>The company claims them to be >made of 100 percent pure cellulose, bleach and >acid-free and to have passed the PAT test. They are >meant for photos. >I am thinking of using these for my letters, because I >can see through them enough to identify a letter >without having to touch it, because they breathe more >than plastic/Mylar/polypropylene options and because >they are cheap, besides having the above features >listed by the company. >HOWEVER, a company representative said she does not >believe they are meant for permanent storage of paper. If the claims about the envelopes are true, I don't see why you couldn't use the envelopes for storing paper. But I'm not a conservator, so maybe I'm barking up the wrong tree. At first glance, the biggest concern I'd have is that the pergamin envelopes might not be very sturdy, and wouldn't withstand handling any more than the original letters would. Of course, any handling is going to be hard on your originals, no matter how you house them. So I think Dean is right in suggesting that you copy the letters onto acid free paper (if they can withstand that), store the originals between sheets of acid free paper, and just not use the originals at all. Good luck! Carole Prietto Daughters of Charity, West Central Province St. Louis A posting from the Archives & Archivists LISTSERV List sponsored by the Society of American Archivists, www.archivists.org. For the terms of participation, please refer to http://www.archivists.org/listservs/arch_listserv_terms.asp. To subscribe or unsubscribe, send e-mail to [log in to unmask] In body of message: SUB ARCHIVES firstname lastname *or*: UNSUB ARCHIVES To post a message, send e-mail to [log in to unmask] Or to do *anything* (and enjoy doing it!), use the web interface at http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/archives.html Problems? Send e-mail to Robert F Schmidt <[log in to unmask]>