Good Morning All,
I would like to underscore John's advice (see below). Reflecting on
almost four decades of museum-work at several different kinds of
museums, the only significant thefts that I can recall were done by
"researchers" having access to the collections. These "researchers"
(some were even graduate students and some were reputable professionals)
were not adequately supervised, resulting in thefts. Yes, these
researchers' credentials were checked and their briefcases, etc. were
checked in and out....but, they still managed to steal stuff. BTW....
we did not check their pockets....and we did not examine the insides of
their clothing. Lack of staff time did not allow for us to do a
detailed inventory of the collections that they were examining prior to
and after their visit.
I hope this helps,
Wesley
Wesley S. Creel
Administrator of Programs
Pink Palace Family of Museums
Memphis, Tennessee
www.memphismuseums.org
-----Original Message-----
From: Museum discussion list [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On
Behalf Of Odell, John
Sent: Tuesday, December 19, 2006 4:28 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: acessability to collections
I would add that supervising access properly requires resources (incl.
space and staff time), which are scarce in many museums. Many buffs
might LIKE to have access to the artifacts because it is cool to hang
out with "real stuff" (and us museum staffer-types :-)), but resources
dictate that we permit access only to those who have fulfilled certain
basic criteria (e.g. they have a topic, they have engaged in primary and
secondary research, and they have demonstrated [in advance] some "need"
for physical access to the materials). These folk tend to be those who
have their professional bona fides as
researchers/scholars/professionals, etc., with a certain level of
experience. I can also see how a policy, making professional
affiliations or experience serve as a proxy for weighing each case
individually, might serve to protect the museum from charges of
favoritism.
John Odell
National Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum
-----Original Message-----
From: Museum discussion list [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On
Behalf Of Tenuth, Jeff
Sent: Tuesday, December 19, 2006 1:49 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: acessability to collections
Adele
I don't think I would limit access based on professional affiliation or
level of experience unless I suspected something was not ethical or
legal with either. As long as the cause is legitimate, I would tend to
allow access. Again, it's not necessarily about limiting access as much
as it is about controlling access to preserve the integrity of the
artifact/specimen involved. As far as compromising the idea that
cultural history is public knowledge, I'll leave that to the
theoreticians. But it does seem obvious to me that all history is
public knowledge. How could it be otherwise? Whether people take
advantage of it or not is another matter entirely. But my first
interest is the preservation of the past. Everything else is based on
that.
Jeff Tenuth
Indiana State Museum
Indianapolis, Indiana
-----Original Message-----
From: Museum discussion list [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On
Behalf Of Adele Barbato
Sent: Monday, December 18, 2006 2:23 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [MUSEUM-L] acessability to collections
Thank you, Jeff, for taking the time to address this. I have an added
question. What is the advantage, then, for institutions to limit access
based on professional affiliation or level of experience? Does this
compromise the idea that cultural history is public knowledge?
----------------------------------------
> Date: Mon, 18 Dec 2006 14:08:57 -0500
> From: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: [MUSEUM-L] acessability to collections
> To: [log in to unmask]
>
> I think you will find differing opinions, but most museum
> professionals probably would say that the greater responsibility is to
> protect the artifacts. It's not so much curatorial filtering but
> rather institutional filtering, based on written policies. Museums
> exist to collect, preserve and interpret cultural history artifacts
> and natural history specimens. In order to preserve them for current
> and future generations, limits must be placed on their usage. If no
> controls exist, then the artifacts/specimens would eventually
> deteriorate and be unavailable for any use. By controlling access,
> their life is extended for as long as possible, while still allowing
any reasonable use. It is
> not a matter of denying access, but controlling access.
>
> Jeff Tenuth
> Indiana State Museum
> Indianapolis, Indiana
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Museum discussion list [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On
> Behalf Of Adele Barbato
> Sent: Monday, December 18, 2006 11:45 AM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: [MUSEUM-L] acessability to collections
>
> Hello,
>
> I am a graduate student in museum studies at the Harvard Extension
> School and am preparing for a paper concerning ethics within museum
> policies. My topic deals with the acessability of museum collections
> to students, scholars and really anyone inquiring for the abilty to
> research through cataloges, documentation and non-displayed holdings.
> My core question is this: if the generalized definition of a museum is
> to house, record and preserve the cultural material of humanity,
> shouldn't the artifacts/art and their associated documentation be
> available to the public without curatorial filtering? Does the museum
> have a greater responsibiliy to a researcher desiring specific
> information or to the integrity of the item? This question is assuming
> that there are no restrictions put on the collections by a donor or
> bequest and that the articles requested for research do not have any
> conservation or fragility issues. While this situation loosely relates
> to the issues brought to light with Kennewick Man a couple of years
> ago, I am also referring to closed-stacks libraries and archives
> associated with museums and schools that allow very restricted use.
>
> I would appreciate any opinion or knowledge anyone has regarding these
> issues, and maybe references that may help.
>
> Thank you!
> Adele Barbato
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