Friends and family of deceased United States veterans can apply to receive a US flag to drape on a casket or display with an urn. After the ceremony, a flag is frequently wrapped according to official instructions into a triangular shape and stored. This blog post covers two ways that you could safely and respectfully store your flag.
Textile Storage Kit
We have several Textile Storage Kits and the largest option is the one that will work for the folded flag. The 04-500-C Textile Kit uses our 16-1/2″ x 20-1/2″ x 5″ high Short Top Metal Edge Box (04-520). The kit comes with one pair of Cotton Gloves, 20 feet of Unbuffered Archival Tissue, a Reusable Desiccant, and a Label Holder for the outside of the box.
Normally, when discussing proper long-term textile storage we recommend having as few folds as possible and padding those folds with tissue. This is because fabric, like paper, becomes more fragile along folded seams because folds stress the fibers. Since many people prefer to store their flag folded in the traditional triangular format that is what we will show.
Document Storage
We decided we would store the related documents inside the box with the flag. So we put each document in a polyester Side Loading Sleeve and then put them both into a buffered, acid-free Flap Envelope. Any layer of protection is good. You could simply place the documents in the box without a sleeve or envelope and they would still be protected. The extra layer protects them from each other and during handling.
A photograph of the person the flag commemorates would be a nice addition to the envelope. If you don’t want to store away an original, you could have a copy print made.
You could put the documents at the bottom of the box (under the tissue layer) so that they would stay nice and flat. The advantage to placing them on top of the final layer of tissue is that they are easier to access.
Wrapping the Flag
You can see that there is a lot of extra room in the box with the folded flag but this is the only Textile Storage Kit that will work. You could put a second flag in here if you had two. Or you could add other memorabilia. First, line the box with the tissue so that it will fold over after we wrap it.
We wrapped the flag in some of the tissue and then made tissue rolls to pad the extra space within the box. Next we fold over the sheets of tissue.
We placed the rechargeable Desiccant and Cotton Gloves on top. That way you can easily check the desiccant to see if it needs to be recharged. And the gloves are right there when you need them. As mentioned, you can also place the related documents here. Then put the lid on the box and label the outside of your box so you know what is inside without having to open it.
Storage and Presentation Method
The caretaker of this flag is a woodworker. He made a lovely custom wooden box to store and display it. While wood is a beautiful material for building storage containers (cedar chests, wood shelves, etc), it is a bad material when it comes to long-term archival storage. The detrimental parts of wood – acids and lignins – are removed during processing of archival board and papers. You definitely don’t want wood touching fabric and paper that you are trying to preserve.
Our solution was to use archival 2-ply Bright White Museum Board to line the interior of the flag box. We cut a triangular piece to lay on the bottom and three rectangular pieces to line the sides. For the clear cover, the woodworker used a piece of our UV-Filtering Acrylic to help protect it against light damage.
While we will cut the acrylic to your specifications we will only do square/rectangle cuts. If you want a different shape you would have to cut it yourself or find someone who could do it for you. Acrylic does not cut like wood and if done wrong it can easily crack. Do your research before attempting to cut it yourself.
Custom wood flag box lined with 2-ply Bright White Museum Board.
Useful framing supplies include Brillianize acrylic cleaner with microfiber cloth and an Orbit HEPA Blower.
Useful Framing Supplies
Before placing the flag into it’s updated box, we want to make sure it’s as clean as possible. Use Brillianize or another acrylic cleaner to clean both sides of the acrylic (do not use ammonia-based glass cleaners on acrylic). You can use the Orbit Blower to blow away any dust in the box. These two items are essential if you do your own framing and use acrylic glazing.
Let’s go back to the supporting documents that go with the flag. They would not fit into the triangular box without being folded. Instead of folding them, we put them in an archival envelope and labeled it. Since the envelope is going to be stored separately from the flag, we decided to use an Adhesive Back Vinyl Label Holder to label the back of the flag box.
Alternative Flag Storage
If you have flags or other similar items that you don’t want to store folded, roll storage is another option. It’s a good way to avoid folds.
You can take a standard cardboard tube and cover it with archival tissue (or even a piece of clean cotton). Then you roll the flag carefully onto the tube.
Before you put a textile away for long term storage it should be clean. If you are uncertain on how to clean it without damaging it, you can consult a conservator.
Buffered vs Unbuffered Tissue
Once rolled onto the tube you can now store it inside an archival Triangle Roll Storage Box. All of our boxes are buffered. Animal based fabrics (silk, leather, wool, etc) should not be stored touching a buffered surface which is why our Textile Storage Kits come with Unbuffered Tissue. If the fabric is cotton you don’t need to worry about the buffering.
You can add another layer of protection to the flag by wrapping it in archival tissue inside your archival box. Now you are ready to store your box in a climate controlled environment out of direct sunlight. Add an Adhesive Back Label Holder to the outside of your box so that you know what is inside without unwrapping it.
Another good tip for any archival storage project is to note somewhere with the objects that the storage materials are archival! This way the next person to inherit it will know. A #2 pencil is an archivist’s friend and great for labeling and making notes.
For more information about the US flag read the US Flag Code.
Please contact us via phone or email if you have questions about archival storage. We will do our best to help you!
