>Can anyone cite a specific example of a "successful" antique show or
appraisal fair hosted by >a non-profit historic/preservation entity?  How
were the ethics issues resolved?  How was the >event presented to the
public?
>From evaluating items' monetary value on site to the potential for
artifacts not being 
>handled properly in front of the public, I see nothing but red flags and
mixed messages being >sent by museums being associated with such an event.
Wouldn't the public then view that site >as a place to go to have their
objects formally evaluated and get confused when they are >later turned
away?

Our museum a few years ago ran four "military antiques roadshow" events - 2
at home and 2 on the road. Three of these events were very successful, 2 at
our museum and 1 held at another museum. The 1 show that was unsuccessful
was so as a result of the sponsoring institution not advertising! What we
offered was identification and evaluation or military artifacts - NOT
financial or monetary appraisal. Our experts were from the staff of our
museum and the host the museum, and we offered identification of the
materials brought to the show along with it's relevance or importance in
material cultural history, along with tips on the care, handling and
preservation of the material.

If people insisted on a dollar value we had a list of appraisers and
auctions houses they could go to - and only a few people wanted this
information. In a couple of cases we recommended that the people contact an
appraiser in order to adequately insure the piece in question. Most of our
visitors were more interested in finding out what it was that they had, how
old was it, what was the history surrounding it etc then the actual value.
But again - we did not offer a dollar appraisal, and advertised that and
still got hundreds of people turning up with their militaria in hand. 

And in all cases - we handled all artifacts with the appropriate responsible
care and made recommendations on the handling and storage, and for those
wanting appraisal we had names and numbers to offer. We also made it clear
that firearms were not to be brought to the show, and for those who did, we
had the police on hand to ensure that the weapons were properly license and
handled. 

All in all it was clear to the public by the time they got to my table
(archival material) that they were there to find out what they had and how
it fit into history. 

Also here in Ottawa, our National Gallery was the host for the "Antiques
Roadshow" from the UK - which was enormously successful both for the gallery
and the roadshow with thousands of people lining up and some absolutely
fabulous and historically significant material being brought in. And last
year the Canadian Museum of Civilization was the local host for a Canadian
version of the Antiques roadshow - and again outside appraisers and experts
were brought in and was so successful that one of the experts (a friend)
managed 15 minutes for lunch and finally got to leave about 8-9 pm - four
hours after the doors closed to the public! Tickets were free on a first
come first serve basis via the website set up for this event (look for
Canadian Antiques Roadshow on the internet)

Carol Reid
Collections Manager, Archives
Canadian War Museum
330 Sussex Drive,
Ottawa, ON, Canada,
K1A 0M8

www.warmuseum.ca

tel: (819) 776-8661
fax: (819)776-8657
e-mail: [log in to unmask]

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