According to Dictionary.com:
mu·se·um
/myo͞oˈzēəm/|
Noun:
| <><>
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This is
probably similar to the response most people would give to the question, “What
is a museum?” I am disappointed that
this definition seems to focus on the museum as a building though. I won’t argue that a building is generally
necessary, but isn’t it the collection of artifacts which is the focus of most
museums? After all, the collection can
be housed in any appropriate building, but if there are no items to study or
display it’s not much of a museum. You’d
just have an empty building with the word “Museum” over the front door!
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| While we are on the subject of museum buildings, here is the front of the National Museum of Civil War Medicine building. This building has existed since before the Civil War, and it has quite an interesting history of its own. I’ll have to do a post on that another time! |
In my
first Museum Studies class we discussed the characteristics of a museum. The definition of a museum from our textbook,
A Legal Primer on Managing Museum
Collections, by Marie C. Malero, was “a public or private nonprofit agency
or institution organized on a permanent basis for essentially educational or
aesthetic purposes which, utilizing a professional staff, owns or utilizes
tangible objects, cares for them, and exhibits them to the public on a regular
basis.”
 |
| Here’s the textbook, which is also sometimes referred to as the “bible of collection management.” This one did not get sold when I finished my classes! |
This
definition is a bit longer but is also more accurate! In this one, a museum is an institution or
agency, not just a building. This one
also focuses more on the care and educational value of the objects in the
collection, and their role in being exhibited to the public. But let’s get one more perspective.
According
to the American Association of Museums, the common denominator of museums is
their "unique contribution to the public by collecting, preserving, and
interpreting the things of this world."
This description and the previous definition go beyond a museum merely being
a building with items on exhibit. They also
acknowledge caring for, preserving, and interpreting the artifacts for the
public. I particularly like the phrase in
the AAMs description, “unique contribution to the public” because it recognizes
the PURPOSE in collecting and caring for
the artifacts. Museums exist for the
benefit of the public, in preserving and protecting its collection of artifacts.
So, now
you may be wondering where I am going with this. (Uh oh, she’s getting up on that soap box
again….) It seems that sometimes people
lose sight of the purpose of museums or of the collections in museums,
especially when the economy is on a downturn and the museum’s budget may be tight. The collection then sometimes starts being
regarded, not as items which the museum has been entrusted to protect and
preserve, but as items which can make money for the museum.
Perhaps
you’ve noticed articles online or in the newspaper about museums which are
considering selling items from their collections in order to fund new projects,
or even to just pay their operating costs?
If you haven’t, simply do an online search of “museums selling
artifacts” and see what you find. It’s a
bit of a hot topic in the museum world right now. There are people on both sides of the issue,
some saying that collections should never be sold to pay the museum’s bills,
and others pointing out that if the museum closes, the collection can’t benefit
anyone. So the debate becomes, do you protect
the collection at the expense of other areas of the museum, or even given the
possibility of the museum closing, or do you sacrifice some of the artifacts for
the good of the museum and its remaining artifacts?
For me, it
all goes back to the museum’s purpose.
If the purpose of a museum is to preserve and protect the artifacts for
the public and for future generations, it seems pretty clear that the
collection of artifacts is what should be preserved. I’m sure there are people who disagree with
me, but they are certainly free to start their own blogs!
Besides, it can also be argued that the
collection DOES bring in money, even though it may not look like it on
paper. Admittedly, the Collections
Department generally spends more money than it generates – at least
directly. Building and maintaining exhibits,
and storing and caring for artifacts all cost money. But if you consider that the museum visitors
are paying to come see the artifacts on display, the collection certainly does
play a big part in the museum’s bottom line!
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| Most museums have a gift shop (another source of income), and the NMCWM is no exception! |
Thank you
for indulging me in this little rant!
And please don’t forget to help support your local museum(s) by stopping
in for a visit.
Photos
courtesy of the National Museum of Civil War Medicine.
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