Mounting help

[Richard Lagroon]

I need some mounting suggestions. I customer brought in three Ringling Brothers circus programs that she wants framed. One of these is about 30+ years old and is not in great shape. The other two are newer and in mint condition. They are fairly heavy (almost 1 lb. each) and approx. 1/8" thick. She wants to see the entire book, so she does not want a mat covering any part of the front. She's not crazy about using clear corner mounts, either. Can anyone give me other ideas for mounting these books in a shadowbox type frame so that they are fully visible and mounted securely enough to retain the weight over time. The method used must meet conservation standards as these are very special to her.

 

[Jim Miller]

Search the Grumble archives for lots of information on this topic. Try searches for phrases like "book mount", or "clear film mounting".

The clear film book mount, made with Melinex 516, is the best way to do exactly what you described...completely non-invasive, good overall support, reversible, and shows the entire book.

 

[preservator]

If you take pieces of Oriental tissue, which are
slightly narrower than the book but a few inches
longer, these can be interleaved, between the pages and their ends can be fed through openings
in the back mat, above and below the book. The
ends of the tissue sheets can be secured to the
back side of the back mat, to provide gentle, steady support for the book. A strap of polyethylene, can be placed over the cover and
through the openings, so it, too, can be secured
to the back of the back mat and it will keep the
front cover in place.


Hugh

 

[Richard Lagroon]

Jim, Thanks for the lead. Two follow-up questions. Do you recommend mounting the encapsulated package in the frame by putting the outside edges of the "envelope" between two mat boards? If not, how else do you mount it. Also, I've read that encapsulation may increase the aging process. If this is a known problem, why is encapsulating the best way to go?

 

[Jim Miller]

Originally posted by Richard Lagroon:
... Do you recommend mounting the encapsulated package in the frame by putting the outside edges of the "envelope" between two mat boards? ...

For an encapsulation mount, yes. But we're not talking about that mount for a book. The book mount is made as Hugh described it. A vertical piece goes under the cover, with its ends passed through slots in the board. A horizontal piece gets wrapped around th whole book & holds the cover.