In a message dated 8/23/00 5:04:02 PM Eastern Daylight Time,
[log in to unmask] writes:

>  Now, what is a museum to do with the parts that have been replaced from a
>  restoration project?

>  * Others might sell off some of the surplus scraps with authentication
>  certificates. ("Buy an authentic piece of the ____ and help the museum!")
>  Many people would love to have authenticated relics of a famous aircraft
>  type.

While others might disagree, I think this is perfectly legit. The old parts
aren't going to do anyone any good in storage and would take up space for
more useful items. I've seen some nice plaques or lucite paperweights with
scrap objects in them and for an avid collector or enthuiast, they make nice
gifts and conversation pieces. Plus you can auction or sell them off so that
the museum gets funds for the restoration project. (Note I mean like a museum
auction rather than something like eBay.)

For example, I have the brads that held J.R.R. Tolkien's manuscripts
together. I'm sure that no museum would care about them but since I'm a big
fan, I think they're neat so I keep them and they would have been thrown away
otherwise. (Now if a museum really really wants them, I'll donate them but
only on the condition that they be displayed. ;) To anyone else, they're a
bunch of old rusty brads. Same with scraps of metal from a famous plane or
ship. It can make people feel like they have something special and it might
encourage them to become more involved with the museum because they "own a
piece of an artifact". They can go and see "their" plane or ship or whatnot.
For kids, that can be very powerful.

>  What if a museum decided to dispose of the scraps and not offer them to the
>  public under any circumstance? Not everyone would agree with such an
>  approach.

One man's trash is another man's treasure...but I can see the point of
disposing of the scraps as to not encourage people to collect them and then
sell them off to unsuspecting people for reams of cash. I'd rather see scraps
disposed of than end up on eBay but each to his own.

deb

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