How Romualdo Locatelli Prints Travel to Your Door

Framed and unframed prints do not ship the same way, and the difference matters more than most listings admit. Here is what arrives flat, what arrives rolled, and why.

Auvrique Editorial · Fine Art Editions

The short answer

Framed Locatelli prints ship flat, packed in a rigid board sandwich so the glazing and frame take the impact. Unframed paper prints and canvas editions ship rolled in a sturdy tube, which is the standard method for anything larger than roughly A3. Rolled prints flatten fully within about 48 hours under light weight.

Flat shipping for framed work

A framed print cannot roll. The frame is rigid, the glazing is rigid, and forcing either into a tube guarantees damage. So framed editions travel flat, sandwiched between rigid boards and boxed with corner protection. The board absorbs shocks, the corners take the knocks, and the print surface never touches the outer packaging. This is the method used for pieces like the Columns in Vvedenskoye framed poster framed poster editions and it is the only sensible one.

The honest caveat is that flat shipping costs more and can take a day or two longer than a tube. Carriers treat large flat parcels more roughly than they admit, which is why the rigid sandwich exists. If a framed print arrives with any transit damage at all, the refund policy covers it shipping and damage policy. Do not accept a cracked corner or a chipped frame lip. Photograph it on arrival and report it the same day.

Why unframed prints ship rolled

Anything without a frame ships rolled, and that includes most unframed paper prints and every canvas edition. Rolling protects the surface far better than folding ever could. A crease is permanent. A curl is not. A print that arrives rolled in a tube will relax flat on its own within a couple of days, or faster if you lay it under a stack of books overnight. Canvas behaves the same way, and once it is stretched or mounted the curl disappears entirely.

Rolled shipping also keeps costs down, which matters if you are buying several pieces at once. A tube weighs less, costs less to post, and survives rough handling better than a flat parcel of the same size. The trade-off is patience. You will spend an evening flattening the print before framing it, and if you would rather skip that step entirely, a ready-framed piece or a stretched canvas like the Still Life with Violin canvas edition canvas edition arrives ready to hang.

If you are still deciding between formats, the size guide for small living rooms best sizes for a small living room covers how each one behaves on the wall, and the buying guide for Locatelli's work where to buy Locatelli prints online covers where the editions sit in the market.

What to expect on arrival

Framed prints arrive flat in a rigid board sandwich with protected corners
Unframed paper prints and canvases arrive rolled in a crush-resistant tube
A rolled print relaxes flat within 24 to 48 hours under light weight
Report any transit damage on the day of delivery with photographs

Handling a rolled print safely

Open the tube from the end, never by squeezing the middle. Pull the print out gently and let it unroll on a clean, dry surface. Do not force it flat in the first minutes; the paper has memory and will fight you. Lay it print side up, weight the corners with books, and leave it overnight. By morning it will sit flat enough to frame without argument.

One warning worth taking seriously. Never iron a print or a canvas to remove curl. Heat can shift the inks and gloss, and the damage is not reversible. Patience does the job that heat would ruin. If the print will be framed behind glass, minor residual curl vanishes once the frame's backing board presses it flat, so there is rarely anything to fix at all. Delivery timelines for each format are covered in the production and delivery guide how long delivery takes.

A crease is permanent. A curl is not. That single distinction decides how every print should travel.

Print type	Ships	Packaging
Framed print	Flat	Rigid board sandwich, boxed, corner protection
Unframed paper print	Rolled	Crush-resistant tube
Canvas print	Rolled	Tube, relaxes on stretching or mounting

Shipping format by print type

Key takeaways

Framed Locatelli prints ship flat because a frame cannot roll without breaking.
Unframed paper prints and canvases ship rolled in a tube, which protects the surface best.
A rolled print flattens naturally within 24 to 48 hours under a light weight.
Never iron a print to remove curl, and report transit damage on delivery day.

Related questions

Will my Locatelli print arrive rolled or flat if I order it framed?

Flat. Framing makes rolling impossible, so framed editions travel in a rigid flat pack with corner protection. Only unframed paper prints and canvas editions arrive rolled. If you want to skip the flattening step altogether, choose a framed format from the start.

Is rolled shipping a sign of a cheap print?

No. Rolling is the standard method for unframed prints of any price because it protects the surface better than a flat parcel without rigid backing. Museums and print studios have shipped works in tubes for decades. The format says nothing about the print's quality.

What should I do if my print arrives damaged?

Photograph the packaging and the damage on the day of delivery, before disposing of anything. Report it to the seller immediately. Reputable sellers replace or refund transit damage without argument, but most policies have a short reporting window, so the same day is the safe bet.

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