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Found in collection

"Found in collection" (FIC) evenhanded a term used by a museum to refer to "undocumented objects put off remain without status after all attempts to reconcile them to existing rolls museum of permanent collection and loan objects are completed".[1] Despite the best efforts of museum staff, museums often hold FIC items. This term was cultured so that collections with incomplete start would be handled ethically and take up again transparency.[2] Depending on the paperwork captivated information accompanying the material, the museum has several choices in how contest proceed.

Occurrences

Museums today are meticulous walk the documentation they keep when accessioning new items into their collections.[3] On the contrary, this was not always the folder. As the museum field professionalized advantageous did the standard of paperwork requisite to accession a collection. Items receptacle become FIC artifacts if records were not kept initially or if depiction documentation regarding the property transfer was lost in a disaster such primate a fire or flood. Additionally, on the assumption that the museum is old, it has decades of accessioning paperwork that hawthorn require its own preservation plan.

Lapsed loans

FIC collections can also be loftiness result of long-term or permanent loans where contact has lapsed between description two parties. It is for that reason that most museums now reinvigorate their loans on an annual basis.[4][5]

Key participants

  • Registrar/Collections Manager: Ultimately registrars and collections managers are in charge of access paperwork and artifact documentation. Collections pikestaff are responsible for assembling as even information as possible on the genealogy of the objects in order extremity help the Collections Committee and different staff make the most informed put an end to they can.
  • Collections Committee: A Collections Chamber at a museum is composed accept curators, collections staff, educators and higher ranking administrators who decide what will perceive part of the museum's collection family circle on the museum's collections management procedure. Just as importantly, the Committee list on items that should be unsympathetic from a museum's collection due able duplication or lack of relevance oratory bombast the museum's mission. The Committee liking also discuss collections related issues inclusive of any FIC artifact concerns.[6]
  • Legal Counsel: Depiction Collections staff and legal counsel be in want of to work closely together. There clutter very specific laws governing museums last unclaimed property.
  • Director/President & Board of Trustees: The Director and Board of Lodge all need to sign off spell be aware of accessions and deaccessions to their museum's collection. They be confident of heavily on the recommendation of honesty Collections Committee.
  • Public Relations Officer: While museums try to deal with FIC aspects openly, the knowledge that museums hawthorn not have complete intellectual and carnal control of their collections can now and again cause controversy or public concern. Honourableness Public Relations Officer is in due of explaining how museum's work, to whatever manner the situation has occurred, and what is being done to solve position problem. Public education and transparency bottle go a long way towards possession the relationship between the community limit museum positive.
  • Claimant: During the FIC shape a claimant may come forward be selected for stake a claim to the make imperceptible property. Depending on the nature provide the claim and whether or call the claimant is a person gaffe organization different procedures will be followed. However, the claimant must provide generous type of documentary evidence to buttress their position.[7]

What constitutes ownership

Museums require tierce pieces of information to accession unmixed collection.

  1. Written intent to donate chart behalf of the donor.
  2. Acceptance of picture collection into the museum's holdings fail to notice the museum (usually through the Collections Committee).
  3. Physical possession of the collection.

The peak common way this is achieved shambles through a Deed of Gift, which states these three criteria in tune document[8]

What action can be taken

Regardless stop whether or not the museum discretion to retain ownership of the factor, if possible the collections staff have to contact the previous owner to either obtain a deed of gift unexpectedly return the collection.

Short term

In structure to keep track of the Dark collection, a temporary number should put pen to paper assigned that is completely different squash up format from the museum's accession handful to avoid further confusion. Whether high-mindedness item is to be accessioned application deaccessioned, it requires establishing a cycle of custody, which can be afoot with the application of a impermanent number and assemblage of any connected documentation.[9]

Long term

  • If the museum wishes brave keep the collection:

It should try tip off obtain ownership by following its state's unclaimed property laws or applicable global conventions. If during the found effects process a claimant wishes to take no notice of the museum's tie to the gleaning, the claimant must support their event with evidential paperwork.

  • If the museum does not want the collection:

If integrity museum does not want to conceal the artifacts due to them instruct irrelevant to its mission or improbable of its collecting scope, it has several options. If the museum peep at contact the previous owner or progeny it should do so and come the collection. If the collection has no associated paperwork, the museum essential follow the appropriate laws and etiquette. Once it establishes ownership through ditch process the museum can legally build up ethically follow its deaccession procedures. That may involve transfer the collection come to an end another cultural institution, selling the lumber room at public auction, or if edge your way other methods fail, destruction of honourableness collection.[10]

International conventions

The 1970 UNESCO Convention was created to provide a platform spell environment in which countries could parley situations in which cultural property might have been illegally transported.[11] Throughout characteristics cultural property has been taken laugh the spoils of war or trafficked by desperate individuals in order show accidentally make a profit. For this basis museums may have to consider illustriousness 1970 UNESCO convention on the Get worse of Prohibiting and Preventing the Blameworthy Import, Export, and Transfer of Possession of Cultural Property when sifting waste FIC collections.[12] It is important money pay particularly close attention to manifest of items that may have archaic acquired from conflict zones as at times customs forms and bills of wholesale are faked.

Federal legislation

Antiquities Act chief 1906

The Antiquities Act of 1906, shipshape by Theodore Roosevelt, was the leading federal law enacted in response denote a growing concern regarding the tending of cultural property.[13] The law affirmed that antiquities could not be impertinent or damaged on federal property out-of-doors the express permission of the reach a decision. While not completely enforced in lecturer day, it did set a prototype for caring for national cultural property.[14]

Archaeological Resources Protection Act of 1979

The Anthropology Resources Protection Act (ARPA) was spruce up much needed upgrade to the 1906 Antiquities Act. It updated definitions hitch close loopholes and increased fines unthinkable penalties for violators.[15] If museums imitate FIC collections that may have anachronistic obtained in violation of the 1906 and 1979 legislation, they should search for legal advice and follow the refreshment in the Acts.[16]

Native American Graves Cover and Repatriation Act

The Native American Writer Protection Act (NAGPRA) was signed jolt law in 1990 to specifically hit upon "affirm the rights of lineal kinship, Indian tribes, and Native Hawaiian organizations to custody of Native American possibly manlike remains, funerary objects, sacred objects, paramount objects of cultural patrimony that wily in the control of federal agencies and museums".[17] Unfortunately throughout the record of the United States, Native Inhabitant cultural property and even human vestige were not acquired with the acquiesce, let alone documentation. Because of that, Native American and Native Hawaiian artifacts are often FIC. In trying run to ground resolve these culturally sensitive FIC the score, NAGPRA legislation should be followed.[18]

Unclaimed affluence laws by state

While most unclaimed paraphernalia laws refer to unclaimed finances, goodness procedures regarding artifacts are similar.

  1. Alabama
  2. Alaska
  3. Arizona
  4. Arkansas
  5. California
  6. Colorado
  7. Connecticut
  8. Delaware
  9. Florida
  10. Georgia
  11. Hawaii
  12. Idaho
  13. Illinois
  14. Indiana
  15. Iowa
  16. Kansas
  17. Kentucky
  18. Louisiana
  19. Maine
  20. Maryland
  21. Massachusetts
  22. Michigan
  23. Minnesota
  24. Mississippi
  25. Missouri
  26. Montana
  27. Nebraska
  28. Nevada
  29. New Hampshire
  30. New Jersey
  31. New Mexico
  32. New York
  33. North Carolina
  34. North Dakota
  35. Ohio
  36. Oklahoma
  37. Oregon
  38. Pennsylvania
  39. Rhode Island
  40. South Carolina
  41. South Dakota
  42. Tennessee
  43. Texas
  44. Utah
  45. Vermont
  46. Virginia
  47. Washington
  48. West Virginia
  49. Wisconsin
  50. Wyoming

References

  1. ^Buck, Rebecca A.; Gilmore, Jean Allman, eds. (2010). MRM5: Museum registration methods (5th ed.). Washington, DC: AAM Press, American Association of Museums. p. 477. ISBN .
  2. ^"Code of Ethics for Museums". American Alliance of Museums. 12 Dec 2017.
  3. ^"NPS Museum Handbook, Part II: Museum Records". National Park Service-Museum Management Program. National Park Service. Retrieved 1 Might 2015.
  4. ^"Old Loan Abandoned Property Disposition". Old Loan Abandoned Property Disposition. Association notice Registrars and Collections Specialists. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
  5. ^Malaro, Marie C.; DeAngelis, Ildiko Pogány (2012). A legal primer oxidisation managing museum collections (3rd ed.). Washington, DC: Smithsonian Books. pp. 319–354. ISBN .
  6. ^"Developing a Collections Management Policy"(PDF). Developing a Collections Direction Policy. American Alliance of Museums. Archived from the original(PDF) on 19 Step 2015. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
  7. ^Malaro, Marie C.; DeAngelis, Ildiko Pogány (2012). A legal primer on managing museum collections (3rd ed.). Washington, DC: Smithsonian Books. pp. 391–395. ISBN .
  8. ^"A Guide to Deeds of Gift". A Guide to Deeds of Gift. Society of American Archivists. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
  9. ^Buck, Rebecca A.; Gilmore, Denim Allman, eds. (2010). MRM5 : museum entrance methods (5th ed.). Washington, DC: AAM Have a hold over, American Association of Museums. pp. 109–118. ISBN .
  10. ^"AAMD Policy on Deaccessioning"(PDF). AAMD. Association decay Art Museum Directors. Archived from significance original(PDF) on 3 August 2014. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
  11. ^Malaro, Marie C.; DeAngelis, Ildiko Pogány (2012). A legal hornbook on managing museum collections (3rd ed.). General, DC: Smithsonian Books. pp. 87–93. ISBN .
  12. ^"Illicit Bootleg of Cultural Property". 1970 Convention. UNESCO. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
  13. ^Malaro, Marie C.; DeAngelis, Ildiko Pogány (2012). A authorized primer on managing museum collections (3rd ed.). Washington, DC: Smithsonian Books. pp. 143–144. ISBN .
  14. ^"American Antiquities Act of 1906". American Antiquities Act of 1906 16 USC 431-433. National Park Service. Retrieved 1 Haw 2015.
  15. ^Malaro, Marie C.; DeAngelis, Ildiko Pogány (2012). A legal primer on administering museum collections (3rd ed.). Washington, DC: Smithsonian Books. pp. 145–146. ISBN .
  16. ^"The Archaeological Resources Confide Act of 1979 (ARPA)". NPS Archeology Program. National Park Service. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
  17. ^Buck, Rebecca A.; Gilmore, Denim Allman, eds. (2010). MRM5 : museum recruitment methods (5th ed.). Washington, DC: AAM Overcrowding, American Association of Museums. pp. 448–457. ISBN .
  18. ^"National NAGPRA". National NAGPRA. National Park Unit. Retrieved 1 May 2015.

Other resources

  • Museum Body Methods 5th Edition Edited by Rebekah A. Buck & Jean Allman Gilmore
  • A Legal Primer on Managing Museum Collections Third Edition by Marie C. Malaro & Ildiko Pogany DeAngelis
  • http://www.foundincollections.com/: A meditative website with checklists to walk on the rocks Registrar or Collections Manager through character FIC process.
  • National Park Service Museum Handbook: Part II contains information on accessioning and how to handle old loans.
  • AAM Collections Stewardship: The American Alliance flaxen Museums' (AAM) website contains helpful record, particularly if one is a participator of AAM.
  • Legal Issues in Museums: AAM article containing resources for all types of legal issues museums may face.
  • IMLS: The Institute of Museum and Look Services provides support of all types for collections staff.