This is a very important topic, and the answer is not always straightforward. The proper materials to use for cases depends on many factors: what type of artifacts will be exhibited in the cases, how long the artifacts will be in the cases, how tight the cases are, what kind of budget you are working with, what are the curators exhibition requirements, etc. It is very important to get it right, especially if you are doing a major, permanent installation, or renovating cases for the first time in many years (and the last time for many years) as we are doing with some of our exhibits at Shelburne. As a conservator, I have seen many instances where the exhibit cases have caused serious damage to artifacts over the long term due to high visible and UV light levels and high heat/ low RH caused by lights inside cases. I have also seen damage to paper and textiles as a result of acid off-gassing from wood products. Although many wood products like MDO are now formaldehyde-free, they still exude acids for many years. In sealed cases, these acids can be very damaging. The good news is that there are new alternative materials available that are inert and safe, relatively easy to work with, and affordable. You just have to search out these materials and suppliers and have an exhibit staff or firm that is willing to break out of the "wood case" mode and use the better materials. A first step is to contact a conservator in your area. Although not all conservators are experts on museum exhibit materials, most can refer you to a conservator who is. Check out the American Institute for Conservation web site at http://aic.stanford.edu . They have an on-line directory of conservators by specialty, so that you could find one to work with in your area. There is a lot of information available on safe materials to use for building museum cases, and much of it is available on the web in conservation literature. However, it is a lot to wade through, and there are few simple and direct answers. Pleasing everyone involved in the exhibit process, curators, conservators, exhibit designers, exhibit builders is a real challenge and requires compromises on everyone's part. And there is always the rush to open the new exhibit! Research and proper advice during the early stages of the project are essential. That is where a conservator who has previously researched and selected safe exhibit materials could be very helpful. A great site to start with is the Canadian Conservation Institute at http://www.cci-iic.gc.ca . Go to Conservation Information and search for DISPLAY CASES. That will bring up a very good overview article called "The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly" by Jean Tetreault. CCI also publishes a Technical Bulletin 21 on "Coatings for Display and Storage in Museums." In our own country, the National Park Service has published an excellent CD on "Exhibit Conservation Guidelines." Go to http://www.nps.gov/hfc/conservation/exhibit/ex=guide.htm for ordering information. It costs about $50 and is well worth the price. It contains not only advice on case materials, but designs, lighting information, supply sources, etc. You can spend days researching exhibit materials and techniques on this CD, and the NPS conservators who created this resource are very knowledgeable on this subject. The Conservation OnLine web site at http://palimpsest.stanford.edu also has lots of information. Search the site for DISPLAY CASES. (This site is down for a few days, but should be up again soon.) An excellent book of exhibit materials has just been published entitled "Pollutants in the Museum Environment" by Pamela Hatchfield (published by Archetype Publications). You should be able to find it through the Conservation Online web site. Finally, if one plans far enough ahead, there is financial assistance available to partially fund safe exhibit cases. The IMLS Conservation Project Support grants will fund safe storage and exhibit planning and construction (up to $50,000, applications due mid-October). The NEH Division of Preservation and Access awards even larger grants to fund environmental improvements for storage and exhibition (applications due the beginning of July). If you can convince these organizations that their funding is essential to enable your institution to design and build really safe exhibit cases to both preserve artifacts and improve the public's access to the objects, everyone wins. The task of selecting the right materials for exhibit cases may seem daunting, and it is not always easy to convince those in authority of the importance of using safe materials, especially if they are more expensive than plywood and construction adhesive. However, from the preservation point of view, there are few decisions that a museum professional will make that can be more important for the long-term safety of the artifacts and the pleasure of future generations of museum visitors. Richard L. Kerschner Director of Preservation and Conservation Shelburne Museum PO Box 10, Route 7 Shelburne, VT 05482 802 985-3348 Ext 3361 ========================================================= Important Subscriber Information: The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes). If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).