Preservation and Care of Philatelic Materials
Subsidiary Page
5
A Short List of Items to Avoid
The primary concern of the Preservation and Care of Philatelic Materials Committee and
this website is to provide proper care for those philatelic materials that have
come into our hands. In order to preserve and conserve our philatelic treasures, we would
be wise to exclude all of the following from close proximity to our stamps, cards, and
covers:
- Ballpoint pens.
- Cellophane or plastic (Scotch) tape.
- Rubber cement.
- Paper clips and other metallic paper fasteners.
- "Magnetic Albums." These are adhesive coated pages with plastic covers. Most are
made out of PVC plastic and acidic adhesives.
- Constant contact with your hands. Human bodies give off sulphur. Fingerprints on
the gum of mint stamps or even covers is like a little time bomb slowly releasing
stain-forming subphur. Use lintless lightweight white gloves, as worn by conservators and
professionals whenever practical.
- Rubber elastic bands.
- Masking tape.
- Typewriting added to covers or photos, often on the reverse side.
- Peelable labels used on stock sheets and album pages. Some types of these adhesive
labels deteriorate over time and materials from them migrate into the album page.
Mounted stamps could be affected by those materials.
Baadke (1996 and 2000a) has given an excellent account of the important details to be
observed in
connection with the handling and storage of philatelic materials. It is, of course, well worth
the effort required for us to do our very best to assure that our collections will be
unharmed not only for our enjoyment, but also for the enjoyment of those individuals in
whose hands our materials will someday pass.
END OF SUBSIDIARY PAGE 5
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