[BCMA] Seeking advice on how to mount and display a 25 cent bill.

[Moderated BCMA subscriber listserv.]

Hello Melissa,

Mounting materials to allow for both the front and back to be visible is certainly tricky.  There are some creative solutions outlined in detail in the British Museum’s publication Conservation Mounting for Prints and Drawings (2004) by Joanna Kosek.  If you can’t get access to this or if you have any trouble understanding the instructions, feel free to message me directly.

In terms of preservation mounting, more generally, the use of high quality materials and reversible adhesives is paramount.  I always use museum quality (acid-free, lignin-free) mount board and hinge the artifacts in place with Japanese paper hinges applied with either methyl cellulose (lower bond strength but easier to keep on hand) or wheat starch paste (higher bond strength but must been made fresh before use).  If you are interested in using wheat starch paste but not sure how to prepare it, you can get more information on that here: https://www.canada.ca/en/conservation-institute/services/conservation-preservation-publications/canadian-conservation-institute-notes/wheat-starch-paste.html

Mounting to allow for the verso to be visible generally means that the backing needs to be transparent.  In this case, be sure you are using inert materials such as glass (float glass is fine but no coatings present) or pure Plexiglass.  Glass has greater long-term stability but is obviously more fragile.  Plexi is appropriate for shorter-term use and is a bit more durable.  Hinging to these materials is possible with wheat starch paste in my experience however there are other techniques – again if you are interested in learning more about these, feel free to message me directly.

I hope this is helpful, Melissa.

Kind regards,
Lauren
______________________________________________________________________________________________
Lauren Buttle       Archival Conservator  |  Archives

ROYAL BC MUSEUM
Traditional Territory of the Lekwungen (Songhees and Xwsepsum Nations)
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From: bcma-bounces at lists.vifa.ca [mailto:bcma-bounces at lists.vifa.ca] On Behalf Of Moderated BCMA subscriber listserv.
Sent: Thursday, July 25, 2019 3:00 PM
To: bcma at lists.vifa.ca
Subject: [BCMA] Seeking advice on how to mount and display a 25 cent bill.

Good Afternoon,
The Nakusp & District Museum has a 25 cent bill, from 1900, in our collection; however, we do not have experience mounting currency.   Does your museum have experience display a similar artifact? We are seeking advice regarding proper preservation and mounting techniques for this item.  We are also wondering if there is a creative way to display a bill so that both sides are visible? I have attached a photo of the front of the bill for reference.
Thank you in advance for your assistance,

Melissa

Melissa Koftinoff
Curator/Manager,
Nakusp and District Museum
nakuspmuseum at gmail.com<mailto:nakuspmuseum at gmail.com>
1-250-265-0015
Open: Tues-Sat, 10 am - 4 pm
[https://docs.google.com/uc?export=download&id=0B0aCq8wiNtw1TzBkZTNVZ3FuT3c&revid=0B0aCq8wiNtw1QjdLblFZa0RHaVVTSFdkM3RUTVFYT2JqZmVVPQ]
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