I s'poze most of y'all were just too busy to respond to my query regarding
institutional policies on collecting by staff.  Many thanks to those few
who did respond, and I'll give the rest of you another chance.  We are
looking specifically for those institutions whose collecting scope is broad
enough that it is difficult to develop guidelines concerning purchases made
by staff members of items that might be of interest to the museum.  We're
not just talking serious collectors here; among other things, my museum is
collecting work by local craftspeople, and I need to know if I have to
bring my cats' water dishes before the collections committee!  Policies of
any kind, as well as narratives of problems incurred, would be gleefully
accepted.

On another tack entirely, I have a nomenclature problem for you.  What do
you call those things inside a rattle that make it rattle?  I need a
generic term for them, since these are closed rattles (actually insect
cocoons) and while I strongly suspect they are dried insect remains, I
can't take them apart to find out.  TIA (and LOL)
Anne
Anne T. Lane
Curatorial Assistant
Museum of York County
4621 Mount Gallant Road
Rock Hill, SC 29715
803-329-2121, ext 104
fax: 803-329-5249
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