Of the over 30 years I have been in framing, it amazes me how framers treat, mount and frame art and artifacts for people who patronize them. On a weekly basis, it's not unusual for someone to contact me through email or phone informing me of a recently framed item which shows signs of deterioration.
Collecting historical autographs has intrigued me for many years given the fact one can own a real piece of history. When first coming into this collecting field many years ago, my first thought was "Aren't these documents locked away in a museum or archives?" It's easy to assume that. But, many important letters and documents are in private collections.
Remember that famous botched "restoration" job of the Spanish fresco painting of Jesus Christ by an 80 year old woman? If not, ten years ago, the artist, Cecilia Jimenez, volunteered to restore the painting. Her "restoration" was so poorly done, the term "ecce monkey" was sometimes used to describe the artwork.
