CHAPTER FIVE

MUSEUM

4.1 Meaning and history of museum

4.1.1 Definition of museum

What is museum?
 Cont’d…
 Museum is a non-profit making permanent institution in
the service of society, which acquires, conserves,
researches, communicates, and exhibits, for the purpose
of study, education and enjoyment (The International
Council of Museums (ICOM).
 Cont’d…
 Museum is an institution which collects, documents,
preserves, exhibits and interprets material evidence and
associated information for the public benefit
(patricroylan, 2005:11).
 According to Neal, a museum is a teaching institution,
whose teachers are its collections, aided by the
knowledge and skill of curators(keepers or custodian),
researchers and its interpretive staff.
 Cont’d…
 Museums do for objects what libraries do for books and
archives for official documents.
 It is the place where heritages are kept, collected,
documented, conserved and exhibited for the purpose of
entertainment, inspiration, education and advancement
of knowledge.
 Cont’d…

 The modern definition of museum is not only about

objects.
 The International Council of Museums' current definition
of a museum (adopted in 2022):
 "A museum is a not-for-profit, permanent institution in
the service of society that researches, collects,
conserves, interprets and exhibits tangible and
intangible heritage.
 Cont’d…

 It is beyond the simple description of objects.

 What is most important and valuable today about the
museum objects is:-
 the message they communicate.
 the meaning they provide.
 the value they attribute.
 the representations they generate corresponding to a
particular historic notion/ideas.
 Cont’d…
 In general, museum is an important public place which
is used to:-
collect and preserve heritage objects
record information about them
study them and make them available to the public for
entertainment and educational purposes.
provide an access for the public to understand and
appreciate the natural world, the history of civilizations,
the record of artistic, scientific and technological
achievements of humans.
 Cont’d…
Appeal to people with a desire to understand the past
and to consider how the past can inform the future.
Have greater capacity to reflect both change and
continuity.
Offer considerable opportunities for self-learning and
exploration by people of diverse ages, interest,
backgrounds and abilities.
 Cont’d…

Provide valuable intangible benefits as sources of

national, regional and local identity.
Provide primary information for researchers, scholars,
and specialists of any kind regarding cultural and nature
treasures.
Treasures= Valuable material items or collections and
natural settings
4.1.2 Historical Background of Museums
 One of the earliest museums was the great university at
Alexandria founded in the 2nd century by ptolemy I.
 This museum consisted of a lecture hall, a court, a
cloister/monastery, a garden, the library, astronomical
observatory and collection of biological objects.
 Cont’d…
 Now a days ‘museum’ is used to describe the building or
parts of a building in which interesting objects illustrating
antiquates, natural history, art, history of technology and
so forth are stored and exhibited to the public.
 An early museum in Europe is the Asholean museum at
oxford, founded in 1682 from the collection of Elias
Ashmole, who was once a great collector of natural
history objects.
 Cont’d…
 The first public museum in British Louvre museum was
founded in 1753, towards the end of 18th century.
In 1880 the natural science museum of United States
display of scientific collection for educational purpose
begins.
In 1888, Nuremberg museum, Germany was opened to
the public.
……………..present
 Cont’d…
 Thanks to treasure hunters, today it is not necessary to
travel to Africa to visit African collection,
 Because the collections in Paris or London are almost
representative as those in Africa,
 As a result, the average citizen of London or Paris has
seen more African collection than the average African.
 In developing countries, visiting a museum becomes an
exciting adventure.
4.2 Types of museum
A. Timothy Ambrose & Crispin Paine Classification of
Museum:
 Classified by collections:
general museums (interdisciplinary Museums), archaeology
museums, art museums, history museums, ethnography
museums, natural history museums, science museums,
geology museums, industrial museums, military museums.
 Cont’d…

 Classified by who runs them: government museums,

public museums, university museums, independent
(charitable trust) museums, army museums,
commercial company museums, private museums.
 Classified by the area they serve: national museums,
regional museums, city museums, local museums.
 Cont’d…

 Classified by the audience they serve: general public

museums, educational museums, specialist museums.

 Classified by the way they exhibit their collections:

Traditional museums, Historic house museums, Open-air
museums, Interactive museums.
B. Elaine Gurian’s Museum Classification:
 Object-Centered Museums: are the “treasure-based”
museums that concentrate on the material they own or
borrow.
 The objects are the source of research and scholarship
and the basis for public exhibition programs.
 The extant collections inform subsequent acquisitions.
 Cont’d…
 Narrative Museums: bases its primary focus on the
explication of a story, recognizing that objects have
important but limited use.
 In these museums, objects serve primarily as evidence.
 Narrative museums are interested in making the non-
visible.
 Client-centered Museums: focus on ways of promoting
learning among their targeted visitors.
 Cont’d…
 Children’s museums and some science centres have
audience as their priority rather than content.
 They often have no collections at all.
 Community - centered Museums: similar to the client
centered but their main concern is the well-being of their
communities.
 National (Government) Museums: preserves the nation’s
heritage and the achievement of the nation.
4.3 Functions of museum
 Each museum has four major activities: collection,
documentation, conservation and exhibition.
1.Collection: refers to the acquisition of heritage objects to
a museum.
 It is a fundamental and principal activity of a museum.
 Cont’d…

 Why we collect Museum objects and traditions?

 To rescue them before they are destroyed and
disappeared.
 For our need to display.
 To take part in a joint collecting and research program
with other museum.
 Cont’d…
 What we collect?
 The answer is objects and traditions which they meet
the objectives of our museum.
 How we Collect?
 Museums acquire material for their collections in a
variety of ways:
 Donations: Items may be brought into the museum for
identification and then offered to the museum, or may be
left as bequests.
 Cont’d…
 Purchase normally: It takes place when the museum
purchasing from collectors, dealers and so on.
 Field-collecting: as part of a defined research programme
allows for a systematic approach to collecting in line with
the museum’s overall collecting policy.
 Cont’d…
 Exchange
 Here collections are transferred to or exchanged with
museums that can provide appropriate resources and
skills to look after them.
 Loans are a method of providing the public with an
opportunity to see material in public or private
collections that may not otherwise be accessible to the
museum’s users.
 Cont’d…
2. Documentation:- is concerned with the recording and
maintaining of complete and accurate information about
every museum collections.
 Well-done documentation work is very important
because:
 It is the base for research and exhibition development
 It Provides a legal title to museum objects
 It is a means for monitoring the physical condition of
collections.
 Cont’d…

 It is used to identify each object using its unique number

called accession number.
 Many developed countries usually conduct the work of
documentation using electronic databases and maintain
a permanent record for each objects.
 Cont’d…
 It includes the source of object
 the year it was acquired
 the maker of the object
 attribution (ownership history)
 creation date
 description of the object
 purchase price
 How we document museum collections?
 There are two types of documentation systems:
 Field documentation and
 Museum documentation
 Cont’d…
A. Field Documentation
 The actual techniques of field documentation will, like
the techniques of collecting, vary from discipline to
discipline.
 At the core of many fieldwork techniques is the field
notebook.
 Every museum worker should be trained to keep a field
notebook and to enter it up every day in the field.
 The notebook should include sketches, diagrams and
written notes.
 Cont’d…
 drawing diagrams will preserve information that cannot
be expressed in words.
 Photography, film and video are other essential
techniques in every kind of fieldwork, and all museum
workers should use a camera as naturally as they use a
notebook.
 The tape-recorder and video-camera will also be
valuable tools for many museum field-workers.
 Cont’d…

 Finally, the museum’s field documentation is kept safely

for it is as important as the collections themselves.

 It should be linked to the collections so a researcher

studying a group of objects can easily find the records
made in the field by those persons who collected them.
 Cont’d…
 Remember:- field documentation belongs to the
museum and not to the curator or manager!
 Photograph, film and video are used by museums in
five ways:
i. As recording techniques, for fieldwork and collecting
ii. As Original records, themselves forming part of the
collections.
iii. As display techniques, to help interpret and present
the museum’s collections to the public.
 Cont’d…
iv. On the museum’s website.
v. For commercial and marketing purposes.
 In societies where most people do not regularly read
and write, storytelling and the oral tradition remain of
immense importance.
 Sadly, it seems that as literacy becomes more
widespread, many of the traditions based on memory
and word-of mouth get forgotten, and oral tradition
becomes despised by those for whom only what is
written on paper or on disk is important.
 Cont’d…
 A museum undertaking even a few oral history
interviews will need to give thought to how they are to
be preserved and made available to users.
 Whether the museum is preserving magnetic tapes or
computer files, the first thing to create is a record
system.
 There will be a record for each tape that should include:
 date of interview
 name of interviewer
 name of interviewee
 age, occupation and brief family details of interviewee
 where interview took place
 what equipment was used
 Copyright details and any restriction on use of the
recording.
 Cont’d…

B. Museum Documentation
 There is nowadays a standard documentation system for
museums, increasingly agreed by museum workers
throughout the world.
 This documentation system has seven parts.
 Cont’d…

1. Entry
 Every object or group of objects coming into a museum
whether as a gift, purchase, loan or enquiry is recorded
on a numbered entry form.
 which is completed in the presence of the donor or
vendor who then signs it to certify that it is a correct
record.
 Cont’d…
 If possible three copies are made:
 one is given to the donor or lender, as a receipt.
 one stays with the objects until initial processing is
complete.
 One is filed permanently in an entry file arranged in
entry number order.
 Cont’d…
 The purpose of the entry form is to acknowledge receipt
of the objects and to ensure that information from the
donor is not lost before a full record is made.
 Entry forms should contain the following information:
 Entry number
 Name address and telephone number of the current
owner
 Entry date; condition and completeness
 Cont’d…
 Brief description: including any accompanying
information concerning production, usage, etc.
 Entry reason: entry method; number of objects
deposited any conditions
 Agreed return date: signature of the owner name and
signature of the museum staff member who receives the
object
 Any field-collection information: any additional
information about the object.
2. Accessioning
 Accessioning is the formal acceptance of all acquisitions
into the museum collection.
 Each object, or group of objects, to be kept by the
museum (whether gift, purchase, bequest or long loan)
is entered in the accessions register.
 This register is the most important part of the
documentation system.
 Cont’d…
 It has three main functions:
 It assigns a unique number to each object.
 It describes each object.
 It gives the history and provenance or origin of each
object.
 Cont’d…

 The register must be a bound book of good-quality

paper.
 Each page should be numbered consecutively.
 It must be kept in a safe place, preferably in a fireproof
cabinet, and a copy must be kept in another building.
 Entries must be written in permanent black ink only.
 Cont’d…

 A group of objects received at the same time and from

the same source is given a permanent accession
number.
 For each object in the group is then numbered
separately.
 The whole is known as the identity number and is
unique to that particular object.
 Cont’d…
3. Loans
 Loans is should be accepted only for specific purposes
and for a specific period-usually for a maximum of three
years.
 They are recorded in the same way as donations, using
the entry form.
 They should not be accessioned, but should be recorded
in a separate loans book.
 Cont’d…

 Coins should be kept in coin envelopes and details of

the coin, including its accession number, should be
written in permanent black ink on the envelope.
4. Cataloguing
 The catalogue entry is then completed.
 The catalogue is a complete record of everything that is
known about every object in the museum’s collections.
 It can be either held on a card catalogue, or on a
computer program.
 A card catalogue consists of individual cards, usually pre-
printed, and kept in identity number order in fireproof
lockable cabinet.
 Cont’d…
 Eight types of information will be present on each card:
i. name of museum
ii. accession number
iii. name of object-classification
iv. entry method (donation, find, purchase)
v. source of entry (donor, vendor)
vi. date of entry
vii. history of object
viii. locations
 Cont’d…

5. Indexing and Retrieval

 Indexes enable the manager to find information in a
card catalogue without reading every single card, and in
a computer catalogue to retrieve particular types of
object.
 The museum must decide what questions are most
often asked, and therefore what indexes are needed.
 Cont’d…

 The most commonly used indexes are:

 names and details of donor
 classification
 locations
 provenance and artists
 In a manual system, there will need to be a separate set
of cards for each index.
 Cont’d…

6. Movement Control
 Movement control means the recording of movements
of objects from the collections, both within and out of
the museum.
 In the simplest system, every time an object is moved
permanently, or for a long period, a note is made on its
catalogue card or file, showing the date it was moved,
who by and where to.
 Cont’d…

 Every time it is moved temporarily, for a short time, a

proxy card is left in its usual place, showing when it was
moved, who by and where to.
 Cont’d…
7. Exit Documentation
 Exit documentation records every movement of an object
out of the museum building.
 A good system to use is an exit form similar to the entry
form.
 One copy of the form is kept in a loan out file until the
object comes back, when it is put permanently in the
supplementary information file.
 The second copy goes to the borrower or recipient.
 Cont’d…
 Exit forms should contain the following information:
 accession/object or entry number
 brief description
 person responsible
 condition
 valuation if required for insurance
 authorized signature of the museum the object is leaving
 Cont’d…

destination name, address and telephone number

reason for exit
signature of person receiving the object
date of exit
date of delivery
anticipated return date and method
Reference to appropriate file containing additional
details.
 Cont’d…

3.Conservation: deals with the care and maintenance

of museum treasures.
 It needs specialized skills, facilities and equipment
that vary according to the type of object, for instance,
paintings, textiles photographs, sculpture, film or video
and the like.
 Professionals who are responsible for conservation and
related activities are called conservators.
 Cont’d…

 They are responsible for:

 Periodically inspect museum possessions, document
their condition, and if necessary treat and renovate
them.
 Establish protective measures which provide most
favourable conditions to look after collections over time.
 Arrange specially designed containers, drawers, shelves
for museum objects.
 Cont’d…

4.Exhibition: is a display through which a museum

communicates with the public.
 It involves objects to be exhibited and information to
explain concepts, enhance understanding, associate
experiences, invite participation, prompt reflection,
inspire wonder etc.
 Cont’d…

 A good exhibition is expected to have an inviting,

accessible and conformable environment designed to
evoke feelings and inspire learning by visitors of a variety
of ages, interests and backgrounds.
 Cont’d…
 The storyline is a compound document that serves as
design and production by providing the framework upon
which the educational content of the exhibition hangs.
 Storyline is a written blueprint for the exhibition.
 It consists of:
 narrative document
 an outline of the exhibition
 a list of titles, sub-titles and text
 a list of collection objects
 Cont’d…
 Exhibition can be categorized as:
Permanent: is based on a museum’s collection and is
always on display.
• This type of exhibition is expected to last from ten to
fifteen years.

Temporary: related to the museum’s education mission

and goals.
 Open and accessible for visitors for limited period
depending on the subject matter, the goals of the
exhibition, and the museum’s need.
 Cont’d…

 Borrow materials from the permanent exhibition.

 Can be classified into short (1-3 months) middle (3-6
months), and long (lasts for indefinite) period.

On line: only accessible to virtual visitors.

 Cont’d…

4.4 Significance of Museums

 There are three benefits:
A. Social and cultural benefits
B. Economic and regeneration benefits
C. Political and corporate benefits
 Cont’d…
A. Social and Cultural Benefits
 Contributing to the preservation and conservation of the
community’s cultural and natural heritage.
 Serving as a cultural focus and a place of shared
‘memory’ for the community.
 Engaging with educational organisations and offering
students of all ages opportunities to learn through
contact with original material.
 Providing accessible cultural facilities, e.g. exhibition
spaces, meeting rooms, lecture theatres.
 Cont’d…

 Representing the history and culture of minority groups.

 Organising accessible cultural events and activities.
 Providing opportunities for community involvement.
 Working in partnership with other cultural bodies, e.g.
libraries, archives, theatres, arts centres to develop joint
programmes and projects.
 Cont’d…

B. Economic and Regeneration Benefits

 Serve as an important tourist or cultural element for a
location.
 Museum can play a significant role as an attractor for a
tourist destination.
 Museum can act as a magnet or attractor for
encouraging visitors to visit the wider destination.
 Cont’d…

 Museum contribute to the cultural infrastructure such

as theatres, libraries, archives or concert halls.
 This in turn facilitates visitors to spend money within
the local economy, such as in shops, restaurants, hotels,
garages and markets.
 Cont’d…
Job Creation to:
Permanent and part-time staff employment
Training and research programmes provide valuable
support to the museum itself.
Museums attract financial investment or grants from
external agencies, such as government or international
agencies, for their programmes and projects.
 Cont’d…
C. Political and corporate Benefits
 It foster a sense of local/ National pride in its work.
 Can play a valuable corporate role in public relations
and publicity for their administrations.
 Build a sense of community identity
 Attract sponsorship bodies.
 Sponsorship is a two-way process with both parties
looking to benefit from the other on the basis of
contributions of equal value.
 Cont’d…

4.5.Interpretation of Heritages in Museum

4.5.1 Museum and its Educational services
 Audiences and staff learn in different ways:
o From the collections
o From the displays
o From performing arts
o From lectures, seminars, workshops
o From short-term and long-term trainings
o From organized educational programs
 Cont’d…

 Interpretation of Heritages
 Natural and cultural objects with historic, architectural
and artistic importance are protected, preserved and
displayed not only for them but also for what they
represent.
 Interpretation is the act or process of
explaining or
clarifying, translating, or presenting a
personal
 Cont’d…
 Interpretation includes:
 its internal and external adornment
 its inherent structural element
 the material it was made from
 the technology how it was made
 the time, place, society and purpose
 when, where, by whom, for what purpose and for
whom it was made and used.
 in its representation of religious or secular theme
 Cont’d…
 The museum staff must be trained:
to acquaint with the codes of ethics of museum
 to have broaden concept of heritage
 to identify their objects on scientific method.
 to classify them on the basis of their origin, on the way
they are obtained.
 Cont’d…

 to recognize those belonged to other groups and

 to show nations’ traditional culture in turn
 to give priority to those who had been given peripheral
treatment
 to avoid negative impacts on the community
 Cont’d…
4.8.Storage facilities and systems
 Storage facilities of all types need to be housed in
secure and suitable buildings,
 Space needs to be sufficient for the movement of
people and collections.
 Cont’d…

 In general storage facilities need to maximize space

without overcrowding or creating hazards for the
movement of objects or people.
 Environmental conditions need to be controlled to suit
the categories of collections stored there and monitored
on a regular basis.
 Cont’d…

 Documentation systems and procedures

need to be developed for the entry.
 Location and exit of all items, and for audit and
stocktaking.
 Procedures for the safe handling and movement of
objects.
 Regular conservation and security assessment needs to
be undertaken.
 Cont’d…

 It is helpful to have lists of items in any one storage

container-box, shelf, cupboard, roller racking – attached
to the outside of the storage container for ease of
reference and security checking.
 These help to prevent unnecessary searching for items
that may lead to damage and can helping in audit and
stocktaking.
 Cont’d…
4.9. Conservation planning
 Conservation is one aspect of managing museums and
its collections.
 The duty of care for the collections is central to the
museum’s work and should be implicit in the museum’s
mission statement and its organizational objectives.
 Cont’d…
 The first action is to establish policies for different
aspects of your museum’s work (what we should do).
 Then draw up a management or forward plan to help
you implement those policies (how we are going to do
it).
 A conservation plan help to provide a framework for
establishing and maintaining appropriate standards of
collections care and for setting priorities for both
preventive and remedial conservation work.
 Cont’d…
4.9.1 Preventive conservation planning
 Effective preventive conservation should reduce the need
for remedial conservation.
 Preventive conservation is about ensuring that the
museum’s collections are displayed, handled, stored and
maintained in ways that do not lead to damage or
deterioration.
 Remedial conservation is about repairing damage or
decay to collections, using techniques that are reversible.
 Cont’d…

 Preventive conservation and security go hand-in-hand in

ensuring the long-term well-being and safeguarding of
collections.
It is important to recognize that preventive conservation
is first and foremost about meeting the museum’s
fundamental responsibility to care for its collections.
 Cont’d…

 Investment in preventive conservation is now seen as a

key priority for museums of all types and sizes
internationally.
 Different kinds of preventive conservation are needed.
 E.g. storage of metallic objects is not necessarily
appropriate for textiles or photographic collections.
 Cont’d…

 The conservators should be aware of the effects of

different materials used in storage and display on
museum collections.
 The special requirements in terms of light, temperature
and relative humidity levels that different collections
need.
 Cont’d…

 Common-sense precautions include:

 Ensuring all staff understand the principles and practice
of preventive conservation
 Ensuring that relative humidity and temperature are kept
stable in storage and display areas and at an appropriate
level for objects and specimens.
 Cont’d…

 Ensuring that light levels are at an appropriate level for

items on display
 checking that materials used in storage and display –
wood, fabrics, paints, adhesives, plastics and rubber –
are not harmful to objects and specimens
 keeping storage areas clean, tidy and uncluttered
 providing sufficient space in storage containers to avoid
crushing or abrasion of items
 not storing items on top of or inside one another.
 Cont’d…

 Raising stored items and storage containers of the floor

in case of flooding.
 making sure that collections are stored in secure areas
 cleaning items only following expert advice
 checking collections on a regular basis, for example to
guard against pest infestation
 avoiding handling wherever possible, and then only
using cotton gloves.
 Cont’d…

 providing appropriate facilities for examining collections

for research and study purposes by staff or visiting
researchers.
 limiting the number of individuals with authority to
handle collections.
 Not smoking, eating or drinking anywhere in the vicinity
of collections.
 Cont’d…
4.10. Museum and its building
 Throughout the world, museums are housed in an
extraordinarily wide range of buildings.
 Buildings used by museums fall into two general
categories
 Purpose built and conversions.
 They include:
• Historic, purpose-built museum buildings
• Contemporary, purpose-built museum buildings
 Cont’d…

 Conversions Museum originally used for domestic,

public service/state, commercial, industrial, religious or
military purposes-which have been converted wholly or
in part for museum use; and
• Redundant buildings of limited architectural significance.
 Cont’d…
 The form that museums take at their establishment is
conditioned by a number of linked factors.

• There are three main considerations to bear in mind:

 The needs of the public using the museum and its
visitor services and facilities
 The needs of the collections available for the public;
and
 The range of services supporting the museum and its
collections – managerial, curatorial, administrative.
4.10.1 Museum Building Security
 Security is an essential component of museum
management.
 Museum managers have to ensure that their buildings
are secure:
 effective physical defenses,
 security systems and procedures, and
 appropriate recruitment for protection during the
day and night.
 Cont’d…

 Physical security Review checklist:

 Museums should regularly assess security risks in terms
of their location, buildings and surroundings.
 Cont’d…

 Are the museum’s surroundings secured?

 Review the museum’s surroundings and check to see
that you are not helping a criminal gain entry to the
museum.
 If you have a wall or fence around the museum and its
grounds, check its effectiveness against intrusion.
 The perimeter is a front line of defense.
 Cont’d…

 How secure are the museum buildings?

 The museum building itself is your next line of defense.
 Analyses its strengths and weaknesses.
 If you have the option, light the exterior of the building
and its surroundings.
 It serves as a useful deterrent, enhances security systems
and promotes your museum at the same time.
 Cont’d…
 Is the roof secure?
 The roof of a building can often be vulnerable to attack.
 Check that drain pipes and other building furniture do
not provide easy access to the roof or upper floors.
 Trees, climbing plants, scaffolding for building repairs,
adjoining buildings and unlocked ladders are all danger
points.
 Check the construction and physical strength of the
roof.
 Cont’d…

 How strong are the walls?

o The strength of a wall will vary depending on the nature
of its construction and its thickness.
o Review the museum’s walls and reinforce weak points,
for example blocked-up windows or doors.
 Cont’d…

 Are your windows weak points?

 Two main considerations should be borne in mind – the
nature of window glazing and making windows secure.
 Use glass that is appropriate and check its resistance
qualities with manufacturers and security advisers.
 Protect windows with bar or mesh grilles, security bars,
lockable shutters, steel sheet panels and locks, as
appropriate.
 Cont’d…
 Are doors secured?
 Check the strength and standard of the door itself, and
also the strength of its frame.
 Doors vary in design as do their methods of fastening.
 Exterior and interior doors will vary in strength and
type of manufacture.
 It is important to ensure that door hinges and frames,
together with their locking systems, are strong enough
to resist attack.
 Cont’d…

 Are your locks the key to security?

 External doors should be fitted with two locks at one-
third and two-third heights, preferably the mortise-lock
type that meets accepted security standards.
 It is important to recognize the strengths and
weaknesses of different types of locks and bolts, and
fasteners.
………………...THE END
I THANK YOU!!!!