I would recommend going to the museum's Registrar or Collections Manager
first.  They maintain all collections records and are usually more in
the frame of mind to help with questions.  If a museum doesn't list a
Registrar or CM, or only shows a few (under 6) staff members, direct
your query to the Curator and then the Director (some museums only have
one or two staffers so the Director fills all shoes).
If your first query doesn't get an answer, try again after a week or
two, possibly to another staff member as some folks will ignore
information requests.  

Karen Barlow
Registrar
Allentown Art Museum
31 North Fifth Street
Allentown, PA  18101
(610) 432-4333 ext. 30
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-----Original Message-----
From: Museum discussion list [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On
Behalf Of Allison Eaton
Sent: Saturday, June 27, 2009 6:35 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [MUSEUM-L] Question regarding seeking research assistance from
museums

I am doing research for a paper, and I am hoping to get additional
information about pieces from the museums they are in.  Some museums
list contact information for staff members in specific departments on
their websites, but other museums seem to have only the most generic
contact information listed.  When listed, should I email the curator of
the relevant department to ask for information about the objects?  How
should I go about finding the right people for museums that don't list
specific staff contact information?

Am I right to assume that when emailing museums in non-English speaking
countries, I should compose my request in the language of that country?

Is there anything else I should know about proper protocol for seeking
reference help from museum staff?

Thanks for your advice!

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If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).