Our two cents worth, 

The Santa Fe Trail Center is a museum first and foremost but...because
we do not have the word "museum" in our official title people often have
no idea.  We had a visitor not to long ago who stopped in and said that
he passed this place several times a year on trips and finally decided
to stop and find out what we were.  He was not the first nor will he be
the last. 

This highlights the connection that people make with the word "museum."
I think that if an institution cares for and exhibits objects, educates
the public, and promotes preservation...in a traditional way or
cyberspace or any other way...then the word museum will go a long way to
alerting the public to what the organization is and what it does.  And
with all the things we have to compete with every word counts. 

For every visitor who comes in and asks us what we are ten more are
probably driving by and wondering...

Becca Hiller
Santa Fe Trail Center

-----Original Message-----
From: Museum discussion list [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On
Behalf Of Museum of Underwater Archaeology
Sent: Wednesday, February 21, 2007 11:23 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [MUSEUM-L] Museum or not?

Our organization (and we call ourselves a museum) not only doesn't
collect objects we don't exist in physical space.  Yet I believe we are
a museum in that we attempt to educate the public through the use of
material culture.  As an earlier comment suggested we believe we are
contributing to the preservation of material cultural resources through
our exhibits and support for those working in the field.  

Having said all that we have recognized the extent to which many of our
recent postings have not been exhibit oriented.  We are considering
creating an on online resource center to encompass those postings such
as our project journals and "In the Field" pages.  This would leave only
those exhibits like our CSS Alabama section under the heading of the
museum.  

To further muddy the waters we are working toward becoming what we call
a "distributed museum" wherein we assist with the research and creation
of physical exhibits at small local maritime museums that would have
both a physical and electronic component.  But here too we won't
actually own or house these exhibits which could be distributed all over
the world.  Our museum in a sense could be anywhere although never
entirely in one place.  In our view the goal of education through the
use of material culture, whether through images or through the physical
artifacts themselves is the key factor in all of this.   

The museum field is changing with the spread of high speed Internet
connections.  Many museums have created online components or exhibits
that don't exist in the real world anymore.  Are these not exhibits?  Is
there a significant difference between seeing an object behind glass and
an interactive version of an object that allows the user to rotate it,
zoom in for a closer look, or step back?  Should museums that use
virtual exhibits post a disclaimer, "this isn't really an exhibit"?

We admit we don't have definitive answers to all these questions but
while we all work that out we'll keep experimenting and moving forward.

T Kurt Knoerl
Managing Director
The Museum of Underwater Archaeology

http://www.uri.edu/mua

>  -------Original Message-------
>  From: museum chanteuse <[log in to unmask]>
>  Subject: [MUSEUM-L] Museum or not?
>  Sent: 21 Feb '07 16:28
>  
>  I participated in a discussion with other museum professionals and
Museum
>  Studies students regarding a developing institution in our community
that
>  wants to call itself a museum.
>  
>  
>  The organization will be like a museum in every respect except in one
>  significant way.  Among its ambitions, it will be open to the public,
it
>  will seek to educate through exhibitions and programs, and it will
>  maintain a stable and secure environment for materials, art and
artifacts
>  in its care.
>  
>  
>  It will display and use art and artifacts but not collect and care
for
>  their own at this time.
>  
>  
>  There are a number of non-collecting institutions that call
themselves
>  museums, but I feel strongly that part of the definition of a museum
is an
>  institution that collects and preserves art, artifacts, specimens,
etc.,
>  in the public trust for perpetuity.
>  
>  
>  The committee behind this developing organization thought the title
of
>  "museum" conveyed a stronger sense of permanence or would create a
unique
>  position in the community.  I think its a bad use of semantics.
>  
>  
>  What are the feelings about this topic among list members?
>  
>  
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