Girlfriend's Treasures

[UK Cousin]

Maybe this is an example of what you have..

[KEVIN23]

Hi, where can I find a girl like that. On a more serious note, they make custom frames for just about everything frameable, from cheap and convenient, to very elaborate. Just make sure you follow MAP's suggestions to make sure no damage occurs to it over time.

[MAP]

This is a good primer about UV Glass. Important to note that even when framed with this type of glass, you still need to minimize the direct and indirect exposure to light.

I would not be surprised if the cost of framing exceeds the value of the flag.

How to Protect Museum Quality Artwork with UV Blocking Glass : Abrisa Technologies

[Thaddeus]

Thanks for the information guys! I think that I made a history nerd out of her.....

T

[DrCMH]

I had a flag framed in this manner . The frame did cost quite a bit more than the flag but I am happy with the results. I chose to skip the matting and just go with spacers to keep the glass away from the cloth. UV museum glass and archival materials, the framer offered to iron the flag to flatten it out but I like how the folds look and did not want to risk any damage.



Well done on sparking your girlfriend's further interest in her family and the history relating to her grandfather's flags.

Best,

CMH

[Thaddeus]

CMH,
I love your display! Where did you get it done?

T

[DrCMH]

CMH,
I love your display! Where did you get it done?

T

Thank you, I had it done locally by a fellow named Mohsen. He has done this type of thing for years. I have had several things framed with archival materials by him and I've never been disappointed.

Best,

CMH

[Stu W]

I'm going to make a couple comments. The first, spend time here and over on Wehrmacht Awards forum running searches for framing. It's a topic that's been well covered and you will learn a lot about materials etc.

My second comment runs against the opinion of most other collectors but it's one I've come to over time. I've had more flags over the years than I can remember and if I'd framed them all to archival standards I'd be broke. I suggest that something less than archival is fine for average flags. If you have something really worth preserving then spend the money but if not don't put a 40 dollar saddle on a 10 dollar horse.

I canvassed this topic at length with an experienced framer and when I asked about the time frames involved he told me that full archival framing will preserve the flag for hundreds of years provided it's kept away from extremely bright light and free of moisture. Conversely, a far less expensive non archival framing job will keep the flag in good shape (again assuming low light and dry) for about 200 years.

Were his numbers correct? I really don't know but the point is that the difference between 200 and any other hundred won't have any effect upon me or my heirs nor are the flags scarce enough to warrant spending 500-1000 USD on framing.

If you come across something special and/or have deep pockets then the sky's the limit but many a nice flag display has been put together at a Michael's arts and craft store framing section. If you watch you can get sales of as high as 60% too which makes the whole experience far more palatable.

Regards,
Stu

[Geoff Ward]

Stu beat me to it!! Michael's craft stores is always having sales and most of the time the will give you the 60% off price if you just ask.Choosing a simple frame is much less expensive and does not distract from the flag.Here is one I had done at Michael's a while back.In the second photo is a close up of the lower left corner of the flag.There is a tiny drawing of a samurai on horseback charging with a lance. a neat addition that I did not see until I got it home! Watch out these flags tend to multiply!!

[Nick Komiya]

These flags really shouldn't be labelled army nor navy, as they were never used by the military, but were civilian decoration flags. Most such civilian patriotic flags do not even follow the proportional specs for army standards and navy flags, so they can't even be called flags, but more of a patriotic decoration. True naval flags came in 6 sizes depending on the size of the vessel it flew from, but even the smallest was 1 meter wide. They are often with the center orb smaller than regulation to allow more writing space when used for yosegaki flags.