My old map of California as an island finally fell apart after 30 years

I had this old reproduction from the 1970s showing California as an island, one of those classic cartography mistakes. It was hanging in my basement for decades, but last week the humidity finally got to it and the paper just crumbled in the frame. I tried to salvage it with some archival tape but it's basically a lost cause now. Made me think about how maps used to be so wrong and we just accepted it. You ever try to restore a map that's too far gone, or do you just let it die?

2 comments

2 Comments

walker.rowan1mo ago

Ah man, that really stinks. I had a similar thing happen with an old road map of the Pacific Northwest that got water damage in a flood, the ink just bled into this blue blob. Sometimes you just gotta let it go, especially if the paper's too brittle or the image is already gone. Frame a photo of it instead, that way you still have the memory without the crumbling mess.

wesley_grant331mo ago

You know what, that framing idea is actually kind of genius. My grandma had this old quilt that fell apart completely, like the fabric just turned to dust in some spots. She cut out the best square that still had color and had it framed. Now it hangs in her hallway and it's way more interesting than looking at a whole worn out blanket. The same thing works for documents and photos. If the actual paper is wrecked, saving just the good part or a picture of it is the way to go. It keeps the memory without all the sadness of watching it fall apart more. What pieces from your past have you had to let go of in a similar way?