I’m working with the Vermont Painted Theater Curtain
project, and our current project is a distemper on muslin curtain from the
early 1930’s. The town intends to hang the curtain in the Town Hall,
where it has been stored for many years, after treatment. This happens
by coincidence to be in my town, in New Hampshire. We have a
particularly difficult Fire Marshall who is insisting that the curtain be
fireproofed. I know nothing about fire regulations, and we need some
supporting documentation to help us refute his ruling. Can anyone tell
me if there are any regulations or other rules that exempt historic textiles
from regular fire codes? I’m assuming fire regulations are on a
state level, but information about any state would be helpful. And
anyone’s experience with this situation would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Deborah
Bede
Stillwater
Textile Conservation Studio,
LLC