<When deaccessioning, common sense suggests that we be as discreet as possible -- i.e., that we avoid giving our "publics" any impression that we consider these objects as commercial items to be sold in the general marketplace> Of course, a museum does not want to give the impression that objects in its collection can be sold randomly and at will. However, if a museum decides to deaccession an object from its collection, in my opinion, it should be as upfront and open as possible with the public about its plans in order to avoid any impression of impropriety. Deaccessioning is an accepted practice in museums, not a dirty little secret. It's up to the museum to educate its public about the importance and benefits of deaccessioning. Jerz ________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com ========================================================= Important Subscriber Information: The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes). 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).