Greetings --

I believe that most of the pros and cons of carpeting in galleries have been
addressed to date.  However, I would like to add a couple of comments.

Re: pest problems.

Wool carpeting will of course be prone to attack by protein feeding insects
such as carpet beetles and clothes moths.  However, because carpeting tends
to "hold" stuff (even with good vacuuming and sanitation)  that comes off of
the visitor's shoes and garments, it becomes even more delicious to the
little critters.  There if a potential for this to happen with synthetic
carpeting.

However, pest problems can be heightened by carpeting due to the type of
cleaning and maintenance conducted.  I has a client a number of years ago
that had a serious  outbreak of booklice (psocoptera also known as psocids)
in their photographic galleries.  After much investigation (looking into
general conditions, RH and temperature, matting and framing protocols, etc.)
I happened to look at my clients maintenance log.  Interestingly, the psocid
outbreak occurred right after they steam cleaned the carpeting in the
gallery.

Re: pollutants given off by the carpeting.

Wool is a sulfur-bearing material and it can cause damage to silver and other
materials.  However, one also needs to be careful about the type of adhesive
that is used to affix the carpet to the flooring.  Many of the adhesives also
off-gas solvents and other nasty materials.

I realize that this string is already a couple of weeks old, but I hope that
this will be of and help.

Wendy Claire Jessup
President and Conservator
Wendy Jessup and Associates, Inc.
210 Little Falls Street, Suite 203
Falls Church, VA 22046
(703) 532-0788
(703) 532-1661 fax