In my experience - of medical and industrial museums - the principal
reasons for museums not seeking registration are to do with public access
and ownership. Some museums regard public admission as inconvenient because
they do not have sufficient staff and resources to manage access, either as
a result of cutbacks or because it has never been regarded as a core
activity. An example would be the British Dental Association Museum in
London which recently lost its curator and now only allows access to members
of the association. I suspect they may lose or choose to withdraw from MGC
registration as a result. In other cases the subject matter may be regarded
as inappropriate. For example we do not allow general access to our museums
of pathology and anatomy, which are designed as academic teaching resources.
Most UK specimen-based medical collections are unregistered for this reason.
Perhaps a more common reason for shying away from registration is that the
standards exclude privately owned collections, and many individuals or
organisations are unwilling to surrender ownership of what may be a
financially valuable asset. Most preserved railways (of which there are
hundreds in the UK) are unregistered and yet look after enormously important
collections. The considerable amount of trading of locomotives and stock
between organisations which would probably be regarded with horror in the
mainstream museum world.
Simon Chaplin
Senior Curator, Royal College of Surgeons of England
Hunterian Museum
Odontological Museum
Wellcome Museum of Pathology
Wellcome Museum of Anatomy
T. +44 (0)171 973 2188
F. +44 (0)171 405 4438
E. [log in to unmask]
W. http://www.rcseng.ac.uk/public/museums/museums.htm
-----Original Message-----
From: Leonard Will [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: 27 September 1999 13:04
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [MUSEUM-L] Why are standards not used?
Why are standards not used? What problems do museums have in adopting
standards, guidelines and codes of practice? In the UK, why do some
museums decide not to apply to the Museums and Galleries Commission to
become Registered Museums? Would a registration scheme for museums be
welcomed in other countries, and if not why not?
I am giving a talk on these matters to the Specialist Group for
Documentation of the German Museums Association early in October. While
I have information on many standards and guidelines that exist, and
plenty of statements that complying with them is A Good Thing, it would
be useful to have some case study evidence (or anecdotal comments) on
why museums decide not to adopt some standards.
The perspective will be a broad one, and as well as documentation can
include standards for management, collection development, access,
display, interpretation, conservation, storage, and anything else.
How important are the following aspects?
* The cost of changing: museums that would like to adopt some
standards but cannot afford the new equipment or premises that
would be needed. Do these museums have a long-term plan to move
gradually as funds become available?
* Compatibility with existing practice in a museum or with other
associated museums: changing would mean that old and new systems
or procedures would co-exist for a long time, and the complexity
of this is not worthwhile.
* Disagreement with the content of standards: museums that think
that some standard recommendations are not as good as their
current practice. Have such museums tried to influence the
standard-making processes? With what success?
* Lack of knowledge of standards that exist, or difficulty in
deciding which standard to adopt, where there is more than one
covering the same field. Has there been a positive decision to
defer a decision until one emerges as widely accepted?
* Inability to find currently available products, such as software
packages, which implement the standards a museum wishes to
adopt.
* Legal or administrative constraints. Do these prevent the
adoption of standards, or would the adoption of standards impose
restrictions on a museum's freedom to act as it wishes (e.g. by
having an active buying and selling policy for items in its
collections).
I am posting this to the MUSEUM-L mailing list and to the
uk.culture.museums newsgroup. If you have any ideas or comments of
general interest, I would welcome open discussion in these places. If
you prefer to contact me privately, please feel free to do so. I shall
summarise such comments for the list, suppressing identification
information if you wish me to preserve confidentiality.
Leonard Will
--
Willpower Information (Partners: Dr Leonard D Will, Sheena E Will)
Information Management Consultants Tel: +44 (0)20 8372 0092
27 Calshot Way, Enfield, Middlesex EN2 7BQ, UK. Fax: +44 (0)20 8372 0094
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