> >> Will anyone provide their policy regarding volunteers' access, use
> and care
> >of
> >> collections or
> >>  provide thoughts on the subject?
>
A little while ago I saw a segment on tv news program about a volunteer
at the British Museum whose project involved going  through lots of bits
of ancient ceramics etc.  And she noticed a bit that seemed like the
right shape to go in a circular "thing" that was on display - something
abyssinian or whatever (I am far from an archaeologist as you all may
have guessed.)  Anyway, sure enough it was a bit that was missing from
some important relic and the museum was able to stick the fragment  in
it and complete it (more technical talk).

I reckon if they let volunteers near the Brit Museum collection and this
is what they come up with then it's probably good enough for the rest of
us.  (By the way, our museum here gets lots of value from our back of
house volunteers many of whom work with the collections.)


Maria Berry
Group Manager, Commercial
Museum Development
Museum of Victoria

phone 03 9651 6781
fax  03 9651 6378

> ----------
> From:         Tod Engine[SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
> Reply To:     Museum discussion list
> Sent:         Sunday, 9 November 1997 5:10 PM
> To:   [log in to unmask]
> Subject:      Re: access of volunteers to collections
>
>
>
> I believe that properly qualified volunteers should have access to
> collections.
>   How many staffs are big enough to have the people to sort through
> the
>  collections?  I have just volunteered to catagorize an industrial
> photograph
>  collection in a local historical society that has remained
> unprocessed for
>  years, because the staff does not have the time, and certainly
> doesn't know
>  what they are looking at if they did have the time.  Myself, as an
> industrial
>  historian know what the photos are, and have volunteered to process
> the images
>  in exchange for the opportunity to look through the previously
> unavailable
>  photo collection.  I am not going to destroy, steal, or mutilate the
> photos,
>  and I can be trusted with them, since that collection is a very
> important
>  resource in my work, and nobody knows its significance more than I.
>
> The key is to know who your volunteers are, and to make a
> determination whether
>  or not they have the knowlege, skills and trustworthiness to give
> them access.
>   Of course supervision is also neccesary. (I said supervision, not
>  micromanagement.  Nothing irks me more than the curator standing over
> my
>  shoulder watching my every move).
>
> Rick Rowlands
> Youngstown Steel Heritage Corporation
>