Movie Poster Condition Grading: Mint to Poor Explained

The grading scale

A "+" or "−" refines a grade (VF+, F−). Conservation work is noted separately: a poster can be described as "Very fine on linen".

Defects that lower the grade

• Fold separation — the paper splits along folds, usually where folds cross.
• Tears and paper loss — worse inside the image than in the margins.
• Pin holes and tape — common on locandine and fotobuste; old tape leaves stains.
• Fading — uneven colour from sunlight, often on one side.
• Staining and foxing — water marks, brown spots from damp.
• Trimming — margins cut down, which removes original paper and often the printer's line.
• Writing and stamps — normal on locandine; more significant on large posters.

How to grade a poster yourself

1. Lay it flat in daylight on a clean table; never unfold a brittle poster in a hurry — if the paper cracks at the folds, stop and ask a conservator.
2. Look at the image first, then the margins: damage inside the image matters more than the same damage at the edge.
3. Follow every fold to its ends and check each place where two folds cross, where splits start.
4. Turn it over. The back shows old tape, repairs, paper added behind losses and any backing.
5. Use a raking light — a torch held low across the surface — to show creases, retouching and surface loss; a UV lamp often makes later retouching stand out.
6. Measure it against the format; a sheet well under size may have been trimmed.
7. Write the defects down before choosing a grade, then pick the grade that the list supports.

Italian condition terms