[Michael B]

Several people have mentioned how they suspend items behind mats. My main concern when doing anything like this is how to do it archivally. All of the mat boards and backing boards I use are archival and inert. I will also use archival photo mounts or polyester photo mounts, depending if selling or keeping. The polyester ones are safe, but archival better. One item that can be used for larger items is 'See-Thru Mounting Strips made by Lineco. These are designed to hold any size item and can be cut to size. The come in packages of 60 and each one is 4 inches long. The front is thick mylar of 1 1/4 inches. The back has an acid free strip with acid free adhesive. The back is 7/8 of an inch. 3/4" is visible on the front with a 1/8" deep space to slip the item behind the mylar. When you slip the item into the space there is a 1/2" strip of the mylar visible on the front. If your item has a large margin that you would mat out then this strip would be invisible. If the margins are much smaller then this would be visible, though you could trim the mylar from the top to reduce the overhang. You can also shorten them if you wish. Use three of these on an item, sides and bottom and it wouldn't move even if dropped. See my scans below. The line on the back scan shows the release strip covering the adhesive. If someone would like a sample drop me a pm and I can drop one in an envelope. No, I have no connection to the company or any economic incentive to promote them. I believe in helping people learn how to treat their items so they last.