Allen, First, its called "deaccession". The question involves a long answer, but basically no museum deaccessions casually. Deaccessioning is to divorce what accessionong is to getting married - its a lot harder to get a divorce. The museum must carefully research clear title to each object that it plans to deaccession, making sure that there are no legal restrictions placed on the by the donor, the museum has to take into account the individual state's disposition of museum property laws, etc. Those are just the very beginning steps.... Most museums have a clear (and extensive) policy on the criteria used for determining whether an object should be deaccessioned or not. It is the job of the trustees of the museum to make sure that the policies are adhered to. Lists, rationale and documentation must be prepared and presented to the collections committees for their approval. Upon approval, an auction house (in the case of art museums) is selected, a contract negotiated with them including agreements on reserves, etc., the objects must be prepared for shipment and then the sales must be tracked. The money received,most often, goes back into the funds for acquisition of more objects and the original donor is credited. Its quite a process. This explanation really skims the surface of the steps involved, but I hope it helps your understanding with respect to the care taken by museum professionals in the process of deaccessioning. Suzanne Quigley Head Registrar Detroit Institute of Arts [log in to unmask]