In article <[log in to unmask]>, "Henry B. Crawford"
<[log in to unmask]> says:
>
>
>I don't advocate permanent marking for any object, but as for a semi-perm.
>reversible method, we just use large paper tags with the number written
>with a marker on the tag, not the object.

While I don't disagree with Henry that "permanent" marking is a good idea,
I believe that merely tagging any object is a dangerous practice.  I am
involved with another museum right now that tagged many smaller artifacts
in lieu of marking, and it is a disaster.  When objects went out on
exhibit, the tags were removed for aesthetic reasons.  Recordkeeping was
so poor, that it is well-nigh impossible to match the tags to the objects
once the things came off exhibit.

I would urge you to get a copy of the Upper Midwest Conservation Association's
Collections Care Network newsletter (Winter 1996) which has the latest,
conservationally sound methods of marking a variety of objects.  (They
also sell an "Artifact Numbering Kit" which for $40, is a pretty good deal.)
There are some varnishes that are highly reversible and would work just
fine on a vehicle collection.

Claudia Nicholson
Curator of Collections
South Dakota State Historical Society, Pierre

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