>I know it's just a cartoon, but did anyone see Lisa Simpson on the
>Simpsons this week? She handled objects in a case that was unlocked by
>the curator of the Springfield Historical Society while he was heating
>food in a microwave  - which he brought into the gallery - Lisa then
>discovered a hidden original document that told the truth about the
>founder of the town.

Not just in cartoons! Has anyone caught the Bob Vila historic homes
documentaries on TLC? My husband and I gasp and cringe at least 8 or 9 times
during each episode. We've seen Bob wrestle with bits of Shaker furniture,
run his hands over period pieces, pick up decorative arts in a number of
houses (and the camera pans to the curator or interpreter who tries not to
look completely aghast!), but the BEST was this last episode. Bob et al.
were doing their docu-thing at a California adobe. The curator of the
historic site (National Trust) led him over to an adobe wall that dated from
1833. While she was explaining the nature of adobe and why the roofs of the
older-style buildings extended beyond the wall to protect it from the
elements, the Vila crew's deft (or daffy) camera work panned to Bob flicking
away bits of the wall and caught his comment about: "Hey - you can even make
out the outline of some of the original bricks!" Egad! You moron! Why not
just take a TROWEL to it??

It's amazing what people think can and cannot be touched. Aside from the
t.v. examples, I've got another one from a visit to the War Eagles Museum in
Santa Theresa, New Mexico. My husband and I were walking through the
exhibits, and were up on a cat-walk that allows visitors to look down at all
these wonderful WWII and Korean War aircraft when we spied a family near a
two-seater MIG. The museum had placed a metal staircase beside the plane -
the idea being that the public could go up the staircase and look into the
cockpit and see JUST HOW SMALL these fighters were. The kids (some young,
some teenagers) were GETTING IN AND OUT OF THE PLANE AND WERE STANDING ON
THE WINGS! The parents (I'm sorry - they should KNOW better) were
encouraging the behavior. My husband and I went back into the book shop and
my husband started, "Um - I think you should know - there are people
standing on the wings of - " the interpreter was out the door into the
exhibit hall before he could finish.

It's amazing what people don't know about museums and collections and
handling. I've also heard people plainly state: "If it isn't in a case or
roped off, it's MEANT to be touched."

Has anyone else come across THIS?

Amy Marshall