Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 1 COLLECTION
S
AND EXHIBITIONS
MANAGEMENT POLICIES
Museum of Riverside
Approval by City Council recommended by the Museum of Riverside Board on June 12, 2019. Revisions recommended _________________
Approved by the City Council on August 6, 2019. Revisions approved _________________
SECTION 1:
INTRODUCTION
1.1 General
1.2 Related Collection Documents
SECTION 2:
COLLECTIONS COMMITTEE AND AUTHORITIES
2.1 Committee Composition
2.2 Committee Duties
2.3 Authorities
SECTION 3:
ACQUISITIONS AND ACCESSIONS
3.1 Categories of Acquisition
3.1.1 Permanent Collection
3.1.2 Community Collection
3.1.3 Education / Teaching Collection
3.1.4 Living Collection
3.1.4.1 Disposition of Living Collection
3.1.5 Library and Reference Collection
3.2 Acquisition Procedures
3.2.1 Permanent Collection Procedures
3.2.2 Other Collections’ Procedures
3.2.3 Objects Donated for Sale
3.3 Abandoned Property
SECTION 4:
DEACCESSION AND DISPOSAL
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 2 4.1 General
4.2 Deaccession Procedures
4.3 Disposal
4.3.1 Destruction
SECTION 5:
CONSERVATION AND CARE
5.1 Definitions
5.2 Guidelines
5.3 Potential Acquisition Sources
SECTION 6:
EXHIBITIONS AND INCOMING LOANS
6.1 Definitions
6.2 Purpose of Exhibitions and Loans
6.3 Procedures and Regulations for Exhibitions and Incoming Loans
6.4 Ethical Concerns Relating to Exhibitions and Incoming Loans
6.5 Repository Service
6.5.1 Repository Agreement
6.5.2 Requirement of Collection Integrity
6.5.3 Procedure
SECTION 7:
OUTGOING LOANS
7.1 General
7.2 Procedures
SECTION 8:
RECORDKEEPING, RESEARCH, COLLECTION ACCESS, AND RIGHTS &
REPRODUCTIONS
8.1 General
8.2 Intellectual Independence
8.3 Records
8.3.1 Found-in-Collections Objects
8.3.2 Inventory
8.4 Authorship
8.4.1 Curatorial Opinions
8.5 Copyright and Rights & Reproductions
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 3 8.5.1 Online usage
8.5.2 Photography
8.6 Physical Access to Collections and Records
8.6.1 Collections Relating to Native Americans
SECTION 9:
LIVE ANIMAL AND PLANT POLICIES
9.1 Philosophy
9.2 Authority
9.3 Permits and Regulations
9.4 Facility Design
9.5 Handling of Live Animals
9.6 Animal Health Issues
SECTION 10:
MUSEUM OF RIVERSIDE PUBLICATIONS
10.1 General
10.2 Guidelines
APPENDIX A:
SUPPORTING REFERENCES
APPENDIX B:
SUMMARY OF LEGISLATION RELEVANT TO REPOSITORIES
B.1 International
B.2 Federal
B.3 State of California
APPENDIX C:
ABBREVIATIONS
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 4 SECTION 1:
INTRODUCTION
1.1 General
This document codifies general principles and responsibilities regarding the legal status of objects1 held by the Museum of Riverside (Museum). It covers the documentation, care, and use of collections, including applied and pure research, exhibition, loan, and publication. Particular emphasis is placed on clarifying principles that may pose ethical dilemmas or be handled differently in other museums. Goals include establishing comprehensive but workable policies and transparency in operations.
This document reflects a conservative approach and seeks to ensure that decisions and practices strive to meet or exceed professional standards. Recognizing that the Museum does not in all respects have resources that permit exceeding standards, this suite of policies articulates a plan that best approaches the ideal within the limits of the Museum’s available and foreseeable resources.
The will to excel in the care of the collections is critical. Marie C. Malaro states in A Legal Primer on Managing Museum Collections (p. 438), “Policies and procedures are only as good as the ability and the commitment of the museum to implement them. A museum is especially vulnerable to criticism and liability when it has suffered a loss because it failed to do what its policies and procedures require.”
1.2 Related Collection Documents
Further procedures and logistical details relating to the implementation of these policies are covered in the Curatorial Operations and Registrar’s Manual and may further be detailed in object processing checklists or other curatorial procedural documents. Descriptions of the history and philosophy behind the collections, their content, and specific directions for collection growth and refinement are covered in the Collection Development Plan.
SECTION 2:
COMPOSITION AND DUTIES OF THE COLLECTIONS COMMITTEE
2.1 Committee Composition
1 In this document, the word “object” may be used to refer to both artifacts (including buildings) and specimens.
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 5 The Collections Committee is a staff-level committee chaired by the Museum Director. It is comprised of curatorial staff, education staff, Museum Board members, and members of the community. Committee members who bring disciplinary expertise serve by invitation from the Museum Director. The Museum Director may consider members who are suggested by staff, sitting Committee members, or the Riverside citizenry. All members of the Committee are voting except the Museum DirectorCommittee chair, who may vote only to settle conflicts on matters in which the Committee has reached an impasse. The Committee requires a minimum of five members and a maximum of nine members. The minutes of Collections Committee proceedings are not public. From time to time, Rrecommendations from the Committee are presented to the Museum Board as required by policy.
2.2 Committee Duties
Action shall be by simple majority vote except in the case of deaccessions, which require a three- quarters majority vote. If it is necessary to make a decision quickly, the Committee Chair may solicit votes by mail, e-mail, or telephone. The Collections Committee shall meet monthly bi- monthly when there is sufficient current business to warrant meeting. Notice of meeting dates, times, and locations is communicated via email a minimum of three days before the meeting.
The collection of a museum is a key asset that defines an institution’s character and its adherence to its mission. The Collections Committee is the first opportunity for community involvement in guiding the activity of collection-building. In addition to its duties relating to oversight of collections-based philosophy and direction, the Collections Committee is charged with examining all recommendations for acquisition of objects for the permanent collection (accessions) and the withdrawal of objects from the permanent collection (deaccessions), in accordance with established policy. The Collections Committee must approve all permanent collection accessions and must make formal recommendations to accept them to the Museum of Riverside Board. The Committee must also make formal recommendations to the Museum of Riverside Board on matters relating to deaccessions, in accordance with established policy.
These transactions may not occur outside this process. Accessions, deaccessions, and loan activity shall be reported at least annually at the Museum Board and subsequently to the City Council. The Collections Committee shall also advise as necessary regarding loan requests, conservation decisions, revision of collections management policy documents and collection development plans, controversial exhibition themes, or other program issues that may be interpreted as problematic from the standpoint of policy. Such issues will be brought to the Committee by the Museum Director and staff as they are anticipated. The Collections Committee will also periodically review and, as necessary, revise this policy document.
2.3 Authorities
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 6 Authority for the final approval or denial of accessions and deaccessions to/from the permanent collections lies with the City Council, on recommendation from the Museum of Riverside Board.
In accordance with policy and processes described in this document, recommendations originate with the curator responsible for the collection in question and must be assessed by curatorial/ and education staff and approved by the Museum Director, or his or her designate, before advancing to the Collections Committee for discussion and thereafter to the Museum of Riverside Board. The Collections Registrar is responsible for complete and accurate records that inform decision-making with regard to collection objects. Action on categories of collection that are not by definition permanent (community, library, education/teaching, living) require approvals up to and including the Collection Committee only. Processes and responsible individuals are defined below for such collection uses and actions as loans, exhibitions, and conservation treatments.
SECTION 3:
ACQUISITIONS AND ACCESSIONS
3.1 Categories of Acquisition
Acquisitions may be made by gift, bequest, purchase, exchange, transfer, or field collection. It is expected that acquisition by exchange or transfer will be rare. Acquisition funds, when available, will not be used on objects at the community collection level of collecting. Acquisition activity in all categories will be summarized and formally reported annually to the Museum of Riverside Board.
Acquisitions may be made in the following different categories of collection:
▪ permanent collection,
▪ community collection,
▪ education / teaching collection,
▪ live animals and plants, and
▪ library.
The Museum maintains inventories of exhibitry and props in part to avoid confusion when a prop may resemble a collection object. These materials are not considered collections.
3.1.1 Permanent Collection
Acquisitions approved for the permanent collection are accessioned. “Accessioning” is the process of formally accepting an object or specimen into a permanent collection and creating a record for it. The permanent collection is the Museum’s primary collection and includes those objects and specimens of greatest significance and greatest historic and aesthetic importance, those with the highest degree of physical integrity, and those with strong provenances; in short,
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 7 those objects toward which the Museum will direct its most intensive efforts toward preservation, documentation, care, research, and interpretation. Accessions to the Museum’s permanent collection are intended to be in the Museum’s care, and held in the public trust, for the foreseeable future and for its educational purposes. The Museum’s storage and human resources are very limited; thus, new acquisitions must meet a high standard of fit to mission and programmatic goals.
3.1.2 Community Collection
The community collection includes objects that may be similar to objects or specimens in the permanent collection, but of lesser significance or quality (for example, duplicates or replicas).
The purpose of the community collection is to provide a resource that will allow the Museum to respond to loan requests from institutions that do not meet one or more criteria required for exhibition of the permanent collection (see below, section 7, Outgoing Loans). Such institutions may include, but are not limited to, schools, hospitals, or government offices.
Community collection objects will not be accessioned, but they will be documented and, while on site, housed much like the permanent collection, storage space permitting, but conservation and research resources will not be expended upon them, and environmental and security standards may be lowered in keeping with available resources at the more varied venues for exhibition that these objects will visit. The comparatively greater risk allowed for the community collection objects will be permitted in the interest of advancing awareness of the Museum or expanding education opportunities in venues that do not normally enjoy loans from museums.
3.1.3 Education / Teaching Collection
The Museum’s education, or teaching, collection comprises objects acquired for active hands-on use in connection with the presentation of educational programs. They will undergo wear-and- tear during programming. While all reasonable care is taken to prolong their usefulness, they are considered consumable. Teaching objects are selected for their safety, durability, and authenticity for programming uses. Education collection objects are held and maintained by the education department staff and are not accessioned. The Collections Registrar maintains records on them insofar as permitting or other legal requirements may apply, but the education department staff has primary responsibility to maintain an inventory to prevent confusion with other collections. This inventory should not be combined with the physical or digital records on the permanent collection. Donors to the education collection must be issued receipts for in-kind donations, and these gifts must be treated administratively in the same manner as other in-kind donations.
3.1.4 Living Collection
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 8 Living collections include specimens of live plants (vascular and nonvascular) and live animals (vertebrates and invertebrates) that serve to represent the biological diversity of the Riverside and Southern California region as well as natural history in general. Live specimens may be acquired for the collection through propagation, purchase, loan, donation, same-species trade, or on rare occasions, collection from the wild. Living collection specimens are chosen when they can be humanely maintained and made available to the public in the Museum’s Nature Lab (or equivalent), live special exhibitions, and during public programs. Specimens must be acquired and maintained in accordance with all relevant local, state, federal, and international laws and regulations. Private breeders or commercial suppliers that are not members of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) are required to complete, sign, and return an animal history / husbandry information request form prior to shipment and receipt of any specimens. Sufficient documentation demonstrating the breeder or supplier legally obtained the specimen(s) shall be provided prior to any transaction taking place.
An inventory and health and treatment records are maintained by the curatorial and education staff with relevant disciplinary expertise, with reference to the AZA’s standards. Living collections are not accessioned, and the inventory of them should not be combined with the physical or digital records on the permanent collection. See Section 9, below.
Prior to acquisition of a venomous or poisonous species, the Curator of Natural History will ensure suitable housing and acceptable protocols are in place for staff training and emergency response. Handling of venomous or poisonous species is strictly limited to those staff with current and appropriate training.
3.1.4.1 Disposition of Living Collection
Dead individuals from the living collection will be eligible for accession as preserved material into the permanent collection or use in the teaching collection. Otherwise, living or dead materials from these collections deemed inappropriate for continued interpretive use must be disposed of according to permit regulations and—as permissible—may be eligible for transfer to another permit-holding educational program or institution, or used in exchange for other living species or trade for supplies in support of the living collection. Removal of a live animal from the collection shall be recommended by the Curator of Natural History, assessed by curatorial and education staff, and approved by the Museum Director, before presentation to the Collections Committee.
Exceptions to this approval process may be made only in the case of an animal’s death, immediate medical need, or other emergency. Transfers shall be managed in accordance with accepted standards as established by the AZA.
Animals intentionally abandoned on Museum property will be handled in the same manner and with the same high standards of humane care as is accorded to animals in the collection that are identified for transfer, exchange, or other disposition.
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 9 3.1.5 Library and Reference Collection
The Museum Department possesses an in-house reference library. Many of these publications have come to the Museum through gift rather than purchase. Records on and inventories of library publications are created and maintained when staff and/or volunteers are available and as time permits. The library collection is not accessioned. Donors to the library must be issued receipts for in-kind donations, and these gifts must be treated administratively in the same manner as other in-kind donations.
3.2 Acquisition Procedures
The following procedures apply to acquisitions (accessions) to the permanent collection.
Accession records are created for these objects, that is, formal, comprehensive, and permanent records. Acquisitions to the community, education, live animal and plant, or library collections, which are not acquired with the assumption that the Museum will care for them in perpetuity, are to be handled as ordinary operating expenses or gifts-in-kind, as appropriate. Inventories of the community, education, live animal and plant, and library collections will be maintained, as noted above.
3.2.1 Permanent Collection Procedures
The importance of the processes of acquisition and accession within the museum environment warrants treating the following procedures as a matter of policy. Thus, except in unusual circumstances or in the case of objects available on short notice, all of the following guidelines and procedures shall be observed:
▪ Recommendations to the Museum Director for all acquisitions (gifts, purchases, and other means) shall be initiated in writing by the curator with corresponding disciplinary expertise and include all pertinent information justifying the accession. This information shall be discussed by curatorial and education staff prior to finalizing a decision to take the recommendation to the Collections Committee.
▪ No recommendations shall be advanced for objects outside of the Museum’s stated areas of interest, as defined by the mission statement and detailed in the Collection Development Plan. Exceptions to this policy require 1) a recommendation from the Collections Committee to the Museum Board for approval by majority vote, and 2) an amendment to the Collection Development Plan.
▪ Major acquisitions incur operating costs for the Museum. Appropriate staff may inform prospective donors of this fact and encourage consideration of a gift to endowment. All other factors being equal, preference will be accorded to those acquisitions that are
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 10 accompanied by an endowment for care.
▪ Staff will exercise care in acquiring for the Museum entire collections containing some objects not suitable for accession. If a collection of this kind is acquired, before finalizing an acquisition, clear agreement must be reached that will allow staff the freedom to dispose of unsuitable objects for the benefit of the Museum’s programs or collection acquisition fund.
▪ The Manager of Curatorial Services or Museum Director will assign a Curator, based on disciplinary expertise, to shepherd the acquisition process for each proposed accession.
▪ The Curator will make a physical examination of any object(s) before making a recommendation. The Museum shall not acquire objects it cannot handle, house, store, preserve, or care for in compliance with professional, ethical, and legal standards.
▪ No acquisition, however minor, shall be decided upon by just one person. The Curator, Manager of Curatorial Services, or Museum Director may choose to confer informally with an advisory entity. Acquisitions should not be made if the Curator, the Manager of Curatorial Services, or the Museum Director opposes it with a reasoned argument for why it does not advance the Museum’s mission, programs, or reputation.
▪ Costly objects available for purchase should be examined by an appropriate conservator for the Museum. For purchases of historic objects exceeding an estimated value of $50,000, examination by a conservator is required. The Museum Director’s decision on whether the condition warrants continued pursuit of the purchase shall be final. Objects of lesser value should be examined by a conservator whenever practical.
▪ Whenever possible, major purchases and gifts will be brought to the Museum on approval before making final recommendation to the Collections Committee. Under no circumstances should major gifts be accepted, or purchases made, sight unseen.
However, if there is doubt whether a prospective donor will accept the return of an object or specimen rejected by the Collections Committee, said item should not be permitted on site, and the decision must be made on the basis of curatorial review at the source and accompanying documentation.
▪ No determination shall be made regarding recommending a biological specimen(s) for the permanent or other collections until it/they are treated or processed, in order to ascertain the physical integrity of the specimen(s).
▪ The highest level of ethical standards must be maintained by the Museum Director,
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 11 curators, other staff, and Board members in all relationships with collectors, donors, dealers, and artisans. Communications must be precise and complete, and payments must be timely. Further, to protect the Museum’s interests, staff must negotiate to receive the best price and the best terms for all objects acquired by purchase. No price shall be paid that is determined to exceed fair market value.
▪ Except in extraordinary circumstances, title to all objects acquired for the collections shall be obtained without restrictions. Exceptions to this policy require the recommendation of the Collections Committee to the Museum Board for approval by majority vote. If objects are accepted with restrictions or limitations, the conditions must be stated clearly in an instrument of conveyance, which will become a part of the registration records for the object(s). No artistic or historic object shall be accepted with an attribution or circumstances of exhibition guaranteed.
▪ Note that title is generally limited to rights of possession and may not include copyright, trademark rights, or moral rights. For creative works created after 1 January 1978, documentation at the time of acquisition must clarify who will hold copyright. If the Museum does not hold copyright, documentation should specify limited rights to publish the object (including online) for educational and other interpretive purposes. Written agreements with the copyright holder, if other than the Museum, must be prepared on a case-by-case basis for any proposed product development uses.
▪ The Museum will not provide appraisals or make appraisal arrangements for donors.
Upon request, the Museum may offer a list of qualified appraisers but will not endorse or be responsible for the opinions or work of appraisers.
▪ The Museum will take all reasonable steps to avoid any current or future dispute over ownership. A legal instrument of conveyance, setting forth appropriate representations and warranties with respect to ownership and right of transfer, shall accompany all acquisitions of historic, artistic, or cultural objects and become part of the registration records. In the case of objects containing biological materials, this instrument may also comprise copies of permits or other authority to collect materials legally. Such documents shall be signed by the donor, seller, or authorizing government agency as well as by an authorized representative of the Museum. The Museum will abide strictly by all regulations governing import and export of cultural property, including U.S. law, international law, and the laws of any other third party or nation.
▪ Objects offered as part of a bequest are subject to the same accession and approval procedures as objects obtained by other means. When the Museum accepts a bequest, it will incorporate the object(s) into the permanent, community, education, live animal and plant, or library collections, at its discretion, or dispose of the object(s) for the benefit of
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 12 the acquisitions fund for the permanent collection. As a courtesy and whenever feasible, the Museum shall inform the executor(s) of the estate regarding disposal and give credit to the original donor in records and labels for objects acquired with the proceeds of sale.
▪ Except in rare cases, the Museum shall not acquire objects or specimens by exchange with private individuals. As a rule, exchanges will be considered only with other not-for- profit, collecting institutions that grant regular public access to their collections.
▪ In the case of accessions to the permanent collection, the Museum Director or his or her designate shall request presentation of a written recommendation from the Curator at a meeting of the Collections Committee. Approval to carry the recommendation to the Museum Board shall be by majority vote of all voting Committee members. Subsequent approval by the Museum Board is followed by a recommendation from the Museum Board to City Council. The written recommendation at each stage of approval must include, where known, the maker, title or name of the object, date, medium or materials, dimensions, source, copyright restrictions, condition, provenance, and justification for inclusion in the permanent collection. The written recommendation must also include a statement identifying the source of funding for management and care of the object(s) and, in the case of purchase, the source of acquisition funds and justification for the asking price.
▪ Accessions are not formalized until all approvals are obtained: Collections Committee, Museum Board, and City Council.
▪ Following final approval by City Council, records of accession shall be created and retained for all objects and specimens in the permanent collections. An alternate, simpler type of record may be maintained for objects acquired for the community, education, live animal and plant, and library collections, which do not require Museum Board and City Council approval. Groups of objects designated for the permanent collections must be culled of objects intended for the community, education, library, or other uses prior to the recommendation to accession and the eventual assignment of accession numbers and creation of accession records. Objects mistakenly accessioned must be deaccessioned in accordance with established policy.
▪ Creation and maintenance of accession and other object records are the responsibility of the Collections Registrar, who will maintain all object records. All relevant documentation must be presented to the Collections Registrar for processing and for the centralized maintenance of collection donor files and related information. If any original records must be maintained by finance or fundraising staff, the Collections Registrar must receive copies for the permanent collection records.
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 13 ▪ Acquisitions must meet the requirements of all applicable local, state, federal, and international regulations, laws, and conventions. The Museum of Riverside supports the purposes and objectives of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) and is resolved to abide by and work within the framework of its provisions and any other legislation affecting Native American cultural property.
▪ The Museum shall not, under any circumstances, collect human remains.
▪ No live ammunition, active flares, volatile fuels, or other explosives will be accepted into any collection, permanent or otherwise, nor should they knowingly be brought onto any Museum site. Should any live ammunition be discovered or suspected within a lot of new acquisitions or a loan, the Collections Registrar will immediately contact the Police Department for safe removal.
▪ The Museum of Riverside also supports the ideals of wildlife conservation as manifested in the federal Endangered Species Act, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), and other legal conservation guidelines, and recognizes that artisans choose unusual materials, which requires stewards of artifact collections to remain abreast of this kind of legislation. The Museum shall not knowingly acquire any object whose ownership or legality in this state or country is questionable or whose circumstances of collection are unethical or contrary to the goals of NAGPRA, the Endangered Species Act, any other state, federal, or international law, and/or the museum profession in general. Acceptance of objects confiscated and offered to the Museum by government authorities must be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. The Museum will abide by the American Alliance of Museums’ Guidelines Concerning Unlawful Appropriation of Objects during the Nazi Era (1999, amended 2001) and other AAM documents aimed at promoting international cooperation and just, legal preservation of cultural property.
▪ In the spirit of transparency, new accessions should be announced and installed appropriately as soon as is practical. All objects must be accompanied by adequate interpretive material to help inform the public about their importance to the collection and the community.
3.2.2 Other Collections’ Procedures
Objects may be donated to or purchased for the community, education, live animal and plant, or library collections. Creation of records for the community collection is the responsibility of the Collections Registrar. These records may be extensive, but they should at a minimum include, where known, the maker, object description, object date, materials, dimensions, original source, condition, provenance, and reason for acquisition.
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 14 3.2.3 Objects Donated for Sale
Objects may be donated or bequeathed to the Museum specifically for resale to benefit the collections, operating fund, or other specific project of the Museum. Unless prior arrangements are made, decisions regarding disposition and sale of such objects will be made by the Museum Director in consultation with the donor or donor’s executors and appropriate staff. Because the sale by a museum of objects that relate to its mission can be problematic, it is important that transactions be thoroughly documented and that a donor’s intentions and consent are clear.
Objects may be donated for recurring fundraising events, but in instances when an established procedure for accepting and selling objects does not exist, the following procedures apply.
Objects in this category—because donated specifically for sale—do not require the involvement of the Collections Committee.
▪ The Museum Director or his or her designate shall secure the donor's or executor's written description of intent and authorization to sell. See above, Section 3.2.1, regarding obtaining necessary assurances of clear title from the donor.
▪ Objects received shall be disposed of by the method that seems most advantageous to the Museum. Staff will balance the need for maximum return with the need for a timely sale.
Objects that staff place on consignment with a dealer but that have not sold within two years will be withdrawn, and staff will pursue other methods of disposal.
▪ It shall be the Collections Registrar’s and any event coordinator’s responsibility to ensure that all objects received on the premises for resale be clearly identified. It must in all cases be possible to distinguish at a glance between such objects and others that may be on the premises for other reasons, such as loans for exhibition.
▪ Unless objects accepted with the intent to resell arrive accompanied by a current appraisal or bill of sale to the donating party, they shall not be recognized in the financial records until sold, at which time revenue realized shall be posted for the month of sale in accordance with accepted accounting standards.
3.3 Abandoned Property
An object discovered to have been abandoned to the care of the Museum, either recently or in the past, will be treated in compliance with the law. This does not refer to anonymously donated objects. Objects will be deemed to be abandoned property in accordance with the law on a case-by-case basis. Whether the Museum chooses to retain the object and initiate an accession recommendation process or dispose of it, the Museum will seek the counsel of the City Attorney in each case to ensure that the course of action
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 15 chosen complies with current legal requirements. In some cases, the Museum may be obligated to hold the object for a period of years and exhaust all avenues of locating and contacting the supposed donor.
SECTION 4:
DEACCESSION AND DISPOSAL
4.1 General
“For the thoughtful person, deaccessioning for a goal other than to improve collections raises not just legal questions but serious ethical questions.”
Marie C. Malaro, A Legal Primer on Managing Museum Collections, second edition, Washington, DC: Smithsonian Books, 1998.
To maintain a dynamic collection, the Museum of Riverside must continually refine its holdings.
However, public trust issues surrounding deaccession go straight to the heart of museums’ perceived role in society as caretakers of a collective cultural heritage. Because the maintenance of that public trust must remain paramount, removal of objects or specimens from the permanent collection of the Museum of Riverside has been and shall remain an exceptional occurrence, performed with the greatest caution and prudence.
4.2 Deaccession Procedures
The term “deaccession” does not mean sale. It refers to the procedure of removing an object from the Museum’s permanent collection, after which the object may be considered for disposal by sale, exchange, gift, or transfer to another of the Museum’s collections (community, education, library). If a previously deaccessioned object is reaccessioned, it may be deaccessioned again only by repeating the procedures outlined below. The importance of the process of deaccession within the museum environment warrants treating the procedures as a matter of policy. Thus, all of the following guidelines and procedures shall be observed:
▪ Objects in the permanent collection shall be considered for deaccession if they cease to be relevant to the Museum’s mission. In some cases, deaccessioning must be initiated in order to comply with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) or other legislation governing cultural property. Deaccession must also be initiated without delay if the Museum finds itself in possession of property that has been stolen or otherwise illegally obtained.
▪ Deaccessioning of objects may be considered sparingly in the interest of improving the quality of the Museum’s collections or when objects cannot be cared for or used within
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 16 the context of the Museum’s mission. The procedure may be initiated when one or more of the following circumstances applies:
o The object/specimen places the Museum out of compliance with state, federal, or international law;
o The Museum of Riverside Board and City Council approve a major shift in collection scope; or, the object/specimen falls outside of the scope of the Museum's mission and guidelines as set by Riverside Municipal Code (Chapter
2.12), and/or the Collection Development Plan;
o The Museum’s legal ownership of the object/specimen has been successfully challenged in court;
o The object/specimen lacks physical integrity or its condition is too poor to justify conservation and/or use within an exhibition or interpretive context (irretrievable damage or loss is defined as destruction of the essential structure or identifying characteristics of an object through action of mechanical, chemical, or biological agents; vandalism; disaster; or use of an object in destructive scientific sample testing);
o The object/specimen has failed to retain its identity or authenticity, or was accessioned inappropriately or on the basis of false information (for example, replicas or forgeries);
o The Museum is unable to preserve or store the object/specimen properly and/or provide a proper or adequate environment for it, or the object/specimen poses a health or safety hazard;
o The object/specimen has doubtful potential to be exhibited or published in the foreseeable future, or the object/specimen's accompanying data are so incomplete that the item has limited or no cultural, historical, or scientific value; o The Museum has at least two comparable objects/specimens in the collection that are in superior condition, better documented, and/or of better quality;
▪ Deaccessioning is not to be undertaken as a solution to pressure on storage or holding facilities nor as a means to initiate sales and generate income. The current market value of an object, be it low or high, should not be permitted to be a factor in deaccession decisions.
▪ Objects lost or stolen should generally not be deaccessioned unless the staff would wish the objects to have deaccessioned status should they be recovered. After a period of five years without recovery, however, staff may choose to review the status of such objects, consider the probability of recovery, and proceed with a deaccession recommendation.
▪ After conferring as necessary with advisory entities, the Curator-in-charge must present a written recommendation to the Museum Director and the Collections Committee for all deaccessions. The written recommendation must include, where known, the maker,
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 17 object description, object date, medium or materials, dimensions, original source, condition, provenance, and justification for deaccession from the permanent collection.
▪ The Curator-in-charge may refer the matter to experts in the field for further opinions and recommendations. In the case of objects whose value is estimated by staff to be in excess of $10,000, an appraisal should be obtained. For unusually high value objects, a second appraisal may be warranted. Pre-sale estimates by auction houses or dealers may be considered appraisals for this purpose.
▪ The Collections Registrar shall ascertain, with the advice of counsel when necessary, that there are no legally binding or precatory restrictions against deaccession and/or disposal.
▪ The deaccession recommendation must be approved by the Museum Director for presentation to the Collections Committee.
▪ If, after obtaining all information and Collections Committee input, no obstacles remain to deaccession, the Curator-in-charge shall prepare a deaccession report for the Museum of Riverside Board. The written recommendation must include a statement identifying the source of original acquisition, a description of the object’s uses within Museum programming (if any), reasons for deaccession, and recommended method of disposal.
The object(s) will be available either at the meeting or for viewing in storage or holding areas, unless circumstances make this impossible. The Curator-in-charge and Museum Director must both be present at the meeting of the Board to discuss the recommendation, and any outside expert opinions and/or appraisals obtained shall be presented.
▪ A three-quarters majority vote of the Museum of Riverside Board is required and shall be only a recommendation that must be confirmed by City Council approval.
▪ Following the Board and City Council’s approval to deaccession, a deaccession form must be signed for each deaccessioned object by the Curator-in-charge, Manager of Curatorial Services, Museum Director, Collections Registrar, and Chair of the Board.
Copies of this form shall be filed by the Collections Registrar with the electronic and physical object files.
▪ Deaccession for the purpose of repatriation or restitution shall proceed according to the steps outlined in applicable governing legislation. The Curator-in-charge shall act as the Museum’s representative to the appropriate party.
▪ If an object or human remains are deaccessioned in compliance with NAGPRA, but a tribal entity is not identified or an identified tribal entity will not accept repatriated
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 18 remains or objects, said remains or objects will be disposed of in accordance with National Park Service regulations governing such situations.
4.3 Disposal
Once an object has been deaccessioned, it may be considered for disposal. Before disposing of any objects from the collections, reasonable efforts shall be made to ascertain that the Museum is free to do so. It may be possible to deaccession an object but not have authorization to dispose of it. The manner of disposition of deaccessioned objects must reflect the best interests of the Museum and the public trust it represents.
▪ Mandatory restrictions shall be observed unless deviation from their terms is authorized by the courts. In the case of precatory restrictions, reasonable efforts shall be made to comply with restricting conditions. If there is any question as to the intent or force of restrictions, the Museum Director may seek the advice of counsel.
▪ No gifts shall be disposed of contrary to any conditions or limits imposed by the Internal Revenue Service.
▪ As a matter of courtesy, the Museum shall attempt to notify donors of the intent to dispose of objects donated by them. Such action shall not be construed as a request for permission to dispose of the object. Permission from original donors is not required.
Return of objects to donors is generally not an option. For works of art and craft, living artists may hold moral rights under the federal Visual Artists’ Rights Act (VARA) that may limit the choice of disposal methods.
▪ Before disposal, the Collections Registrar shall remove accession numbers and any other Museum identification from the object. The Collections Registrar shall assemble all documentation on the object including, but not limited to accession file records, the record of acquisition or deed of gift, and record of accession decision, all photographs of the object, and a hardcopy of the electronic record on the object. The Collections Registrar shall note on all records "Deaccessioned" and the effective date. The method of disposal shall also be noted on these records (for example, "Sold at auction, Bonhams, 1/6/2018, net proceeds $11,760" or "Exchanged for Lawson photographic portfolio, A2087-2095, Ima Registrar." When a work is deaccessioned and subsequently exchanged for a different object(s), the accession number of the newly acquired object(s) must be noted in the records of object(s) that were deaccessioned.
The Curator-in-charge shall seek the best exchange, transfer, auction, or private sale possibilities in accordance with the following guidelines:
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 19 ▪ Preference will be given to transfer, exchange, or sale at fair market value to other not- for-profit institutions in the United States, and specifically to California institutions in the case of objects pertaining to the historical, cultural, or scientific heritage of the state. An exchange may be made only to acquire objects that strengthen the Museum of Riverside’s permanent collections.
▪ Under certain circumstances, the Curator-in-charge may propose the internal transfer of deaccessioned objects of minimal market value to the community or education collection.
▪ Disposal of artistic, historic, or cultural objects by advertised public auction, sale, or trade on the public market, when permissible, shall be undertaken according to professionally accepted standards. Information regarding ownership of objects put up for sale shall be made available to the public, bearing the notice, “Sold by the order of the governing body of the Museum of Riverside, [date].”
▪ In the case of a work of art by a living artist or craftsperson, special consideration may be given to exchange with the artist.
▪ The proposed method and conditions of disposal (including, if relevant, destruction) shall be part of the original recommendation to deaccession. Along with the proposal to deaccession, the method and conditions of disposal must be approved by a three-quarters vote of the Collections Committee before proceeding. Their decision shall be only a recommendation that must be approved by a three-quarters majority vote of the Board.
Prior to disposal, objects of questionable or potentially problematic authenticity (replicas, reproductions, forgeries) must be clearly and permanently marked as such to prevent future misrepresentation. The Curator-in-charge may recommend destruction of such objects; such recommendations must be part of the original recommendation to deaccession. Before staff may proceed with disposal, the recommendation must be approved by a three-quarters majority vote of the Collections Committee and must proceed through established approval processes of the Board and City Council. In the event that a deaccession recommendation is approved but a recommended method of disposal is not, staff may choose to submit a revised recommendation or reassign the object or specimen to another collection.
▪ Funds derived from the sale of objects shall be restricted to the acquisition of permanent collection objects (fund 0000721-225252). It is the responsibility of staff to maintain a record of deaccession proceeds and align their use with the discipline of the deaccessioned object(s) or specimen(s).
▪ The name of the original donor(s) shall be recorded with the files of objects purchased with these funds. All monies realized and/or objects acquired in lieu will be reported to
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 20 the Collections Committee and the Museum Board at their next regularly scheduled meetings.
▪ Records of all deaccessions and disposals shall be retained in accordance with accepted registration practices, including, but not limited to, the written recommendations of staff and/or Board and City Council members authorizing action, and the opinions of consultants.
▪ Under no circumstances are Museum staff, Board members, City Council or City management, immediate families, volunteers, or their representatives permitted to purchase or acquire any objects deaccessioned from the permanent collection. No deaccessioned object formerly in the Museum’s collections shall be sold through the Museum’s retail shops.
▪ Deaccessions shall be summarized for the Museum of Riverside Board annually with accessions.
4.3.1 Destruction
Occasionally, it is necessary to destroy objects, especially when deterioration is too advanced for conservation to be practical or when the object poses a risk to persons or property. Once destruction is approved in accordance with the above procedure, objects must be destroyed under staff supervision. The process must be documented. Objects that may be classified as hazardous waste or have elements that may be classified as hazardous waste (for example, electronic or photographic materials), must be disposed of in compliance with all applicable laws.
Appropriate records shall be kept in accordance with accepted registration standards.
Disposal of specimens collected under the Museum's Migratory Bird Salvage Permit can be carried out only through incineration or burial, destructive sampling for testing/teaching uses, or transfers to comparable programs or institutions holding equivalent permits. Some samples and specimen preparations in the collections must receive special disposal considerations due to toxic or controlled substance content. Sale of any biological natural history specimen collected under authority of a salvage permit is prohibited.
SECTION 5:
CONSERVATION AND CARE
The Museum of Riverside takes seriously the inherent mission of museums to collect, preserve, exhibit, and interpret their collections for present and future public benefit. “Preservation” encompasses a high standard of care as well as making professional conservation treatments available when necessary. The primary objectives of the Museum of Riverside’s preservation
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 21 program are to arrest deterioration of individual objects, stabilize the collection as a whole, and provide the best possible exhibition and storage environment, consistent with the Museum’s resources.
5.1 Definitions
Preservation is the array of defensive activities undertaken to prevent losses due to human carelessness or criminal activity, environmental and climatic conditions, biological infestation (for example, insects or rodents), faulty procedures, or natural disasters.
Conservation, narrowly interpreted, involves the close study of the physical nature of materials, an understanding of how deterioration may be minimized, and the training and physical skills to implement object treatments when necessary.
Restoration is an attempt to return an object to a former state, usually one considered to be original. Restoration may be based on scientific and/or historical evidence or be entirely conjectural.
The Museum neither employs a staff conservator nor maintains a conservation laboratory and limits its direct activity to preservation and preventive conservation such as appropriate housekeeping practices. The Museum will make every effort, consistent with its resources, to protect all collections and borrowed objects from fire, theft, vandalism, natural disaster, infestation, light, temperature extremes, relative humidity extremes, dirt, and other threats.
5.2 Guidelines
In general, the American Institute for Conservation’s (AIC) Code of Ethics and Guidelines for Practice will be the reference point for conservation and preservation practices undertaken by the Museum.
▪ It is the responsibility of the Collections Registrar to monitor the physical condition of the collections. Final conservation treatment decisions are made collectively by consensus among the curators, the Manager of Curatorial Services, and the Museum Director, in consultation with a qualified conservator. The staff defers in all cases of perceived conservation problems to professional conservators with training specific to the individual objects at issue.
▪ As a rule, the Museum’s philosophy toward authorizing treatments is conservative and non-interventionist, particularly regarding cosmetic treatments. “Restoration” will generally not be undertaken.
▪ With regard to the care of individual objects, preventive measures taken as soon as
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 22 possible are preferred to interventionist rescue treatments administered at a later date.
▪ Treatment methods about which there is any doubt must not be authorized unless they are reversible.
▪ Some treatments employed for archaeological, biological, and ethnographic objects and specimens require the use of various consolidants (resins, plastics, and similar), liquid preservatives (alcohol, formaldehyde), and methods that retard disintegration and provide structural support, but that are not reversible. The Museum will employ these methods of preservation and treatment as long as they continue to be in keeping with current professional standards. Notwithstanding, human health and safety will not be placed at risk.
▪ Decisions about replacement of missing parts, removal of inappropriate or clumsy restoration attempts, and concealment of damage must take into account the risk of further damage, deception of the viewer, possible loss of evidence of the history of the piece, and similar concerns. Judgments about treatments must take into consideration intrinsic and acquired attributes, such as the age of the object; its rarity or comparative uniqueness; its role as an example of a specific style, technical process, or cultural product; its historical associations with particular individuals, places, or events; and its current condition. The current market value of a piece is not a factor. Decisions of this nature will be made by the curator in charge of the collection in consultation with the Manager of Curatorial Services, other qualified staff, and a qualified conservator.
▪ If physical examination of a piece during treatment seems advisable, the Collections Registrar, at a minimum, must visit the conservation laboratory and make a personal assessment before approving further treatment.
▪ The integrity of an object and its associated material (original frames, mounts, containers, documents, and similar) takes priority in both display and storage environments. Spaces will be created for objects, rather than adapting or compromising an object for an existing space. The needs of the objects shall be placed before the demands of an exhibition.
Conditions and procedures dictated by conservation considerations shall apply equally in exhibition and storage environments.
▪ Destructive sampling will be permitted in the rarest of cases when the information anticipated to be gathered is deemed by curatorial recommendation to be a significant contribution to scholarship about the object or specimen. Care must be exercised to limit sampling to the smallest amounts useable for testing. Such treatments must be approved in advance by the Museum Director or his or her designate and conducted only by qualified conservators.
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 23 ▪ All conservators shall be required to produce pre-treatment proposals and post-treatment reports for each object treated, as well as before and after photographs. All such reports and documentation must be maintained by the Collections Registrar in the registration file for the object.
▪ Object-handling must be strictly limited to trained collections staff. The Collections Registrar has primary responsibility for receiving objects on loan, on approval, or on deposit with the Museum for any reason. In the absence of the Collections Registrar, only trained curatorial staff may physically accept objects. The Collections Registrar must be notified immediately of the arrival of any object.
▪ Staff (permanent, temporary, volunteer, or contract) whose duties require them to work in galleries or with/near objects must receive training in the particular concerns of collections care from the Collections Registrar or designated curatorial staff member before commencing work.
▪ In the event that an object is discovered to be missing, either through inventory check or in the course of presenting exhibitions or other public programs that included the object, the following procedures shall be observed: referring to the emergency preparedness manual, the Collections Registrar shall alert the curator in charge of that collection and the Manager of Curatorial Services, complete an incident report, and photograph the area where the object was last known to be. If theft is suspected, the Museum Director must be alerted, and he or she will notify law enforcement authorities.
▪ Permanent collection objects and specimens (including structures) installed outdoors or in areas where temperature, humidity, and security standards cannot be met, either temporarily or permanently, are necessarily more challenging to preserve. They require more proactive than passive preservation measures. Collection management strategies will prioritize frequent monitoring, documentation of changes, protective maintenance (cleaning, sealing, covering, other measures, as appropriate), and repair and conservation when warranted. When the decision is made to install an artifact or specimen in these conditions, Museum staff must explicitly acknowledge in the records that the higher level of risk has been considered and accepted.
▪ Insurance, risk management, and security directly impact preservation and care. The Collections Registrar shall maintain up-to-date values for collection objects, to the extent that resources permit staff to obtain such values. The Collections Registrar shall be responsible for ensuring that the section of the Museum’s emergency preparedness manual relating to disaster recovery for collections is reviewed at least annually and updated as necessary. Under the supervision of the Manager of Curatorial Services, the
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 24 Collections Registrar and Museum maintenance staff shall conduct a comprehensive site review at least annually to identify growing or potential threats to the preservation environment. The results of this site review shall be reported in a timely manner to the Museum Director.
SECTION 6:
EXHIBITIONS AND INCOMING LOANS
6.1 Definitions
Exhibit: A single interpretive display, or unit, that includes, but is not limited to artifacts, specimens, or archival materials from private collections, other institutions, or from the Museum’s collections that complements, illustrates, or relates to the mission, objectives, and educational goals of the Museum.
Exhibition: Along with their related programs, exhibitions are themed interpretive projects that consist of multiple exhibits and are the mechanism by which broad concepts are presented to and interpreted for the public. Exhibitions are displays of materials, artifacts, and/or specimens from private collections, other institutions, or the Museum’s permanent collections. They are the primary means by which these objects and ideas move from the private realm into the public sphere.
Loan: Property owned by an entity other than the Museum and brought onto the premises by the invitation of staff for any reason relating to the Museum’s mission. The property of others must be processed by appropriate staff and ownership duly documented. The Museum cannot accept liability for property not relating to the mission-based activities of the Museum or unsolicited property deposited by its owner; such property must be refused or, if inadvertently deposited on site, returned to its owner as soon as possible.
6.2 Purpose of Exhibitions and Loans
Exhibitions are a key use of the collections. Permanent and temporary exhibitions are the primary reason why both first-time and repeat visitors come to the Museum of Riverside.
Exhibitions educate, entertain, stimulate, inspire, and engage visitors. Through exhibitions, the Museum seeks to provoke visitors’ thought, broaden their understanding of their world, and spark their curiosity and imagination. Through display of authentic objects of material culture and the natural world, the Museum helps the visitor learn about both past and present, investigate the human condition and potential, understand the passage of time, gain inspiration, and value culture achievement.
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 25 The Museum of Riverside may be offered artifacts and specimens as unsolicited loans from members of the public, other museums, or commercial galleries or dealers. If accepted as loans, these objects, although not part of the permanent collection, should be accepted because they enhance the permanent collection, or be seen as works that may potentially or eventually enter the permanent collection through gift, bequest, or purchase. Borrowed objects must be afforded the same level of maintenance and care provided for objects in the permanent collection. Loans may be contracted individually or within the context of specially organized temporary exhibitions.
6.3 Procedures and Regulations for Exhibitions and Incoming Loans
The Museum will develop and maintain a program of permanent and temporary exhibitions consistent with its vision, mission, and strategic plan as approved by the Museum Board. The Museum will also take advantage of special incoming loan opportunities that will enhance the visitor experience.
▪ The Museum will host, organize, and circulate only those temporary exhibitions that are of high scholarly merit and/or significant historic, scientific, or aesthetic value. It is with educational goals foremost that temporary exhibitions are conceived and mounted. The Museum recognizes that some individuals may have one of the few museum experiences of their lives at the Museum of Riverside. Thus, the Museum seeks exhibitions that interpret not only regional topics but introduce a diverse range of timely subjects that may originate outside the region.
▪ The Museum’s exhibition calendar will be determined to maintain a balance over time among several factors determined by the curatorial and education staff in consultation with the Collections Committee and Museum Director. Factors may include local / international, contemporary / historic, available financial resources, and similar concerns, and shall influence the attempt to maintain a balance over a given year among high-profile audience-driving exhibitions and less resource-intensive efforts. A brief will be prepared for each exhibition or series of exhibitions. Along with the annual operating budget, which includes the exhibition budgets, the planning calendar for temporary exhibitions will be submitted to the Museum Board at regular intervals.
▪ In cooperation with other staff and community advisors, the curatorial staff determines the content and design of exhibitions. Recommendations of exhibitions are welcome from any source but must be directed to the Manager of Curatorial Services, whose next step is to seek input on the proposal from the entire curatorial and education staff. If the Manager of Curatorial Services chooses to proceed, the proposal must be reviewed by the Museum Director, the Museum Director’s Advisory Program Team, and other senior
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 26 staff to ensure that funding seems feasible and that all functional and community concerns are examined. Full staff consensus is not required, but it is recognized that a project that all staff support will be more likely to succeed. After approval of the senior staff and Museum Director, an exhibition will be placed on the planning schedule. No exhibition of historic, scientific, artistic, or otherwise valuable objects for which the Museum assumes legal responsibility can be undertaken through other channels. The Board is advised no less often than twice annually of the schedule of upcoming exhibitions.
▪ Proposals for individual incoming loans not associated with an organized temporary exhibition must be directed to the Manager of Curatorial Services. The Manager of Curatorial Services consults with the Museum Director regarding acceptance of the loan.
If baseline criteria for proceeding with a loan are not met, the Museum Director makes the final decision whether to approve or deny the loan. For loans for which logistical conditions are met, the proposal to accept a loan goes to the Collections Committee where the final decision is made whether to approve or deny the loan. For approved incoming loans, the loan agreement must indicate the purpose for which the loan is being received (for example, exhibition, on deposit for curatorial study, on approval for acquisition consideration, or similar) and the duration of the loan. Appropriate records are created for all loans, including issuing loan numbers.
▪ The loan of any object borrowed by the Museum for exhibition, publication, educational programs, or research must be documented in a loan agreement signed by the authorized representative of the lender and the Museum Director or his or her designate. Contracts for traveling exhibitions must be signed by the Museum Director. All parties must sign loan agreements and contracts prior to arrival on site of any borrowed objects. The term of all loans must be specified in full in all loan forms, contracts, or cover letters, including renewal options when applicable.
▪ No object(s) or specimen(s) will be accepted on “permanent loan.” Long-term loans or custodial agreements will specify renewal dates at intervals not greater than three years to ensure that the terms of the agreement remain relevant to the Museum’s mission and purposes.
▪ Objects may be left in temporary custody of the Museum for study, identification, or other non-exhibition purposes. The Museum Director, Manager of Curatorial Services, or Collections Registrar may authorize this category of loan, and the Collections Registrar must issue a receipt for temporary custody. The receipt must include at a minimum the date the object arrived, full contact information for the depositor, the date when it will be returned, and an assessment of its condition. Values assigned by the
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 27 depositor must be so identified. The Museum must not appear to endorse an unverified attribution or valuation.
▪ Loans for exhibition or objects left in the care of the Museum for other than exhibition purposes are insured by the Museum when they are on premises at the Museum’s request, unless other insurance arrangements are indicated in writing (for example, a traveling exhibition contract may govern this issue, or a lender may choose to maintain his or her own insurance). Certificates of insurance shall be issued as required.
▪ Unless other arrangements are made, incoming loans solicited by the Museum will be insured by the Museum for the full value provided by the lender. If doubts about the accuracy of a valuation arise, the Museum’s Collections Registrar and the lender must resolve the issue prior to the arrival of the object at the Museum.
▪ The Collections Registrar is responsible for arranging incoming shipping (or acting as the Museum’s contact for shipping), issuing receiving reports and/or loan receipts, and sending certificates of insurance. The Collections Registrar must assign loan numbers to all borrowed objects, including physically marking the object by temporary means when possible and feasible. The Collections Registrar maintains a file on each lender, mindful that in the case of loan objects that may subsequently join the permanent collection, the original loan file will become part of the object’s permanent record.
▪ The Collections Registrar must immediately report to the owner any damage to a work on loan. The Museum may be liable for its repair, conservation, or for compensation of loss of value, according to the regulations set forth in the Museum’s fine arts insurance policy. Full documentation of the damage must occur, in accordance with the Museum’s Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Recovery Plan.
▪ The Museum understands that any incoming loan may theoretically be withdrawn without advance notice by its owner. However, the Museum will seek written assurance that incoming loans for exhibition will not be withdrawn prior to the conclusion of the exhibition. Requests for return of objects prior to previously agreed-upon dates must be made in writing. If the party requesting the return of the loan is not the party that originally made the loan, proof of ownership or legal guardianship (for example, sales receipt, copy of will naming new owner, or similar) is required before objects will be released.
▪ The Collections Registrar is responsible for arranging return shipping (or acting as the Museum’s contact for shipping), and for issuing shipping memos/return receipts. The Collections Registrar must follow up to ensure that the lender signs a receipt indicating that the loaned objects have been returned by the Museum in good order.
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 28 6.4 Ethical Concerns Relating to Exhibitions and Incoming Loans
▪ The Museum shall adhere to ethical standards with regard to the property of others that meet or exceed legal minimums. Under no circumstances will temporary exhibitions be mounted that include borrowed material that would be considered illegal or unethical for the Museum to include in its own permanent collections.
▪ The primary criterion for selecting an exhibition is whether it fits the mission and program goals of the Museum of Riverside. An overriding criterion for selecting an object for exhibition must be whether it is the best available example to illustrate the theme being presented. Objects will not be exhibited a) solely to promote a living artisan’s work, b) to promote the political agenda of any government agency or lobbyist group, c) to influence the market for any particular type of object or product, d) solely to ingratiate the Museum with a lender, or e) in exchange for any product or service.
▪ The Museum will not borrow or exhibit objects with suspect provenances or doubtful evidence of ownership.
▪ The Museum will make public the source of funding when a lender is also a funder of an exhibition.
▪ The Museum will not establish itself as a sales outlet in competition with for-profit establishments. In the Museum’s didactic exhibitions, no objects marked for sale will be exhibited nor will the Museum accept other than a donation (not to exceed 10%) on the sale of borrowed objects that sell as a result of their exhibition at the Museum. When applicable, lenders to exhibitions will be informed in the early stages of exhibition planning of the Museum’s wish to receive this donation. However, the Museum will not handle sales of works on exhibition, and notice of sales made during Museum’s exhibitions and subsequent donations made to the Museum by dealers, collectors, or their representatives must be on the honor system.
▪ The Museum will examine each lender’s relationship to the institution to determine whether there are conflicts of interest or the appearance of conflicts. Loans that present ethical difficulties shall be politely declined. The Museum shall retain full decision- making authority over the content and presentation of any exhibition.
▪ Objects borrowed from staff shall be acknowledged publicly as anonymous loans. Staff and Board members will not bring personal collections to the Museum unless it is for stated Museum purposes that have been approved in advance. Personal objects may be used as office decoration or in educational programs at the staff member’s own risk. All
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 29 such objects must be clearly marked to indicate ownership. The Collections Registrar may inspect staff offices and keep a record of such objects if they are deemed to be similar to objects held in the Museum’s collections and subject to possible future confusion regarding ownership.
▪ In rare instances, an incoming loan may not be able to be returned to its owner upon conclusion of the loan period. Because of the complexity of issues surrounding the Museum’s rights, resolution of any problems caused by unclaimed loans shall be referred to legal counsel. See also California Civil Code § 1899 for unclaimed property legislation.
▪ The use of replicas, facsimiles, recasts, or the like in place of authentic objects is to be avoided. It is a goal to convey respect for material culture; therefore, the exhibitions must reinforce the view that there are historic qualities inherent in original objects that are inseparable from the objects themselves. Photographs, scale drawings, or verbal descriptions are preferred to replicas, whenever it is impossible to obtain key original pieces. Posthumous casts, prints (reproductions), and the like must be so indicated.
Works upon which significant cosmetic or restorative work has been done should also be so identified. Label data should be inclusive rather than minimal on the matter of authenticity.
▪ Preservation considerations partly determine what will be displayed and when.
Curatorial staff must consider the duration of exhibition, the condition of the object, maintenance requirements, and rotation needs, as well as the usual environmental considerations (light, heat, pollutants, vibration, and similar). Security is a key issue.
There will be no open, unprotected displays of small objects or artifacts of unusual value.
Consideration will be given to the locations of the most vulnerable objects, fastening and mounting devices to deter casual removal, barriers and stanchions, temporary alarms, exhibition inspection schedules, traffic patterns, and public access.
▪ At no time should a pretense be maintained that an exhibition or program can be objective or comprehensive in its treatment of any subject. Recognition of an inherent and unavoidable degree of bias in any interpretive choice can help the Museum respond to those who may take exception to its choices.
▪ No animal may be used or exhibited in a way that makes it an object of indifference, derision, or fear.
6.5 Repository Service
From time to time, the Museum has served as a designated repository for archaeological and paleontological collections obtained through field collecting by researchers, salvage efforts at
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 30 construction projects, and systematic surveys in the Riverside region. Such activities have been conducted on both public and private lands. The intention behind the acquisition of reposited collections is to enrich the resources available to the public through the Museum, and to provide access to collections that cannot legally or practically be retained by the parties or organizations that recover these materials. See Appendix B for a summary of legislation relevant to reposited collections. The Museum may also be called up to serve as a repository for an archival or document collection, such as historic preservation records or legal records.
All repository agreements will stipulate the length of the agreement, the conditions under which either party may end the agreement, rights the Museum may have to provide reference or other information services drawing from the materials on deposit, and the depositor’s rights to access.
Criteria for determining whether a collection is suited for acceptance by the Museum are the same as those applied to other Museum acquisitions and/or loans. Reposited materials will be curated in accordance with established Museum policy and other procedural guidelines that pertain to each collection’s discipline. The Museum of Riverside may at its discretion enter into ongoing repository agreements with research institutions, Native American tribes, federal and state land management programs, and natural resources agencies. All such agreements will be in writing and signed by both parties. Fees apply for rendering this service to other agencies and will be assessed at the time agreements are signed or renewed. Fees may be waived in certain cases by the Museum Director or his or her designate.
6.5.1 Repository Agreement
Under the terms of a Repository Agreement set up for each collection or project, the Museum will receive materials that have already been described, documented, and curated to a significant extent. The form and content of repository agreements will vary with the nature of the collections received and the agencies or parties involved. As with a loan agreement, each agreement will establish the term that the repository agreement is in effect, describe the minimum standards for the storage environment and care; define the required staff expertise at the Museum, and state compensation the Museum will receive. In some instances, the objects that are held under the terms of an agreement cannot be accessioned (for example, the National Park Service) because receipt does not involve a transfer of ownership. However, the depositor must have clear title of ownership for any collection proposed for repository at the Museum.
6.5.2 Requirement of Collection Integrity
Collections submitted to the Museum for repository must comprise a substantially complete collection of the materials, documents, records, and information acquired during a study so that they are useful for further research and public use. A complete collection includes all specimens, artifacts, and other cultural and environmental materials collected; analysis records; all fieldwork
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 31 records; all logs and notes; site and provenance maps; photographs and negatives; and copies of all reports and publications produced as a result of the study. Any materials destroyed during the process of analysis must be accounted for in the written documentation describing the project.
Other types of materials released for special analyses must also be accounted for in the written documentation.
Submitters must identify the owners of the specimens and/or artifacts recovered during fieldwork projects and archival records management projects. The purpose of this requirement is to clarify ownership of the collections and allow time for resolution of any ownership disputes before submitting the collection to the Museum.
6.5.3 Procedure
The protocol for accepting collections for repository is as follows:
▪ A proposal is prepared by the curator whose disciplinary expertise aligns with the collection, for presentation to Collections Committee.
▪ If a transfer of ownership to the Museum is proposed, approval to accept the collection by Collections Committee will result in a recommendation to the Museum Board. Following the procedure for all acquisitions, the Collections Committee will consider the proposed collection’s alignment with the mission, the submitter’s compliance with the Museum’s repository requirements, and the ability of the Museum to provide proper care and comply with federal regulations regarding archaeological collections (36 CFR Part 79), ethnographic collections (NAGPRA), biological collections (CADFW, USFWS), and geological or paleontological collections (USDOI and County of Riverside).
▪ A repository agreement between the Museum and the party depositing the collection must be approved by the office of the City Attorney of Riverside.
SECTION 7:
OUTGOING LOANS
7.1 General
The Museum of Riverside welcomes requests from educational institutions wishing to borrow objects from the permanent collections. The Museum lends in the conviction that professional cooperation of this nature enhances the Museum’s reputation through increased public exposure and association with worthy exhibitions. Further, the Museum lends because it borrows; lending is part of a process of active exhibition renewal and intellectual growth, and participation in our colleagues’ exhibitions and research supports an atmosphere of professional reciprocity.
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 32 In accordance with the educational component of its mission, the Museum lends from its permanent collection only for educational purposes and when it is confident that the objects will be cared for, exhibited, and/or studied in a manner consistent with its own purposes. Generally, this means that loans from the permanent collection will be made only to other museums. The Museum may also lend when there are opportunities to gain exposure for objects in the collection that are rarely exhibited at the Museum or when the objects will be seen and appreciated by large numbers of people. The Museum will lend objects to not-for-profit educational institutions only for specified periods of time, preferably for public exhibition. The Museum may lend in exceptional cases to other than not-for-profit institutions, but then only from the community collection and for the Museum’s public relations purposes. The Museum does not lend to private individuals.
7.2 Procedures
Loan procedures shall conform to generally accepted standards of the American Alliance of Museums’ member institutions, and complete records shall be maintained by the Collections Registrar. Additional conditions that must be met by the borrower, or restrictions on availability for loan, may apply in the case of selected objects and must be determined prior to granting loan approval.
▪ Recommendations on all loans must originate with a written request from the borrower to the Manager of Curatorial Services. Loan requests must include the purpose and duration of the loan and state the borrower’s agreement to cover customary costs and comply with the Museum’s loan regulations. If the Manager of Curatorial Services wishes to proceed with the loan, he or she must prepare a written recommendation. All recommendations to lend must be discussed by the Collections Committee and approved by the Museum Director. Outgoing loans are reported regularly to the Museum Board.
▪ Loan requests must be made at least ninety (90) days in advance of the beginning of the proposed loan period.
▪ Prior to determining whether a loan will be approved, the Collections Registrar must obtain a facilities report from the borrowing institution in order to determine whether the institution has appropriate staff, environmental controls, and security to protect the loan from damage, loss, or deterioration. Due consideration must be given to the impact, if any, of the object’s temporary absence on the Museum’s ongoing programming.
▪ No object shall be approved for loan unless the Manager of Curator Services and the Collections Registrar have judged it to be in satisfactory condition for travel and it is fully processed and documented, including photo-documentation.
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 33 ▪ The Collections Registrar, with the assistance of the Manager of Curatorial Services, must determine the current market value of any outgoing object(s) for insurance purposes.
If deemed appropriate, staff may ask a qualified conservator to make a recommendation regarding the travel-worthiness of the object(s). Outgoing loans must be insured for their full value by the borrower, and the Collection Registrar must obtain a certificate of insurance naming the Museum of Riverside and the City of Riverside as additional insured prior to the departure of the object from the Museum.
▪ If there is no apparent impediment to making the loan, the Manager of Curator Services shall prepare a written recommendation to the Museum Director stating the name of the borrower, the purpose of the loan, the dates of loan, and any special restrictions. All recommendations must include a statement assessing the borrower’s facilities report.
▪ The Museum Director must approve or deny the recommendation in writing. The Manager of Curatorial Services conveys the decision in writing to the requestor.
▪ The Collections Registrar is responsible for handling all loan arrangements including preparing a loan agreement form (to be signed by the Museum Director or his or her designate); supervising the removal of the object from exhibition or storage; mountmaking or framing; crate construction and packing; shipping, insurance, special requirements and billing the borrower for costs incurred as a result of the loan.
▪ When a courier is required, any crates or exhibition cases containing the Museum’s objects or specimens must be un/locked and/or un/sealed in the presence of the courier and not reopened until a Museum courier returns at the close of the exhibition.
▪ No loans of unspecified duration shall be approved. Requests for renewal must follow the same procedures as approval of the original request; renewal does not follow automatically upon approval of the original request.
▪ Outgoing loan agreements will specify renewal dates at intervals not greater than three years to ensure that the terms of the agreements remain aligned with the Museum’s outgoing loan program goals.
▪ Staff will periodically inspect premises hosting long-term loans from the Museum, request updated General Facility Reports, or otherwise ensure that borrowers are in compliance with the Museum’s terms of loan.
▪ All borrowers must comply with the Museum’s regulations regarding travel conditions, handling, documentation, photography, and similar matters. The borrower must sign a
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 34 loan agreement, and no object shall be released until the Collections Registrar is in receipt of the signed loan agreement and all accompanying documents. When both lender and borrower issue a loan agreement form, the lender’s form shall take precedence.
▪ Borrowers who cancel their requests prior to transport of a loan will be responsible for services requested up to the point of cancellation, which may include conservation, mount-making, photography, or similar.
Note: The Museum possesses objects for which it does not own copyright. Thus, requests for permission to publish images of outgoing loan objects may not be within the purview of the Museum to grant. The Museum will place a borrower in contact with a copyright holder when that copyright holder is known to Museum staff.
SECTION 8:
RECORDKEEPING, RESEARCH, COLLECTION ACCESS, AND RIGHTS &
REPRODUCTIONS
8.1 General
“The documentary value of a museum collection is a principal criterion of its excellence, and museum accession records should therefore be of the highest order of accuracy and completeness.”
Policy on Museum Acquisitions, Smithsonian Institution
The Museum of Riverside is committed to continuing analysis of the collections on a scholarly basis and to high quality interpretation of the collections through exhibitions, programs, and publications. The Museum will be generous and proactive in providing the expertise of the curatorial and education staff in all areas of activity.
A facet of the Museum’s acceptance of its responsibility as a caretaker institution existing for the public good is to facilitate access to the collections for present and future visitors and researchers. “Access” may be interpreted in many ways, and the Museum provides as many avenues as practically possible by which the visitor or professional colleague may benefit from an experience at the Museum. Access includes exposure to the cultural ideas the staff is in a position to present successfully—from reminding the visitor of forgotten pasts to providing a forum for the evaluation of current trends. It encompasses the maximum physical availability of the collections consistent with staff availability, while working within the limitations of the security, physical condition, and processing status of collection objects. While every effort will be made to accommodate all reasonable requests, preference will be given to scholars, researchers,
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 35 professional colleagues, collectors, and students. Maximizing access may also include employing the staff’s expertise to safeguard important examples of material culture, whether this takes the form of acquiring significant objects or participating in cooperative efforts to preserve objects that the Museum is not itself in a position to obtain and safeguard.
In order to create greater awareness of the importance of research, the Museum will communicate to the public the need for and relevance of research through its various educational activities and, wherever feasible, make the subjects and methods of research components of its exhibitions. Except in unusual circumstances, research undertaken will be limited to what is directly necessary for the coordination of exhibitions and public programs; that is, applied rather than pure research.
Records for accessions will be created promptly and comprehensively. In order to ensure complete records, the Collections Registrar will follow specific procedures and checklists for processing objects and specimens, recommending their revision from time to time, as required.
8.2 Intellectual Independence
All research undertaken in-house is based on the Museum’s collections and programs and is conducted by the curatorial or educational staff. The intellectual independence of its staff shall be protected and supported by the Museum Director and the Museum Board. The Board and administration shall not exert undue influence on the subject matter or direction of research, nor allow unwarranted public or political pressure or uninformed popular attitudes to affect or subvert legitimate scholarly studies or the publication of research results.
8.3 Records
There are two categories of collection records:
▪ registration records relate to the objects’ legal status, their movement, and their care;
▪ curatorial records relate to research, exhibition, provenance, and publication of the object—records that establish the object’s place in the cultural continuum.
While both types of records may be physically maintained in the same place(s), the responsibility for creating each lies with the Collections Registrar and curators, respectively, and requests for public access to non-proprietary information in the collection records must be facilitated collaboratively by the Collections Registrar and curators.
Staff members shall preserve and maintain for the Museum, and whenever possible on Museum premises, all collection-related and discipline-based documents or copies thereof that they may have produced, assembled, or obtained as part of their particular collection or research activities
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 36 and specialties. This includes field notebooks, audio recordings, photographs, drawings, or any other recorded information that is the result of scholarly endeavors. Primary documents that are offered, sold, or given to staff personally as a result of their professional specialties and/or connection with the Museum must be treated in the same manner as the gift of a collection- related object, that is, the Museum must be given the opportunity to acquire the document(s) or object(s) for the price paid by the employee, plus related expenses, if the document/object would have been a target of acquisition efforts. Refer also to the Museum’s code of ethics and conduct for further guidance with respect to the collecting of cultural objects, specimens, and related documents.
As soon as is practical, information relevant to new acquisitions must be made accessible to qualified scholars, subject to normal restrictions required for the protection and scholarly use of the collections and supporting documents. Curatorial and education staff will enter into full and open exchange of information with any research associates and will avoid duplication of effort.
The results of research will be considered the property of the wider scholarly community whether or not yet published. Careful consideration, however, will be given to the sensitivity and confidentiality of any personal information from any source to ensure that its use does not represent an invasion of privacy or place any individuals or groups at risk.
8.3.1 Found-in-Collections Objects
An unmarked object found in the collections that appears to be unaccessioned and without a record will be treated as a donation and be subject to normal review processes to 1) recommend it for accession into the permanent collection, 2) allocate it to another collection, or 3) designate it for disposal. Such objects will be identified as found-in-collections, and the record will reflect the date that it was either accessioned or, if not recommended for accession, the date that its disposition was determined.
8.3.2 Inventory
Inventory is an assist to preservation. Under the direction of the Collections Registrar, collection inventories will be conducted regularly and as often as is feasible, as a uniform method of maintaining/enhancing records, conducting periodic condition reports, and identifying the need to improve storage and housing solutions. The Collections Registrar shall also conduct random spot checks to determine object condition and location.
The Collections Registrar will establish and follow an inventory process and will maintain a current digital inventory. Inventory may be conducted on a continuous rolling schedule or as a single intensive project but, in any case, it is recommended that every object or specimen will be inventoried no less often than once in each five-year period.
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 37 Any object or specimen appearing to be missing during the course of inventory must be reported to the Collections Registrar who will examine documentation and confer with curatorial staff overseeing the collection in question. If the object or specimen is not accounted for within a reasonable period of time, the Collections Registrar will make a formal report to the Museum Director. Subsequent steps will be determined by the Museum Director on a case-by-case basis, under advice of counsel if necessary.
8.4 Authorship
Due credit must be given to those involved in any study. Under no circumstances will staff or research associates knowingly represent as their own any text, idea, or expression of an idea of another. Supervisors must be circumspect in formally associating themselves with the results of research done under their aegis and only do so in proportion to their actual contributions to the research project(s). Supervisors will not deny reasonable access to time to conduct research, exert improper influence on the subject matter or direction of research, nor impede pursuit of publication of the results of any research done pursuant to an exhibition or program that has institutional support.
8.4.1 Curatorial Opinions
The expert opinion of members of the curatorial staff may be solicited upon occasion by members of the public and may be provided within the staff’s areas of expertise. Opinions will be given orally only, rather than in writing or via e-mail, and it shall be stressed that the information being provided is an opinion. No fees will be assessed for such services unless a significant investment of time is required, in which case the curatorial staff member and the requestor shall determine a fee in advance based on the Museum’s schedule of fees for professional services.
8.5 Copyright and Rights & Reproductions
The Museum of Riverside complies with all national and international law protecting copyright.
Refer to Section 3.2.1 above relating to securing copyright or licensing rights for new acquisitions. Copyright is complex, and all uses contemplated by the Museum may not be permitted under the fair use exclusion. Use of images of works in the collection or on loan must be examined in advance with care to avoid copyright infringement. Refer to the American Alliance of Museums’ publication A Museum Guide to Copyright and Trademark. Staff will exercise particular care when contemplating product development for the Museum’s retail shops or other non-educational uses.
Applicants seeking permission to publish images of works in the collection must fill out the appropriate request forms, supplied by the Collections Registrar, and pay the necessary
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 38 photographic fees. The responsibility for securing necessary copyright permissions rests with the applicant. The Museum can grant permission only insofar as it holds rights.
8.5.1 Online usage
Collection images posted online will be limited to four categories: 1) objects for which the Museum owns copyright, 2) objects for which the Museum holds an explicit license for online usage, 3) objects that are in the public domain, or 4) specimens for which copyright is irrelevant.
8.5.2 Photography
As a matter of routine, the Collections Registrar will photo-document all objects or specimens in the permanent collection. Publication-quality photographs will be produced for objects or specimens that are or are anticipated to be in high demand by the public or scholars.
Researchers may take photographs of objects or specimens for their personal, non-commercial use. Researchers and all others who wish to take photographs or use the Museum’s photographs of objects or specimens for the purpose of publication must formally request permission to publish. The Museum will make every effort to ensure that authors and publishers use high quality photographs to represent objects or specimens published from the Museum’s collection or in the Museum’s name.
Photographs that are on file to document human remains or Indigenous sacred objects that are no longer collected or have been deaccessioned from the collections may not under any circumstances be published or copied.
8.6 Physical Access to Collections and Records
Independent of access by means of exhibition galleries, staff will make reasonable accommodation for scholars and others who wish to examine objects or specimens in storage.
This level of access may be limited by available staff time, the size, weight, or condition of an object, or other considerations. Rules regarding non-staff access to back-of-house collection areas are incorporated herein as a matter of policy.
▪ Use of the sign-in log for access to storage or archives is required for non-staff entry.
▪ A maximum of four non-staff individuals may enter at any time, assuming the visitors are known to staff or are trained volunteers.
▪ A maximum of two non-staff individuals at any time, if they are unknown to staff; two curatorially trained staff members must be present for all visits from strangers.
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 39 ▪ Prior to entering the space, staff must instruct visitors not to touch any objects; to leave behind drinks, food, and bags; and to use only pencils when taking notes.
▪ No non-curatorial staff members is ever to be left in a storage space unattended.
▪ Staff will determine the nature of the request before entering the space and look up records beforehand to be prepared to avoid all distractions.
▪ Selected works may be brought to a separate space for close examination; staff may not leave objects unaccompanied in these spaces while they are examined by visitors.
▪ Clean gloves must be provided and used by the visitor, if pages in a sketchbook must be turned or some other level of handling is necessary.
▪ Non-curatorial access to collections records is restricted. Requests for access must be made to the appropriate curator or the Collections Registrar, who must redact as necessary to protect the anonymity of donors, current monetary value of objects or specimens, incomplete research in process, confidential site locations, or other restricted or proprietary information. Copies of records or transfers of data may be permitted only within the guidelines of this policy or as required by law. Secondary transfer of data is not permitted without permission or without appropriate credit to the Museum.
▪ Original collection records will not be destroyed or altered. Specimen-based data will not be destroyed or altered. Records may be digitized and/or reference copies of records may be produced for curatorial use.
8.6.1 Collections Relating to Native Americans
Recognized representatives or lineal descendants of Native American and other Indigenous nations whose cultural objects are held by the Museum may request onsite or off-site access to or use of such objects for ceremonial, research, or similar culturally-specific purposes. Such uses may from time to time involve waiving certain general regulations, such as permitting handling without gloves or using objects in smudging ceremonies. Such access will not be permitted if it will result in the destruction or significant and irrevocable alteration of the object. Each such request for access must be presented to the Museum Director who may consult with the relevant collection curator, the Collections Committee, and outside consultants. All such requests will be considered and approved or denied on a case-by-case basis.
The Museum will respectfully observe—when known—any cultural proscriptions relating to the handling and care of Native objects, including, for example, limitations on who may handle or
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 40 see them and under what circumstances, or whether or not such objects may be photographed, published, or exhibited.
The Museum will not produce or cause to be produced any replicas for sale of Native American tribally-made objects held in its collections.
SECTION 9:
LIVE ANIMAL AND PLANT POLICIES
The Museum has historically operated and maintained a living collection in its Nature Lab designed to augment the Museum’s inanimate interpretive resources and represent the region’s biological diversity as well as natural history in general. This collection typically includes living specimens of plants (vascular and nonvascular) and animals (vertebrates and invertebrates) but does not necessarily exclude other types of living organisms that may be deemed appropriate to enhance educational programming. It is considered an education collection. This policy lays out 1) the fundamental philosophy of the space where this living collection is housed, 2) handling and care procedures to keep both staff and visitors safe, and 3) strategies to encourage responsible and meaningful interactions with live animals and plants.
9.1 Philosophy
The Museum promotes an understanding and appreciation of the natural world through the interaction with live animals and plants. The Nature Lab is a safe place for all to explore live reptiles, amphibians, fish, and arthropods. Engaging with live animals breaks down social barriers and creates an atmosphere of open discourse where visitors are more inclined to share their experiences with nature with staff and other visitors.
9.2 Authority
The Museum Director has final authority and responsibility for living collections housed at the Museum. Day-to-day responsibility is delegated to the Curator of Natural History with support from education staff.
9.3 Permits and Regulations
The Curator of Natural History is responsible for obtaining permits necessary for legal acquisition, exhibit, propagation, and use of living collections (for example, USDA APHIS permits to transport live cockroaches [Blaberus discoidalis] across state borders). Under no circumstances will staff accept or collect without full local, state, national, and international authorization, as required.
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 41 While federal and state laws and regulations may not apply to species housed as part of the living collection at the Museum at any given period of time, special Museum programming or temporary exhibitions may at times involve warm-blooded animals or other animals covered by such regulations. Owners and handlers of visiting animals must provide copies of relevant permits and evidence of compliance with applicable federal and state regulations before arriving on Museum premises.
A separate procedural manual outlines animal inventory and tracking procedures, in accordance with Museum practices for education and living collections.
9.4 Facility Design
Museum facilities and program spaces are arranged to provide proper visitor flow and adequate ventilation for both animals and humans. The goal is for visitors to enter and exit through transition areas, that is, spaces that allow for distinct separation between animal and non-animal spaces. This practice is followed for outdoor and off-site programs as well as indoor facilities.
Animal feed and water should not be accessible to the public. Instructions for visitors include educational information and, for animal contact programs, sanitizing or hand-washing facilities.
No food or beverages are allowed in animal areas. In addition, children carrying toys, and the use of pacifiers, spill-proof cups, and baby bottles are not permitted in animal areas. The facility is designed with spaces for visitors to leave such items temporarily.
9.5 Handling of Live Animals
Trained staff must be present at all times in areas where animal contact is permitted. This is to encourage appropriate human-animal interactions, reduce the risk for exposure (for example, by promptly cleaning up waste), and process reports of injuries and exposures.
Museum staff, lab staff, and volunteers must receive training on animal care and interaction prior to any public program and prior to performing any behind-the-scenes animal support functions.
All staff contact with animals or their housing, food, or feces must be followed by hand washing.
As a matter of general practice, only approved animals in the lab are to be handled by visitors and only under the supervision of approved and trained staff.
Careful consideration for the animals’ well-being is of utmost concern before any handling occurs by staff or visitors. Under no circumstances will an animal be handed to a person showing clear signs of a phobic, allergic, or other negative reaction. All procedures and activities are tailored to individual animals and are based in part on the species, breed, age, procedure performed, degree of tissue trauma, individual behavioral characteristics, degree of pain, and health status of the animal. Hand-washing and/or sanitizing facilities are provided and are recommended for any
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 42 individuals who handle live animals in the lab and/or during outreach as a matter of procedure.
This is especially recommended for individuals with a higher risk of susceptibility such as the elderly, people with weakened immune systems, and young children.
9.6 Animal Health Issues
The Museum adheres to animal welfare guidelines developed by professional and veterinary organizations “to avoid the unintentional injury or death of animals as a part of training or for any entertainment purposes.” Activities that include handling and contact by the public shall be carried out to insure human safety and not “substantially compromise animal welfare of animals that are ill, of unknown health status, or that are of a vulnerable age” (for example, immature or developing animals).
Procedures and activities shall be tailored to individual animals and based, in part, on the species, breed, age, procedure performed, degree of tissue trauma, individual behavioral characteristics, degree of pain, and health status of the animal.
All reptiles and amphibians shall be treated as Salmonella carriers; reptiles should be free of snake mites and pentastomids (for example, Armillifer sp.). All staff contact with both amphibians and reptiles, or their housing, food, or feces, should be followed by hand washing. The elderly, people with weakened immune systems, and young children (under the age of five) should be cautious when in contact with any reptile or amphibian.
Ill or injured animals will be afforded veterinary care immediately. Euthanasia will be performed in a humane manner only when there is no reasonable hope of recovery from severe trauma, illness, or age-related issues. Recommendation for euthanasia is made by the Curator of Natural History and approved by the Museum Director or his or her designate. Approval by the Museum Director may be waived if the Curator of Natural History in consultation with a veterinarian determines that it is in the best interest of the animal to be euthanized immediately.
Under no circumstances will euthanasia be used as a planned disposition method for animals at the close of a temporary exhibition.
Should the Museum find itself unable to care for one or more animals in its collection, every effort will be made to locate responsible, caring, and legal caretakers. Under no circumstances will an animal be turned over to any party whose credentials are doubtful.
SECTION 10:
MUSEUM OF RIVERSIDE PUBLICATIONS
10.1 General
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 43 “Publications are an important part of a museum’s public image . . . high quality publications are a reflection of the institution’s image of itself and attitude toward its collections, its mission, its community, and the larger museum field.”
Helen Kebabian and William Padgett, Production of Museum Publications, Hamilton, NY: GANYS, 1990.
The production of temporary exhibition and permanent collection publications is handled by the curatorial department in consultation with the Museum Director. The care, storage, and distribution of the Museum’s own collection- and exhibition-related publications are the responsibility of the curatorial department in consultation with the retail manager.
10.2 Guidelines
▪ All publications shall be stored in a secure, climate-controlled area on Museum premises and/or, if necessary, at a similarly secure off-premises site.
▪ The Manager of Curatorial Services or his or her designate will maintain an inventory of all publications by author, title, year published, number of copies remaining, and storage location, including those held in the Museum’s archives.
▪ Publications can be made available for retail sale through the Museum’s retail shops.
The price of the publication is to be determined by the Senior Analyst with all input regarding total production costs and the sales market.
▪ No Museum publication should be sold for less than its unit production cost. Except for regular member discounts, no Museum publications shall be devalued by being further discounted or placed “on sale.”
▪ The number of copies of any publication available for sale in the Museum’s retail shops will be determined by the Manager of Curatorial Services, any publishing guest curator or author, and the staff in charge of the retail function, considering all budgetary restraints. This number must take into consideration all other distribution obligations that will need to be satisfied (for example, relevant research libraries, the Museum’s archives, exhibition tour venues, regional museum partners, contributors to catalog content, membership benefits, contractual obligations, and similar).
▪ Since Museum publications are expensed in the exhibition budgets, they will have a zero value in Museum shop inventories. Proceeds from sale of Museum publications shall be reported as an income line item in the general operating budget separate from other retail income.
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 44 ▪ For each publication, a specific number of copies shall be set aside for the Museum’s own institutional archives. As a rule, the number will be no fewer than 25 copies (exhibition brochures and smaller publications) and no fewer than 15 copies (catalogs and large-scale publications).
▪ A limited number of copies may also be made available for distribution by other staff for public relations and/or educational purposes. Such distribution will be sparing unless other departments have substantially co-funded the publication.
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 45 APPENDIX A:
SUPPORTING REFERENCES
American Alliance of Museums’ Code of Ethics, adopted 1993, amended 2000 American Alliance of Museums’ Curators’ Committee Code of Ethics, 1996 American Alliance of Museums’ Guidelines Concerning Unlawful Appropriation of Objects During the Nazi Era, 1999, amended 2001
American Alliance of Museums’ Guidelines on Exhibiting Borrowed Objects, 2000 American Institute for Conservation, Code of Ethics and Guidelines for Practice Federal Antiquities Act, 1906 (NB: Other federal legislation to protect cultural, archaeological, and historic property may apply.)
Convention on Biological Diversity, 1992
Endangered Species Act, 1973 (NB: Other federal legislation to protect wildlife may affect museums that hold and use certain types of objects, including CITES [Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna], the Lacey Act, the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, and others.)
Marie C. Malaro, A Legal Primer on Managing Museum Collections, second edition.
Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1998.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Procedures for Deaccessioning and Disposal of Works of Art, 1973.
National Historic Preservation Act, as amended through December 16, 2016.
Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), 1990 Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties, distributed through the National Park Service.
John Simmons. Things Great and Small: Collections Management Policies. Washington, DC, American Association of Museums, 2006.
Standing Professional Committees Council of the American Alliance of Museums, Standards for Museum Exhibitions and Indicators of Excellence UNESCO’s Treaty on Cultural Property, 1970, and other UNESCO international conventions and publications regarding cultural property
Visual Artists Rights Act (VARA), 1990
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 46 APPENDIX B:
SUMMARY OF LEGISLATION RELEVANT TO REPOSITORIES
Legislation is listed in approximate chronological order.
B.1 International
The Convention on Cultural Property Implementation Act (CPIA) is an International law passed in 1983 that provides a process for illegally exported cultural materials to return to their place of origin and UNIDROIT (International Institute for the Unification of Private Law) Convention on Stolen or Illegally Exported Cultural Objects (Rome, 1995).
B.2 Federal
Federal Antiquities Act of 1906 (P.L. 59-202, 32 Stat. 255). Forbids and establishes criminal sanctions for disturbance of any object of antiquity of federal land without a permit issued by an authorizing authority.
1872 Mining Law, amended 1988. U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) regulate surface effects of development under this law. BLM regulations specifically state that operators may not knowingly disturb or destroy any scientifically important paleontological remains on federal lands; that they notify an authorized officer of such finds; and that said officer shall take action to protect or remove the resource(s).
Mineral Leasing Act of 1920 (sec. 30). Requires and provides for the protection of interest of the United States. Natural resources, including paleontological resources, are commonly regarded as such interests.
National Natural Landmarks Program, established 1962, administered under Historic Sites Act of 1935 (P.L. 74-292, 16 U.S.C. 461-467). A National Natural Landmark is defined as “an area of national significance ... that contains an outstanding representative example(s) of the nation’s natural heritage, including ... geological features ... or fossil evidence of the development of life on earth.” National significance is defined as “...examples of the full range of ecological and geological features, the usual as well as the unique, which best represent the nation’s heritage, the knowledge and appreciation of which are important for the perpetuation of their inherent natural values and for associated scientific, educational, recreational, or inspirational benefit” (36 CFR 62, 1985).
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) (P.L. 91-190, 83 Stat. 852, 42 USC 4321- 4327). Mandates evaluation of impacts in order to “preserve important historic, cultural, and natural aspects of our national heritage” (Section 101.b4).
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 47 Executive Order 11593, May 31, 1971, Protection and Enhancement of the Cultural Environment (36 CFR 8921). Requires federal agencies to inventory and protect properties under their jurisdiction. National Park Service regulations under 36 CFR provide that paleontological specimens may not be disturbed or removed without a permit.
Archaeological and Historic Data Preservation Act of 1974 (P.L. 86-253, as amended by P.L. 93- 921, 16 U.S.C. 469). Act of May 24, 1974 (88 Stat 174, sec. 3 a0, 4a). Provides for the survey, recovery, and preservation of significant scientific, prehistoric, historic, archaeological, or paleontological data when such data may be destroyed or irreparably lost due to a federal, federally licensed, or federally funded project. A “Statement of Program Approach” was published in the Federal Register on March 26, 1979 (40 FR 18117) to advise the manner in which this law will be implemented.
36 CFR Part 800 (39 FR 3365, January 25, 1974, and 44 FR 6068, January 30, 1979):
Procedures for the Protection of Historic and Cultural Properties. Establishes procedures to ensure that historic and cultural resources are given proper consideration in the preparation of environmental impact statements.
Federal Land Management and Policy Act of 1976 (FLPMA, P.L. 94-579, 43 U.S.C. 1701- 1782). Provides authority for BLM to regulate lands under its jurisdiction, managed in a manner to “protect the quality of scientific, scenic, historic, ecological, environmental ... and archaeological values.” Authority is given to establish areas of critical environmental concern (ACEC, or American Council of Engineering Companies).
Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA, P.L. 95-87, 30 U.S.C. 1201- 1328). Regulates surface coal mining and provides designation as unsuitable for surface mining if mining would “...result in significant damage to important cultural, scientific, and esthetic values and natural systems....”
The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) is a federal law passed in 1990 that provides a process for museums that receive federal funds and federal agencies to return Native American cultural items—human remains, funerary objects, sacred objects, and objects of cultural patrimony—to lineal descendants, and culturally affiliated Native American tribes.
Paleontological Resource Management. 1998. Handbook H-8270-1 General Procedural Guidance for Paleontological Management.
B.3. State of California
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 48 California Environmental Quality Act of 1970 (CEQA, 13 PRC, 2100 et seq). Requires identification of potential adverse impacts of a project to any object or site of scientific importance (Div. 1, PRC 5020.1(b)).
Guidelines for the Implementation of the California Environmental Quality Act, as amended May 10, 1980 (14 Cal. Admin. Code: 15000 et seq). Requires mitigation of adverse impacts to a paleontological site from development on public land by construction monitoring.
Guidelines for the Implementation of CEQA, 1992, Appendix G, section J (Significant effects).
Defines when a project will normally have a significant effect on the environment. “A project will normally have a significant effect on the environment if it will ... disrupt or adversely affect a prehistoric or historic archaeological site or a property of historic or cultural significance to a community or ethnic or social group; or a paleontological site except as a part of a scientific study....”
California Environmental Quality Act, State of California Public Resources Code, 2100 21177 as amended January 1, 1999, Appendix G. Environmental Checklist Form. Impacts to known, important paleontological resources are specifically covered under CEQA as potentially significant effects (that is, the project will have a significant effect on the environment).
Specifically, each California project must answer the question: Cultural Resource – Would the project directly or indirectly destroy a unique paleontological resource or site or unique geological feature? There are four possible answers: Potentially Significant Impact, Potentially Significant Unless Mitigation Incorporated, Less than Significant Impact, No Impact.
Warren-Alquist Act (PRC 25000 et seq). Requires the California Energy Commission to evaluate energy facility siting in unique areas of scientific concern (Section 26627).
Public Resources Code, Section 5097.5 (State 1965, c. 1136, p. 2792). Prohibits excavation or removal of any “vertebrate paleontological site ... or any other archaeological, paleontological, or historical feature, situated on public lands, except with the express permission of the public agency having jurisdiction over such lands.” Public lands are defined to include lands owned by or under the jurisdiction of the state or any city, county, district, authority, or public corporation, or any agency thereof. Defines any unauthorized disturbance or removal of archaeological, historical, or paleontological materials or sites located on public lands as a misdemeanor.
Public Resources Code, Section 30244. Requires reasonable mitigation of adverse impacts to paleontological resources from development on public land.
Museum of Riverside Collections and Exhibitions Management Policies 49 APPENDIX C:
ABBREVIATIONS
The following abbreviations may appear in this document or in other collections-related Museum documents.
AAM American Alliance of Museums
AIC American Institute for Conservation
APHIS Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
AZA Association of Zoos and Aquariums
BLM Bureau of Land Management
CADFW California Department of Fish and Wildlife
CC City Council
CEQA California Environmental Quality Act
CFR Code of Federal Regulations
CPIA Convention on Cultural Property Implementation Act CITES Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species CLG Certified Local Government
ESA Endangered Species Act
FLPMA Federal Land Policy and Management Act
IMLS Institute of Museum and Library Services
NAGPRA Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act NEPA National Environmental Policy Act
NHL National Historic Landmark
NPS National Park Service
RMC Riverside Municipal Code
SHPO State Historic Preservation Office
SMCRA Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act
UCC Universal Copyright Convention (a.k.a. The Berne Convention) UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization USBR United States Bureau of Reclamation
USDOI United States Department of the Interior
USFWS United States Fish and Wildlife Service
VARA Visual Artists’ Rights Act