I understand your perspective, and I appreciate the clarification.
 
But the sarcasm in your note was unwarranted.  Consider me the test case for the common person who doesn't work for a museum--and remember you don't have to work for one to be on this list.  It's a case of knowing your audience.  The volunteer in question is a classic example.  (S)he put in time at the institution and didn't understand the logic of deaccessioning.  If I've been on this list since about 1998 or 1999 and it's not clear to me, the volunteer has been spending time at the institution, and it's not obvious to them, then perhaps the issue is a need to educate on your (the museums) part, not to assume that we must be educated or are otherwise ignorant.
 
While it's not important in the grand scheme of things that I understand deaccessioning (which, thanks to your info below, I have a better understanding thereof), it can be important if deaccessioned items are perceived to be trashed treasures.  A story in a periodical offered to an ignorant reporter by an incensed volunteer could have financial and public relations consequences to the institution.  Further, if there isn't a well-reasoned deaccession policy in place, not knowing for sure, but knowing how such things go, could it be something with legal implications as well?  I don't know except that, in a highly politicized environment, anything is possible.  Look at the tarnish to the Getty for the info that hit the press in the last year.  It is a different matter, but it may take a while for the blemish to be removed.
 
Think about it.  You went to school to learn all these intricacies.  The lay person just wants to appreciate them.  It's been said one man's trash is another man's treasure.  I don't criticize you for doing your job.  It's just the Earth Mother deep within admitted here to cringing when things are destroyed.
 
I suspect you're tired.  Just understand that what I offered was not a slam but rather a canary in a coal mine.  If you don't listen for the warnings of the canary, the insitutions could get the shaft.  It is, after all, the canaries who help to sustain your salary.


Timothy McShane <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>>> "Gayle "Indigo Nights"" <[log in to unmask]>10/31/06 2:33 PM >>>
Every time I read that you folks destroy something, it raises the hackles on my neck and gives me spasms. I would rather not know that something once considered valuable has been rendered because the value is no longer there. I understand that you do, but it's creepy from the perspective of somebody who loves the treasures. So, if I can feel that way, I can understand why the volunteer may have thought they were doing the right thing.
>snip<

Gayle, I don't know if you've done much gardening, but you really should consider de-accessioning and disposal, even through destruction, as akin to pruning a tree or dead-heading your perennials. Yes, it destroys part of the plant, but does so to make the whole stronger. Just as pruning a tree (if done right) is good horticulture, deaccessioning (if done right) is good collections management.

It's also a mis-conception that everything in a museum is a "treasure" by virtue of it being in a museum, or that everything in museum collections was at one time considered "valuable." Policies to guide collections growth were rare prior to the 1980s, and many institutions still do not have one; this can (and has) lead to museums that collect anything that comes through the doors, regardless of relevance to mandate, perceived value, ability to preserve and care for, or any other consideration (this is also a reason to not judge the material in this instance to have value, or even perceived value, just because another institution accepted the materials--not saying that the material here in question is value-less, just not necessarily valuable).

Among the things we have under consideration for deaccessioning includes rusted bits of unidentified metal that were collected over 50 years ago, for which we have no information regarding significance or provenance (not even source); pieces that are inherently unstable due to the materials they're made of, which we can't preserve or store, and attempts to do so may put other artefacts (or staff) at risk; pieces so heavily damaged that their research and display potential is minimal; broken and incomplete examples of pieces well represented in our collection by good examples of the type; and artefact types that have just been over-collected, and are taking up valuable storage space and other resources (we've got 61 sadirons in our collection, 29 sewing machines, 18 typewriters--and this type of thing is not atypical in many museums).

We just moved into a new facility, and didn't have the chance to do a thorough de-accessioning prior to the move. So, all these marginal pieces had to be inventoried, packed, and shipped, and are now awaiting unpacking, inventory, and condition reporting (a process we estimate will take another year). That's a lot of resources that could have been channeled into much better directions had we done a cull beforehand. Not to mention these pieces are now occupying storage space and equipment (which, surprise surprise, was reduced during the course of project development of our new building), so we're still going to have to do the cull, or declare ourselves closed to new acquisitions in four years' time, for lack of space to accommodate new collections.

Of course, it is best to find an appropriate home for de-accessioned materials (in Alberta, we're required to do this in order to be eligible for provincial grants), but some times there just isn't an appropriate home to send materials to (anyone here need more sadirons or typewriters?). Willingness to accept the material is not a basis for determining if another institution is an appropriate home; we don't have enough information in this instance to judge whether or not the museum that ultimately received the material is an appropriate repository. As such, I don't think we're in a position to judge the deaccessioning/disposal procedures of the originating museum either (although, hindsight being what it is, "witnessed destructions" certainly would have avoided subsequent developments).

Forgive me if this issue has "raised my hackles" a bit, but when a non-museum person from a perspective of admitted ignorance regarding museum policies and procedures makes the above comments regarding de-accessioning/disposal, a necessary, valid and valuable tool of collections management, I do feel a need to set the record straight.



------------------------------------------------------------
Tim McShane, Assistant--Cultural History
Esplanade Museum
401 First Street SE
Medicine Hat, AB T1A 8W2
Tel: (403) 502-8587
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