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I just inherited this large 39" Moroccan tray (weighs about 15 lbs) from my parents and want to hang it on our wall. It does not have any hardware on the back so I'm trying to figure out what I can do without glueing or attaching anything to it in fear of damaging the tray.
Any ideas? Our wall is dry wall and there is one off-centered stud where we want to hang it.
You could solder on some brass "D" rings and wire it similar to the way you would hang a picture. An experienced metal worker would be able to attach those without much of an issue.
The process should be reversible, however, it may have a negative effect on the value. I would do more research to see what the value was before making any modifications to it.
A very large plate hanger?
But I think it would be hard to find a plate hanger in the 40 inch size range. In the picture above you would need one twice the size of the one on the left.
But making one isn't that hard. Its two bent wires and some plastic padding with the bent wires connected with tension element commonly a spring but picture wire and a tensioner could be used instead.
If I were to want to display this item I would make a small "shelf" that attached to the one stud and into the drywall at its ends. This could be made out of some nice wood and stained and polished as an accent to existing decor or it could be made out of simple pine that was sanded and painted to match the wall. This small "shelf" would hold the weight of the item. A cross section of the shelf would look like this:
At two locations near the top on the left and right side you would install an L-shaped finger bracket that would help to hold the plate to the wall and keep it from rolling from side to side. The finger brackets could be fashioned from clear Plexiglas of could be a brass metal bracket covered with a piece of clear tubing to protect the plate. Since these two brackets carry no weight they can be simply be mounted to the drywall using an appropriate drywall anchor. Position the bracket such that the mounting screws are hidden behind the plate.
I envision a bracket that looks something like this but possibly with a narrower notch.
Amazing, I inherited the identical plate. Must be some interesting history behind them. Anyway I just drilled a couple small holes in it and used common frame hanging d-ring hardware. Cover the sheet metal screw heads with some appropriately colored nail polish, done.
3 (or 4, but 3 is sufficient) of this type of anchor (ignore the screw), since you need to hold in drywall with a poorly located stud (these things are typically rated 50 lbs or more each)
3 of this type of hook (an L-Hook), in a size to mate with the anchors. Pad with plastic tubing if you feel the need, or find pre-plastic-coated versions.
Mount two hooks on the wall at the 4 and 8 O'clock positions on an imaginary clock face, hooks pointing in. Mount one hook at the 12 O-clock position, hook pointing up or sideways. Insert plate, turn hook to point down (which is also in).
You do need to accurately position the holes, and you need hooks that are long enough to catch the rim of the plate when it's flat on the wall. Otherwise, go with @Dan D.'s hanger suggestion.
Thanks for all of your help! I ended up taking it to a metal sculpture artist who was able to add on a brass ring to the back.
I have a few myself..and a friend who has 7 of various sizes. She hung hers with plate hangers. She modified the ones for the largest plates. Also, If you youtube, there is a video of an artist that hangs a large copper plate with a specialized hanging device...but this would require the welded wire on the back. good luck!
