Stephanie,

In my experience you exhaust EVERY internal resource and sources of
information first, before approaching anyone outside of your
intitution about an issue like this that could have legal and
liability issues. I would not only check the registrar's files but
also see if there is any other source of information - e.g. photos of
it on exhibit (that may show the label), correspondance with the
lender, or oral interviews with staff and former staff. Also, really
go over the object and look for evidence of an accession number, old
labels, or other identifying features that would make this
individually identifable. Try to clarify this as precisely as you can
so that when you have to contact someone outside of your intitution
you know what you don't know.

And perhaps it would be best to approach the other instituion first -
as they are more likely to have some record of the object on their end
- and either veryify or eliminate them in this situation before
approaching the descendant who is claiming it (you already know where
they stand on this).

Cheers!
Dave

David Harvey
Conservator
Los Angeles, California

On 3/4/07, Stephanie Rohwer <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> Hello everyone,
>
> Like Dawn, who posted on Friday, I am doing an assignment for the same
> collections management class where we were given a hypothetical situation
> that we have to decide on our best course of action.  My situation involves
> a long-term loan with no paperwork.  The lender is known and a descendant
> has attempted in the past to claim the object, who has since "gone missing"
> in recent years.  To complicate the issue further, the Board of Trustees
> believes the object is owned by another organization, who is loaning the
> object, not this descendant.  Since there is a lack of paperwork to
> accompany the loan, one can't be sure of ownership.  My approach is going to
> be to search for the descendant in order to make contact with him or her and
> determine clear title.  In general, I was wondering what would be your best
> course of action but mainly, what advice could you all offer as to how to
> deal with the Board?
>
> Thank you all for your help, in advance.  I posted here last semester with a
> question for an assignment and all of your answers were extremely helpful.
> Have a great week,
>
> Stephanie Rohwer
> student of Tufts University Museum Studies Program
>
> _________________________________________________________________
> Rates near 39yr lows!  $430K Loan for $1,399/mo - Paying Too Much? Calculate
> new payment
> http://www.lowermybills.com/lre/index.jsp?sourceid=lmb-9632-18226&moid=7581
>
> =========================================================
> Important Subscriber Information:
>
> The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).
>
> If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).
>

=========================================================
Important Subscriber Information:

The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).

If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).