Museum Wax

Holly Keris <hkeris [at] cummer__org> writes

>What is the opinion on using Museum Wax to stabilize objects in
>cases?  It appears to leave a horrible greasy stain on the walls and
>I was wondering if there was any information about its use on
>objects.  Is there another product that is more recommended? We do
>plan to create mounts in the near future so this is just a temporary
>solution.

About two years ago I ordered a number of museum wax/quake hold
products purely for testing purposes. I too found the same problems
with the museum wax.

Fortunately one of the other items I ordered was called Museum Gel.
It is a completely clear, slightly sticky substance which as far as
I could tell, under normal display conditions and temperatures, when
applied to suitable objects, i.e. those with a completely stable and
smooth surface such as glazed ceramics, glass or smooth/polished
metals left no residue. It was great for temporarily helping to hold
small items, such as musket balls which sometimes had a habit of
rolling about. However, as with everything you obviously need to be
careful and very selective about the surfaces you apply it to and
it's only for short term use. In addition, I wore nitrile/latex
gloves when applying it so as not to trap any contaminants in the
gel.

It's a while since I ordered it so cannot remember exactly where I
got it from, but it would have been from either Conservation
Resources or Preservation Equipment here in the UK, however, I'm
sure if you did a bit of research you could easily find a supplier
in the USA.

Sonia Jones
Sonia Jones Conservation


                                  ***
                  Conservation DistList Instance 17:3
                   Distributed: Friday, June 20, 2003
                        Message Id: cdl-17-3-004
                                  ***