Can I place documents between 2 pieces of glass?

[TooOld]

Ok heres my question, I have many documents and pieces of paper from TR period and I want to display them, funds are short so I cant get them pro framed, can I cut two pieces of glass and place the document inbetween, I would then make a top and bottom type of clamp out of wood to slide the two panes in, this way you can view both sides of the document. They would not be in sunlight and would be in display cabinets.

Will glass damage them ?

Hope you can help
Regards
Tooold

[rbminis]

I would suggest making two sided scans and framing them instead. Store your real documents in a safe and dark place.
Ralph.

[amiklic1]

I agree with rbminis, scan the document, print on a nice laser color printer and that's it.

Original documents and photos are too valuable to keep them on the daylight for the long time.
Keep in mind that UV rays are not just hitting the items which are on the direct sunlight, but can be rebounded from various non-absorbent materials and thus come deeply in the space.
Anyway, keeping the paper items displayed for the prolonged time will destroy the item itself, more or less.

[TooOld]

Thankyou for the replies, I appreciate the advice. So even if I use UV rated glass its still a no-no? I wasnt sure if glass itself caused any issues if it is touching the document like a sandwich.

[Michael Fay]

Thankyou for the replies, I appreciate the advice. So even if I use UV rated glass its still a no-no? I wasnt sure if glass itself caused any issues if it is touching the document like a sandwich.

No matter what ,even with archival safe museum glass, I believe you never want panes of glass actually touching your item.

Glass is not a 100 percent impermeable barrier and pollutants,etc do transfer through, such as smoke, glass cleaner .etc.

there are a lot of older threads in here on glass frames: check the search button.

[TooOld]

Thanks for the help, much appreciated

[ErichS]

Another reason not to have a paper item touching glass is moisture which damage the item.

[tylis2]

Another reason not to have a paper item touching glass is moisture which damage the item.

Not saying you should or shouldn't do it, but whenever archival pieces are mounted in a frame with glass, the paper is always framed with an acid free mat. The thickness of the mat will keep the item from touching the glass.

Steve T

[TooOld]

Not saying you should or shouldn't do it, but whenever archival pieces are mounted in a frame with glass, the paper is always framed with an acid free mat. The thickness of the mat will keep the item from touching the glass.

Steve T

This has got me thinking, So I could place the document between the acid free mat, the mat would be a kind border, then place a piece of glass over back and front, this would allow both the viewing of the document from both sides also with a quick release slotted piece of wood on top and bottom I could rotate my collection so items are not sitting out all the time, the items could be left in my file for safe storage when they are not on display.

[amiklic1]

I like the idea, really.

So, don't forget to post some photos of the solution, when you make it ;-)...

[Mark C. Yerger]

Just me 2 cents and have an insane amount of things framed, some I've had for 30 years

Museum mounted the item isn't attached to anything

matte does not touch glass, and it isn't dry mounted

There is UV glass but I don't use it as never have direct sunlight on anything

Plus I can see it rather than have it stored somewhere in a mylar sleeve

[amiklic1]

Just me 2 cents and have an insane amount of things framed, some I've had for 30 years

Museum mounted the item isn't attached to anything

matte does not touch glass, and it isn't dry mounted

There is UV glass but I don't use it as never have direct sunlight on anything

Plus I can see it rather than have it stored somewhere in a mylar sleeve

Just thinking, how do you fix the item if it's not attached to anything. For paper items it seems pretty impossible to me. A nice photo would help, of course.

[TooOld]

Just me 2 cents and have an insane amount of things framed, some I've had for 30 years

Museum mounted the item isn't attached to anything

matte does not touch glass, and it isn't dry mounted

There is UV glass but I don't use it as never have direct sunlight on anything

Plus I can see it rather than have it stored somewhere in a mylar sleeve

I am curious as well how you mount your stuff. I know there are some very knowledgeable people here thats why I asked the question as OP on this thread. I have read many times on this site and others that say they leave their documents in their sleeves and sealed away in folders. BUT I also read alot that items shouldnt be left stored away even in the acid free sleeves as moisture in the docs can cause them to fall apart and they say docs should be removed and exposed to the atmosphere to try to stop the damp rot.

So its gets confusing, on one hand dont display items and on the other hand do display them. I have some docs framed many years ago by a pro and it cost alot of money, they are not in direct sunlight and they havent faded and they have been out for 15 years, now days money is very very tight and I want to do it myself, so thats why I figured I would follow both lots of advice, I will display all items in cycles, that way they are not stored away without fresh air and also they will get an airing.

So if you explain how you mount yours that would be a great help, thats why I am thinking about the quick release clamp system that has the doc sandwiched between two matt pieces and this is then sandwiched between two bits of glass with a slotted frame surround as I have mentioned below, the frames would be in a display cabinet not hung on a wall. thankyou so much for all the replies, I am learning alot.

[RelicHunter]

I think the one thing that gets lost a lot in discussions of preservation, is that nothing will last forever. Yes there are things we can and should do to protect them as long as possible, but the slow march of time eventually destroys everything. Whether on display, or tucked away in storage never seeing the light of day, bad things can happen either way. It's just the nature of historical artifacts.

My opinion is, protect the item, but also enjoy it. I don't have the time or money to run a vault in an archive, so why treat my collection like its part of one? If I can't display it, then I don't want it.

[SSamir]

I know sunlight is bad for documents and cloth insignia, but what about room light? Is that bad too if I have my cloth insignias or documents displayed in front of room light?

Samir