Paper Enclosures

Paper enclosures such as Archival File Folders or Acid-Free Envelopes as well as Pamphlet Binders are an excellent choice for long term document storage, because they are opaque and block light. They are also porous and help prevent the accumulation of moisture and gases.

The down-side to using them is that they make viewing more difficult since you must remove the item from the enclosure. Sometimes, handling can cause harmful fingerprinting and other damage, so we recommend using paper enclosures when items don’t require frequent viewing and wearing protective gloves while handling especially sensitive materials.

Select only non-acidic paper enclosures or use archival materials for custom enclosures for creating your own. Use buffered storage enclosures for cellulose-nitrate and early safety-film negatives, brittle prints or newspapers, and prints on brittle acidic mounts. Use non-buffered enclosures for color images, black and white prints, cyanotypes, or albumen prints. Please read about benefits and disadvantages of Buffered vs. Unbuffered materials before selecting.