>I would be interested to know if any museums charge for the
>identification of objects and artefacts brought into the museum by
>members of the public.  If a charge is made, how much is it?  Has
>charging led to a decrease in the number of objects seen by staff?
>Thank you.
>Alan E West.

Alan - we never charge the public for information, though we are
a city museum.  The archaeologist looks at old bones and rocks,
the anthropologist looks at many three-dimensional items, and I
(Curator of Special Collections) look at people's land deeds, etc.
<g> and try to tell them the appropriate thing to do.  Many times
I will recommend a person get their papers appraised by a conser-
vator when they are trying to figure out how much they're worth.
Deborah Baroff
Museum of the Great Plains
Lawton, OK
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