Page:The museum, (Jackson, Marget Talbot, 1917).djvu/210

180 the prints on the back of the case, not by making a hole through the mount but by supporting the mount upon them. This makes an ugly number of spots at the corners but cannot be avoided. The only means of alleviating the difficulty is by placing them at equal distances on all the prints. The same arguments which have been brought forward in favor of showing paintings in one row only, can be adduced in the exhibition of prints. More than one row is disturbing and difficult to see, and in a properly designed gallery is unnecessary. —A print collection differs from the other departments of a museum in that the number of specimens in even a small collection renders it impossible to exhibit all at one time. The larger the collection, therefore, the more opportunity there must be for safe storage. In the largest collections, boxes are used in which the prints can be assembled according to artists. There is a difference of opinion as to whether prints should be stored flat or standing up. The object is, in all cases, to prevent the rubbing of one print on another, but some authorities contend that while there is less pressure if the prints are standing up, there is more strain on the hinge and therefore more likelihood of the print becoming creased. The result of these contentions