Responding to Steven de Clercq (message 2 November 2003) Steven, I thank you for the suggestion, and completely agree - and ask Gary Edson to take the amendment into his record of the definitions we are working with. I have always been concerned to nourish that link between scientific and cultural heritage (and I have said in earlier comments in these conversations that scientific heritage is intimately linked to cultural heritage - not separate, as many people assume - since both natural history and an operational experimental science depend on a history of scientific ideas and concepts, and once we acknowledge that, we must see that scientific heritage is in fact WITHIN cultural heritage as a totality of human thought and expression, not outside it). So I thank you, Steven: that small insertion you suggest is a quite crucial improvement, and even reinforces my intentions. Bernice Murphy =================== At 4/11/2003 07:14 AM, you wrote: >Dear Bernice, Geoffrey and Gary, > >Allow me one amendment to Bernice's last suggestion: Please change "... >Cultural heritage ..." in "... cultural and scientific heritage ...'. > >After all, museums of natural history, botany, geology, paleontology, >archeology, anthropology (to name a few) keep the primary sources of >evidence of an enormous part of our scientific heritage, collected over the >last couple of centuries. >Of course, one can argue that our scientific heritage is part of our >culture, and I will immediately agree. However, it is unfortunate that many >see culture and science as different and often even hostile worlds, as >illustrated in the fact that many national and local governments have >different departments of Science and Education and for Culture, often >reflected in different 'governing bodies' of different types of museums and >in the debate on the position of research in museums as was earlier >mentioned during this discussion. > >Bernice's definition would then read: > >"Museums are institutions that serve society by promoting knowledge, >appreciation and conservation of the natural world and the cultural and >scientific heritage of humanity through collections, memories, sites and >processes they care for, research and interpret for public benefit." > >Sorry for this late reaction, I should have noticed this earlier! > >Thanks and with best regards, > >Steven W.G. de Clercq > >Utrecht University, senior consultant Academic Heritage >Vice-Chair of UMAC, ICOM's International Committee for University Museums >& Collections >website: <http://www.icom.museum/umac> >Straatweg 17, 3603 CV MAARSSEN, the Netherlands >Tel: OO31-(0)346-567.573; Fax: 0031-(0)346-578.843 >E-mail: [log in to unmask] >__________________________________________________________________________ > > > >On 02-11-2003 14:38, "Bernice Murphy.com.au" <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > > > Responding to Gary Edson (29 October 2003): > > > > Thank you, Gary, for the message indicating how you see the discussion has > > evolved. I endorse strongly the effort to include more colleagues through > > incorporating whatever you can accomplish now by way of summary translation > > into French and Spanish. > > > > I have taken time to reflect on the responses of colleagues, and to > > consider their different perspectives. I also paid attention again to > > Geoffrey Lewis's suggestions - for his insightful comments on behalf of the > > work of the Ethics Committee (which he has chaired through the detailed > > process of revising the ICOM Code of Ethics). I strongly endorse his point > > that we should be thinking of a definition that advances the interests of > > 'the museum profession' in its largest scope, not simply museums or museum > > professionals, or even ICOM members. > > > > Concerning one of the definitions you are keeping in circulation (the one I > > proposed some weeks past), I would prefer to substitute this (revised) > > version: > > > > "Museums are institutions that serve society by promoting knowledge, > > appreciation and conservation of the natural world and the cultural > > heritage of humanity through collections, memories, sites and processes > > they care for, research and interpret for public benefit." > > > > In response to Gary's query: to my mind 'memories, images' are not > > necessarily part of 'collections', but carry a movement towards > > acknowledging the living, the virtual, the oral or literary image, and the > > intangible aspects of culture. > > > > I have retained 'memories', surrendered 'images' but included 'processes' > > this time (which could be both scientific and cultural). > > > > The important issue about a museum being presumed to be a permanent > > institution (and some other details) could be added in the points of > > application that would follow whatever revised definition is finally > > adopted in the ICOM Statutes. > > > > (For clarity, my previous suggestion - now withdrawn - was: > > Museums are permanent institutions that conserve and communicate knowledge > > of the natural world and the cultural inheritance of humanity through > > collections, records, memories, images, and sites they care for, research > > and interpret, in public trust, for present and future generations." ) > > Bernice Murphy > > =============== > > > > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - > > > > Change ICOM-L subscription options, unsubscribe, and search the > > archives at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/icom-l.html > >- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - > >Change ICOM-L subscription options, unsubscribe, and search the >archives at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/icom-l.html - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Change ICOM-L subscription options, unsubscribe, and search the archives at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/icom-l.html