A Quick Introduction to Collections Management

Collections Management (CM), at its root, is the administrative framework of any museum collection. CM represents a combination of policies that inform the way objects come to, live in, and move around a museum.

All CM policies starts with one question: what is the museum’s mission? The mission informs what the museum will collect, what kinds of exhibits they want to have, and what audience they wish to serve. Once the mission is clear, CM covers all of the ways objects/specimen/installations are handled in the museum.

A good way to think of CM is as a series of questions that must be answered for every object. There are two main categories to think of when looking at museums.  

Object Collections - Fine Arts, Historical, Archaeological, etc.

(these collections correspond with the core, anthropology, fine and contemporary art, and local history and material culture CollectionSpace installations)

Some of the main policy areas for these kinds of museums are acquisition, cataloging, exhibition, loans, conservation/preservation, security, and deaccessions.

Acquisition – how each collection/object enters the museum.

1. Where did the object come from?
2. Why did we acquire this object?
3. Who is responsible for the object?
4. How do we ensure that objects are acquired in an ethical manner?

Cataloging – gathering information about the object.

1. What is the object?
2. Who created this object?
3. When was this object created?
4. Where was this object created?
5. How was the object created?
6. What is the significance of the object?

Exhibition – how objects are displayed/made accessible.

1. What are the physical requirements for displaying this object?
2. What are the copyright restrictions for this object?
3. What context is required for this object?
4. Who will be the audience for this object?

Loans – how objects are lent to other institutions; how other institutions lend objects to the museum.

1. What are the procedures for approving a loan from the museum’s collection?
2. How are items delivered to outside institutions?
3. How are items tracked once they leave the museum?
4. How are loaned items received at the museum?
5. How are loaned items tracked once they enter the museum?

Conservation/Preservation – how objects are stored, handled, and treated to protect them from future damage.

1. What is the condition of this object?
2. How should this object be handled to alleviate the risk of damage?
3. How should this object be stored to alleviate the risk of damage?
4. If the object is damaged, how should it be repaired?

Security – how objects are safeguarded within the museum.

1. What security measures are in place?
2. What objects require additional security?

Deaccessions – how objects are removed from the permanent museum collection.

1. Why is an object being removed from the collection?
2. How will it be removed?
3. What do we need to record to justify this deaccession?

Living Collections – Botanical Gardens, Herbarium, etc.

(these collections correspond with the botanical gardens and herbarium CollectionSpace installations)

Some of the main policy areas for these kinds of museums are acquisition, cataloging, exhibition, loans, conservation/preservation, security, and deaccessions.

Acquisition – how each specimen enters the museum.

1. Where did the specimen come from?
2. Why did we acquire this specimen?
3. Who is responsible for the care of this specimen?
4. How do we ensure that specimen are acquired in an ethical manner?
5. How did this specimen arrive? As a cutting, seed, plant, etc.?

Cataloging/Documentation – gathering information about the specimen.

1. What is the specimen?
2. What is the taxonomy?
3. What is its native environment?
4. What is the scientific value of this specimen?

Access – how objects are displayed/made accessible.

1. How is the specimen displayed?
2. What is the audience for this specimen?
3. Can this object we used for scientific/research purposes?
4. What context is required for this specimen?

Loans – how are specimen lent, gifted or donated to other institutions.

1. What are the procedures for approving a loan from the museum’s collection?
2. What are the procedures for approving a gift or donation of a plant sample, cutting, etc.
3. How are specimen delivered to outside institutions?
4. How are loans tracked once they leave the museum?
5. How are loaned specimen received at the museum?
6. How are loaned specimen tracked once they enter the museum?

Curation – how specimen are maintained in the collection.

1. What are the environmental requirements of this specimen?
2. What are the daily/weekly/monthly maintenance requirements for this specimen?

Labeling – how specimen are identified in the collection.

1. What taxonomic information needs to go on each plant label?
2. How should labels be placed?
3. How often do labels need to be updated?

Deaccessions – how specimen are removed from the permanent museum collection.

1. Why is a specimen being removed from the collection?
2. How will it be removed?
3. What do we need to record to justify this deaccession?
4. How will the environment be impacted with this deaccession?

All of these questions inform the collections management policy and implementation requirements. In using collections management software, a museum is ensuring that all of these questions are addressed and answered within the day to day use and maintenance of their collections.