Ability of textile covers to protect artifacts from ultraviolet radiation

Textiles are an effective, reusable, and inexpensive means of protecting mu seum objects from ultraviolet radiation (UV), visible light, and dust. To d etermine how well fabrics screen objects from the damaging effects of ultra violet radiation, a selection of fabrics varying in fiber content, structur e, and color were characterized. The UV transmission in the 280-380 nm rang e was recorded for each fabric with a spectrophotometer equipped with an in tegrating sphere and a fluorescence filter. Results showed that the UV bloc kage varied from a low of 61%(Cerex spunbonded nylon) to a high of 99.9% (b lack nylon/spandex knit). Unbleached muslin blocked more UV than bleached m uslin. The fabric characteristics most affecting UV transmission were mass, thickness, and color.