Panelology

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Panelology or comic book collecting is a hobby that treats comic books and related items as artwork to be sought after and preserved. Though considerably more recent than the collecting of postage stamps (philately) or books (bibliophilia), it has a major following around the world today and is partially responsible for the increased interest in comics after the temporary slump experienced during the 1980s.

1 History
2 Conservation Issues
3 Notes
4 References

[edit] History

The origins of panelology as an organized hobby has its roots in the underground comics movement. Before the late 1960s virtually no specialized comic stores existed and the notion of comics as collectible art was in its infancy. In the US a few specialist shops had opened their doors by the 1960s, but were still a small market. In the UK, the only distribution channels available were ordinary news stands and mail order publications like Exchange and Mart or through zines run by the early panelologists themselves. During the 1970s major comic publishers like Marvel and DC Comics started to recognize the new movements and started publishing material that was intended for sale in specialist shops only. When Marvel tested the new specialist market with the title Dazzler the comic sold over 400,000 copies, a very respectable figure and one that astounded the company. Hereafter, comics publishers started tailoring ever increasing percentages of marketing and production solely for the sale in specialist stores. While the bulk of the revenues still came from sales through regular channels, the ability to focus more specifically on specific target groups as well as distributing comics not on a sale-or-return basis, but in limited runs according to sales predictions from the retailers themselves, over-printing and overhead costs could be drastically reduced. From the 1970s to the present day, comics publishers have been targeting more and more of their titles to collector audiences with features such as limited editions, the use of high quality paper, or inclusion of novelty items.

[edit] Conservation Issues

Comics, being a printed medium, should be stored in cool, dark places, as sunlight can bleach the pages, and heat and moisture can also damage them. Sunlight can also react with the paper, causing it to "yellow", as well as having a bleaching effect on the inks used within the comic. Some collectors advise against storing comics in cardboard boxes, or using backing boards, as these are both sources of acid which can react with the fibres of the paper of comics, eventually destroying a comic. If these products are used to store comics, these collectors advise using products marked as acid free.

PET film, polyethylene or polypropylene storage bags are popular, and allow a comic to be "bagged" in a contained environment, and have become the traditional way of storing comics. Most comic shops now sell comics already in bags, although the quality of the bag can vary; not all bags are of archival quality (meaning there is nothing in the composition of the bag which will harm the comic). Only Mylar is truly considered "archival safe" as polyethylene and polypropylene will eventually break down. It is argued these bags help to protect comics when stored in cardboard boxes, although it is also said to be inadvisable to place cardboard backing boards inside a bag with a comic book, as this may concentrate the effect of acid deterioration.

Corrugated plastic boxes can offer greater protection against acid, whilst also offering better protection against moisture damage or damage caused by vermin, and are preferred by some collectors. Original art can also be protected against direct sunlight and against acid deterioration by using an archival quality frame coupled with glass which has been treated to protect against ultraviolet rays¹.