2 SUPPLIES

The following supplies have been used for the mounts described in this article:

• Acid-free matboard—4-ply (Alpha or Bainbridge brand name).
• Cotton knit fabric—surgical cotton tubing used for making plaster casts, knit from prescoured cotton yarn.
• Linen fabric—(natural linen, not dyed) woven fabric prewashed in hot water and neutral detergent, i.e. Sodium Lauryl Sulfate.
• Double-sided tape—3M brand 950, a modified acrylic transfer adhesive, was used to attach the fabric onto the matboard. The tape was used on the back of the matboard only, where it did not come into contact with the artifact. The 950 tape has good strength to hold the fabric on the matboard.
• Tygon tubing—microbore Tygon tubing (.030mm exterior diameter) was used for securing the artifacts to the mounts. This was preferred over fishline as it is more pliable and ties very easily. Intravenous Tygon tubing is used in the medical profession. Since this product was used, there has been some question about its stability. Polyethylene or polypropylene tubing is a more stable substitute.
• Polyester fibrefill—non-chemically treated Fortrel fibres are purchased from a manufacturer of outdoor clothing and sleeping bags. Fibrefill adds bulk without weight.
• Ethafoam—made by Dow Chemical, is an expanded polyethylene used commercially as a shock absorption material. It is a tough, durable material which is resistant to chemical attack. It also has good resistance to water and dust due to its closed cellular structure. It is extremely easy to cut with a sharp knife. These properties make it an ideal material for mountmaking.
• Velcro—when using Velcro the soft fuzzy side must be used with the mount or object and the rough hook side places on the wall or in the case. The reason for this is that if the soft side is placed next to the artifact there is less chance of the Velcro damaging the original artifact. Should the hook side of the velcro come in contact with the artifact the hooks may cause abrasion. Care must be taken when mounting to ensure that the hooked Velcro only comes in contact with the matching fuzzy Velcro.