Displaying Cigarette Cards

[TS Allen]

Hello all,

I bought a huge set of a couple of hundred WWI cigarette cards a few weeks ago. They were manufactured post-war by a German company and I bought the whole group for $15, which I considered quite a steal.

Wanting to mount them, I initially set up my favorites in a small frame that was glass on both sides and kept pressure on the contents with plastic edgings. This worked well for a small frame, and I set up all of the "portraits" this way.

The problem is, I have hundreds of these, and I need to use larger frames to display them reasonably. When I try to use the larger double-sided glass pressure frames, the cigarette cards go all over the place. Sticky tack won't work.

I don't care about keeping the reverses showing, but I would like them to be removable if absolutely necessary. The images have both horizontal and vertical orientations, so a matte job won't work. The cards are 6.25 x 4.75 cm, or 2 5/8 by 1 3/4 in.

Any thoughts on how I can successful display these beautiful pieces?

Thanks,

~TS

[Tom Y]

First and foremost, TAKE THEM OUT OF THE CASE!

Moisture in the air will make the paper stick to the glass and you'll never be able to remove them without severe damage.

Archival Methods, or Atlantic Protective Pouches, to name two, have a large selection of products that might serve the purpose. if you want to display them on a wall, maybe the adhesive backed label holders would work. The rest could be kept in a binder of baseball card sized sleeves.

[peter monahan]

First and foremost, TAKE THEM OUT OF THE CASE!

Moisture in the air will make the paper stick to the glass and you'll never be able to remove them without severe damage.

Archival Methods, or Atlantic Protective Pouches, to name two, have a large selection of products that might serve the purpose. if you want to display them on a wall, maybe the adhesive backed label holders would work. The rest could be kept in a binder of baseball card sized sleeves.

He's right about the glass and sticking!

Would stamp collector's 'hinges' work? Several per card? Not meant for heavier objects like cards but designed not to leave marks when removed, I think.

[TS Allen]

Hello all,

I ended up using Dollar Tree 8 1/2 x 11 frames with black backing papers. I put the cigarette cards on 4x4, 16 to a case, with non-acidic photographic corner holders (suggested on another forum) in the upper left and lower right corners. They turned out really nice.

With the holders on, is it safe to keep them under glass or should I take the glass out and leave them exposed on the frames? I prefer the glass because it keeps people from handling them. The images aren't being pushed up against the glass because of the plastic.

Thanks,

~TS

[Tom Y]

As long as they aren't touching the glass you're safe.

[TS Allen]

Hey Tom,

I'm worried they may be coming in slight contact with it. They aren't pressured against it, though.

~TS

[Tom Y]

Hey Tom,

I'm worried they may be coming in slight contact with it. They aren't pressured against it, though.

~TS

I might suggest using piece of mat board cut as a very narrow mat.

Or, alternatively, you could use a mat with a cutout for each card but it's a lot more work.

Edited April 10, 2010 by Tom Y

[Scott]

For what it's worth, here are some British cig cards from the early 1990s I bought already framed. Like Tom mentioned, a mat space was cut for each card then "sandwiched" with the cards between glass so you can view the back of the card if desired.

Edited April 11, 2010 by Scott

[pjac]

I bought ready made frames for some cards I have. Not cheap, but they display well and do the job. Found them through an internet search for'cigarette card frames', but I can't remember where I got them. However, example link enclosed to give you an idea of what's available. http://www.cigarettecards.co.uk/frames.htm

Patrick