I'm not aware of any evidence (anecdotal or otherwise) of museums having objects stolen because they have put collections on-line.  I do know of a case where objects were stolen after pictures appeared in national newspapers following the official opening but that was in the days before newspapers were on-line.  Important objects tend to be well publicised by museums anyway (we want people to come and see them after all) and the public conciousness recognises museums and historic houses as places where there is potentially valuable stuff so I'm not convinced that on-line publication has any significant effect on theft rates.  

Trevor Reynolds
Collections Registrar
English Heritage, 36 Hospital Fields Road, York, YO10 4DZ
Telephone +44 (0)1904 610322


Trevor Reynolds
Collections Registrar
English Heritage, 36 Hospital Fields Road, York, YO10 4DZ
Telephone +44 (0)1904 610322



-----Original Message-----
From: Museum discussion list on behalf of Cutler, Scott
Sent: Fri 2008-06-13 18:36
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: On line photos of collections and thefts
 
Many museums are considering putting their collection's database on line,
including photos of the objects.  Having recently read older reports about
thefts in museums - "smash and dash" variety - I wondered if there has been
any evidence of these kinds of robberies (or others) in museums being
planned using online databases to target places with valuable objects?

Thanks.

Scott

Scott Cutler
Curator of Collections and Exhibits
Centennial Museum
The University of Texas at El Paso
El Paso, TX  79968-0533 (shipping zip is 79902)
phone: 915-747-6668
fax: 915-747-5411
E-mail: [log in to unmask]

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