. I am thinking of framing it the way it is. It is the only map I have ever seen come back from that operation and I know it is worth the time and money trying to restore it. Any help is greatly appreciated!!!
Arch

[regular122]

Arch,

I would recommend you do nothing to it but frame it perhaps. The reason is, the acetate is part of the history. I have old maps that I acetated in the mid 1980s and they may lose their adhesive a bit on the map, but if you were to try to remove the acetate in any way, it would spell disaster. That said, maybe framing it and putting it flat would help preserve it.

Even so, as most leaders acetate their maps, I would suspect any map from 1980 on, that was used in combat, that wasn't acetated. It's just what the guys do. And most of the time, it is so we can write on them with alcohol pens--not just the weather. I am convinced that US leaders could not lead troops without the Germans because they make all the alcohol pens.

But getting a map in acetate and in some cases with some of these pen markings I think would be more desirable. It's part of the history of the piece. Steve

[NKOMO]

Steve,
Thanks for the advice. I kind of figured I should leave it alone. Just as you mentioned, the edges of the laminating shewts are beginning to peel back. I had heard somewhere that acetate destroys maps over time and was trying to find a way to preserve the map.
Framing is going to be hard to do. The map is 27" wide and 41" long! That may seem big for a combat map, but there were only two maps made for Grenada, north and south. This map has history and fits in nicely with my other Grenada items! Thanks again!
Arch