Yikes! Do you have a collections management policy? I don't notice, in your post, any mention of deaccessioning. It sounds like some education is in order regarding what accessioning entails (I use the metaphor of getting married to the object - it is *possible* to divorce or deaccession if there are compelling reasons, but you don't want to accession something unless you are committed to preserving it in perpetuity).

Selling deaccessioned items is not entirely unethical, but the proceeds should be restricted for collections care. Otherwise a museum staff might be tempted to start selling off the collection to pay the electrical bill, etc. 

A deed of gift does state (in most cases) that the museum receiving the item may dispose of it in any way they wish, however it is good to avoid public perception that you are liquidating the collection you are supposed to be caring for.

Our organization did, in the 1980's, sell a large number of objects at garage sales (this was prior to any trained staff). These objects were never accessioned, but since the community at large is not aware of the accessioning process in museums, it appeared to them that large numbers of things that THEY had donated were being sold off willy-nilly. A lot of disgruntled community members then questioned whether or not they wanted to donate to us. It has been recommended to me by others in the museum community that if we really want to sell non-accessioned or de-accessioned items, we do it outside the community.

I also second Jay Hueman's recommendation of Marie Malaro's book. It's a great resource.

Good luck!
Erica

Erica S. Maniez
Museum Director, Issaquah Historical Society
425/392-3500
[log in to unmask]
www.issaquahhistory.org

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Museum discussion list [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On
> Behalf Of Chuck Stout
> Sent: Friday, November 09, 2001 6:19 PM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Help! They want to sell off the collection!
> 
> 
> Dear list colleagues, 
> 
> I’m the curator of the model collection in an air and space 
> museum, and have 
> been asked by our vice president to go through our collection of unbuilt 
> model kits and select "the ones we don’t really need" so they can 
> be sold in 
> the gift shop. Needless to say, this makes me very nervous. I 
> have tried to 
> explain about the presumption of permanence of the collection, 
> the need to 
> keep things in the public trust, the ramifications of selling 
> items from the 
> collections in the gift shop, etc. but to no avail. (I guess I need to 
> mention that none of the upper management has any background in 
> museum work, 
> and that this VP is also the development director and is under 
> pressure to 
> raise money.)
> 
> My questions are these: Is it ethical? Is it legal? Have you 
> faced similar 
> situations? I would appreciate any advice on how I can handle this 
> professionally, short of leaving the museum. My fear is that after the 
> unbuilt kits are sold, I’ll be asked to cull the model collection. (Other 
> collections are being "thinned" as well, sometimes without any 
> consultation 
> with curators.)
> 
> Other facts that may be relevant: Many of the model kits have no 
> provenance, 
> they were just there when I took over the collection. Very few 
> are formally 
> accessioned (but that’s true of most of the artifacts in our 
> museum!), and 
> none has any restriction that says we can’t sell it. Some of the kits are 
> rare and "collectible," we have duplicates of a few, and they are 
> unlikely to 
> be assembled or exhibited in the future.
> 
> The VP has also suggested that in cases where we know who made 
> the donation, 
> we can simply call and ask if they mind if we sell it. This fills me with 
> dread, too. What are your thoughts?
> 
> Thanks for your help.
> 
> Chuck Stout
> 
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