An inventory of 15,000 objects, including taking photos, measurements, a
good physical description, creating contact, accession, and individual
object records in Past Perfect took me 4 years.  If you were doing purely
an inventory (i.e. where is everything) it could take way less time.  It's
trying to solve the issues (found in collections items, miss labeled, miss
numbered, etc...) that add time.

Beau Harris




> Gail,
> This is a very tough question to answer, because what everyone does as a
> part of their inventory can be different.
>
> While at my previous job, I spent about 1 ½ years doing the first
> inventory and reconciliation of the about 7000 objects I was responsible
> for (archival materials which numbered in the 1000s were not under my care
> and were the responsibility of the Archivist).  After that was complete
> and research was done on missing items, found in collections items and
> problematic loaned materials, I did an inventory each year with the help
> of my assistant and it took about 3-4 weeks to complete.
>
> As a part of the initial inventory, I verified location and numbers and
> made sure each item was entered into Past Perfect with unique locations so
> that we could print each shelf, cabinet, or exhibit case list from Past
> perfect.  These printed lists were used to verify locations and we hand
> recorded on a "inventory form" items that were found but not on the
> computer printout and noted items listed but not found.  After completing
> that, we reconciled in Past Perfect using the same search technique and
> then updating the inventory date/person information.  Once completed I
> would run a report of all items with a inventory date prior to our
> inventory and then recheck/update items that might have been missed or
> mistyped.  This worked very well for us with the size of the collection we
> had to deal with.  I am working on this for my current location but the
> site is more complex with a larger collection that will take longer to
> complete.  I am currently working on the collection building by building
> so that we can get the point of doing a regular inventory as soon as
> possible.
>
> Hope this helps,
>
> Tracie Evans
> Curator of Collections
> Sauder Village
> 22611 St. Rt. 2
> Archbold OH 43502
> Phone: 419/446-2541
> FAX: 419/445-5251
>
> ________________________________
> From: Museum discussion list [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On
> Behalf Of Gail Kana Anderson
> Sent: Sunday, January 24, 2010 3:50 PM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: [MUSEUM-L] Inventories
>
> Hello,
>
> If you have recently performed a complete collection inventory, I would be
> interested in how long it took and how many people were involved. Also, an
> indication of the size of the collection.
>
> I thank you in advance for your help.
>
> Gail
>
>
>
> Gail Kana Anderson
>
> Deputy Director/Curator of Collections
>
> Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art
>
> The University of Oklahoma
>
> 555 Elm Avenue
>
> Norman, Oklahoma 73019
>
> t. 405.325.1664; f. 405.325.7696
>
>
>
> GREAT NEWS! The FJJMA is growing again AND the museum is open during
> construction. Grand opening fall 2011!
> Remember, OU students ALWAYS get free admission with valid ID.
>
>
>
>
>
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