Allen,
First, its called "deaccession".  The question involves a long answer, but
basically no museum deaccessions casually.  Deaccessioning is to divorce what
accessionong is to getting married - its a lot harder to get a divorce.  The
museum must carefully research clear title to each object that it plans to
deaccession, making sure that there are no legal restrictions placed on the by
the donor, the museum has to take into account the individual state's
disposition of museum property laws, etc.  Those are just the very beginning
steps.... Most museums have a clear (and extensive) policy on the criteria
used for determining whether an object should be deaccessioned or not.  It is
the job of the trustees of the museum to make sure that the policies are
adhered to.  Lists, rationale and documentation must be prepared and presented
to the collections committees for their approval. Upon approval, an auction
house (in the case of art museums) is selected, a contract negotiated with them
including agreements on reserves, etc., the objects must be prepared for
shipment and then the sales must be tracked.  The money received,most often,
goes back into the funds for acquisition of more objects and the original donor
is credited.  Its quite a process.  This explanation really skims the surface
of the steps involved, but I hope it helps your understanding with respect to
the care taken by museum professionals in the process of deaccessioning.
Suzanne Quigley
Head Registrar
Detroit Institute of Arts
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