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37-505: The Eton College Collections are a collection of items of significant cultural or scientific value kept by Eton College in England . They include College Library , College Archives , Eton College Natural History Museum , Casa Guidi , Eton College Antiquities Collection and the Museum of Eton Life . The Collection also has hundreds of photographs, paintings, drawings and prints. Many items in

74-426: A museum's RH to accommodate the changing seasons, but they must be made gradually. Humidity should change in 2% per month increments (an increase in 1 °F will affect a decrease of about 2% RH). Deaccessioning , the process of disposing, selling or trading objects from a museum collection, is not undertaken lightly in most museums. There are ethical issues to consider since many donors of objects typically expect

111-422: A museum, or a recommendation from a curator to acquire an object through purchase or trade. Art objects may also come into a collection as a commission. An accession may also be bequeathed to a museum and are included in an estate or trust. Several issues must be considered in the decision to accept an object. Common issues include: Answering these questions often required investigating an object's provenance ,

148-479: A portion of their collections. This is often because exhibition requires much more space than storage, and is impractical for the entire collection to be out. Museums may also contain many duplicate or similar objects and find that a few specimens are better suited to display than others. In addition, certain objects, particularly works on paper and textiles, are damaged by light and must only be displayed for short periods of time. Museum collections are often made up of

185-414: A readers' room for researchers, on-site and remote reference services, teaching support for the college, specialist group and school visits, regularly changing exhibitions and imaging services. The College Archives contain many of Eton College's important documents made about it since it was founded. They also include a list of the boys who have attended Eton (although until the late nineteenth century, only

222-400: A separate collection from insects. Because museums cannot collect everything, each potential new addition must be carefully considered as to its appropriateness for a given museum's defined area of interest. Accessioning is the formal, legal process of accepting an object into a museum collection. Because accessioning an object carries an obligation to care for that object in perpetuity, it

259-434: A specific area of specialization. For example, a history museum may only collect objects relevant to a particular county or even a single person, or focus on a type of object such as automobiles or stamps. Art museums may focus on a period, such as modern art, or a region. Very large museums will often have many sub-collections, each with its own criteria for collecting. A natural history museum, for example, will have mammals in

296-827: A stable climate, preventing exposure to pests, minimizing any handling, and using only archival materials that will not deteriorate or harm the objects. Object safety also include providing appropriate security, and planning for disasters and other threats, and making sure that museum staff are trained in proper handling procedures. Different types of objects have different requirements, and many museums have specialized storage areas. For example, framed paintings may be stored in racks in one room while unframed paintings are kept in large drawers in another. Some objects have extremely specialized needs. For example, material from underwater archaeological sites may need to be kept wet, and some very rare and badly deteriorated objects require oxygen-free environments. At any given time, museums display only

333-404: A variety of materials in a single collection including, but not limited to: canvas, oil and/or acrylic paints, wood, ivory, paper, bone, leather, and textiles. The biggest conservation issue for museum collections is the fluctuations in relative humidity and temperature. Relative Humidity (RH) is a measure of the percentage of saturation of the air. Temperature is not as important to the life of

370-497: A work of art, but it is true that chemical reactions occur faster at higher temperatures. However, a museum must take into account the comfort of its staff and visitors and it has been widely accepted that 68–75 °F (20–24 °C) does not cause a lot of problems for most artifacts and is comfortable for most humans. It has also been internationally agreed upon that the RH should be set at 50–55%. This has become widely accepted because

407-608: Is a major undertaking for most museums. All new acquisitions are normally catalogued on a computer in modern museums, but there is typically a backlog of old catalogue entries to be computerized as time and funding allows. A museum's permanent collection are assets that the museum owns and may display, although space and conservation requirements often mean that most of a collection is not on display. Museums often also host temporary exhibitions of works that may come all or partly from their permanent collection, or may be all or partly loaned (a "loan exhibition"). A travelling exhibition

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444-418: Is a serious decision. While in the past many museums accepted objects with little deliberation, today most museums have accepted the need for formal accessioning procedures and practices. These are typically set out as part of a museum's collection management policy (CMP). While each museum has its own procedures for accessioning, in most cases it begins with either an offer from a donor to give an object to

481-534: Is a small house in Florence which was owned and inhabited by Robert and Elizabeth Barrett Browning . 51°29′31″N 0°36′29″W  /  51.49187°N 0.60792°W  / 51.49187; -0.60792 Collection (museum) Museum collections, and archives in general, are normally catalogued in a collection catalogue , traditionally in a card index , but nowadays in a computerized database . Transferring collection catalogues onto computer-based media

518-477: Is a way of sharing with like-minded institutions and of achieving economies of scale which allow more ambitious projects to happen. Travelling exhibitions are often supported by governmental organizations to promote access to knowledge and materials that might not be available locally. To acknowledge the importance of travelling exhibitions, in 1983 the International Council of Museums (ICOM) established

555-479: Is open only during term-time and when students are in residence. The Museum of Eton Life features artifacts and memorabilia about the history and traditions of Eton College and its students since the school's founding in 1440. Displays include famous Etonians, studies, games including the Eton Wall Game , punishment, uniforms and other customs. It was founded by a former housemaster, Peter Lawrence . Casa Guidi

592-419: Is sale on the open market. Open market sales are generally expected to take place at auction rather than through private sale, and are typically most common in art museums due to the high monetary value of art collections. A controversial example occurred when the last remaining complete dodo mount in a museum collection at Oxford University was deaccessioned due to its deterioration in 1775. Another case

629-472: Is shown in more than one venue; these tend to be either large loan exhibitions which may be exhibited at two or three venues in different countries, or selections from the collection of a large museum which tour to a number of regional museums. Museum collections are widely varied. There are collections of art , of scientific specimens, of historic objects, of living zoological specimens and much more. Because there are so many things to collect, most museums have

666-568: The International Committee for Exhibition Exchange (ICEE) as a forum to discuss the different aspects of exhibition development, circulation and exchange. Examples of Traveling Exhibitions In celebration of the 200th year birthday of the founder, Louis Vuitton, Louis Vuitton's "200 Trunks, 200 Visionaries: The Exhibition" has gone on an international tour taking off from Asnieres-Sur-Siene, France and has since then traveled to Singapore, Beverly Hills and New York. The Exhibition displays

703-609: The King's Scholars are listed). The Fine & Decorative Art collection at Eton College dates back to the first century of the school's history. In this early period, the magnificent wall paintings were first painted within the interior of Eton College Chapel and a pair of benches, carved with the emblem of the Tudor rose and still in use today, were first constructed. The collection includes paintings, drawings, prints, sculpture, ceramics, furniture, stained glass and textiles. Particular strengths are

740-581: The Museums Association 's Code of Ethics . In the United States , the guidelines on these matters are issued by the American Alliance of Museums . The American Alliance of Museums Code of Ethics takes the position that "in no event shall they [deaccessioning proceeds] be used for anything other than acquisition or direct care of collections". Other museums may have additional restrictions on

777-552: The Collection are lent to exhibitions around the world. College Library is located in the cloisters of Eton College and is separate from School Library. College Library is open to members of the Eton community and to outside researchers (the latter by appointment only). It houses rare books and manuscripts of immense cultural value, including a Gutenberg Bible and pages from the manuscript of Darwin's Origin of Species . Facilities include:

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814-468: The best-known artists in the medium, including Gainsborough, Thomas Girtin, J. M. W. Turner and Samuel Palmer. The Eton College Natural History Museum is run by Eton College. The museum is open free of charge during the opening hours listed below. The museum contains thousands of stuffed animals, plants, fossils and insects. It is located at the archway into the Queens Quad, beside Lower Chapel. The museum

851-464: The collection, museum objects must be appropriately cared for. New objects may be examined by a conservator and treated for any pre-existing damage. The object is then cataloged by a curator or other specialist with knowledge of the object's importance and history. The object will then be given an appropriate storage location. Museum storage conditions are meant to protect the object and to minimize any deterioration. This often means keeping objects in

888-781: The history of an object from the time it was made. Many museums will not accession objects that have been acquired illegally or where other parties have an interest in the object. In art museums, special care is given to objects that changed hands in European countries during World War II and archaeological objects unearthed after the 1970 UNESCO Convention covering the transport of cultural property. Other disciplines have different concerns. For example, anthropology museums will pay special attention to Native American objects that may be subject to repatriation, and paleontology museums may look carefully at whether proper permitting procedures were followed when they are offered fossil collections. While in

925-442: The kitchen." Travelling exhibition A travelling exhibition , also referred to as a " travelling exhibit " or a " touring exhibition ", is a type of exhibition that is presented at more than one venue. Temporary exhibitions can bring together objects that might be dispersed among several collections, to reconstruct an original context such as an artist's career or a patron's collection, or to propose connections – perhaps

962-428: The lower limit was set at 45% since damage to organic materials begin to occur below this point. The upper limit is placed at 65% because mold flourishes at 70% RH. It is also cheaper for most institutions to maintain 50% RH rather than 45% or 60%. There is some exception when it comes to tropical climates since the indigenous artifacts are acclimated to RH levels higher than the "museum norm". Changes can be made to

999-469: The method of disposal. Generally, first choice is to transfer an object to another use or division in a museum, such as deaccessioning a duplicate object from a permanent collection into a teaching collection. Second choice is to transfer the object to another institution, generally with local institutions having priority. The American Alliance of Museums and other regional associations often operate lists or boards to help facilitate such transfers. Last choice

1036-416: The museum to care for them in perpetuity. Deaccessioning of an object in a collection may be appropriate if a museum has more than one example of that object and if the object is being transferred to another museum. It may also be appropriate if an object is badly deteriorated or threatening other objects. The decision to deaccession includes two parts. These are making the decision to deaccession and deciding

1073-470: The museum's board of trustees. In large museums, a special committee may meet regularly to review potential acquisitions. Once the decision has been made to accept an object, it is formally accessioned through a Deed of Gift and entered into the museum's catalog records. Each object is given a unique catalog number to identify it. Objects are then packed for appropriate archival storage, or prepared for exhibition or other educational use. Once accessioned into

1110-477: The oil portraits, most of which are Leaving Portraits. These are painted by some of the most significant portraitists of the 18th and 19th centuries, including Sir Joshua Reynolds, Benjamin West and Sir Thomas Lawrence. There are 20th-century examples by Derek Hill and Andrew Festing. Also, the drawings and watercolours: the collection includes some 1,500 such works, depicting a wide variety of subjects and painted by some of

1147-608: The organiser because it can then share a part of the production costs among the venues, so museums and galleries frequently use touring as a cost-efficient way of promoting access to their collections. For organisers and their venues, touring exhibitions are important for sharing ideas (for example, promoting techniques for providing for visitors with visual impairments or producing displays which examine current or topical issues) and materials (especially objects that might not be seen in public frequently or even shown together), as well as resources (human as well as financial). Touring

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1184-495: The past, museums often accepted objects with donor-based restrictions, many museums today ask that gifts be given unrestricted . Common donor restrictions include requiring that an object always be exhibited, or that a collection stays together. However, such restrictions can prevent museums from changing their exhibits as scholarship evolves and may introduce conservation issues for delicate objects not suited to continued display. Final decision to accept an object generally lies with

1221-579: The remaining collection. For example, the International Council of Museums (ICOM) Code of Ethics states that: "Money or compensation received from the deaccessioning and disposal of objects and specimens from a museum collection should be used solely for the benefit of the collection and usually for acquisitions to that same collection". In the United Kingdom , guidelines governing deaccessioning and other ethically difficult issues can be found in

1258-457: The result of recent research – which give new insights or a different way of understanding items in museum collections. The whole exhibition , usually with associated services, including insurance, shipping, storage, conservation, mounting, set up, etc., can then be loaned to one or more venues to lengthen the life of the exhibition and to allow the widest possible audiences – regionally, nationally or internationally – to experience these objects and

1295-430: The stories they contain. Such collaborations can add interest to museums where displays of permanent collections might change only slowly, helping to provide fresh interpretations or more complete stories and attract new audiences. They also provide fresh ideas and breathing space for organisations which have exhibition spaces but lack permanent collections. To have more than one location for the same exhibition can benefit

1332-493: The use of funds from deaccessioning. For example, at some museums funds from deaccessioning a work of art can only be used to purchase a work of similar style or period (for example, funds from selling a 20th-century American print could not be used to buy a 17th-century Italian painting) and the name of the donor of the sold work remains associated with the purchased artwork. Selling artwork to fund budget deficits and pay salaries has been compared to "burning down your house to heat

1369-476: Was the sale of a J. M. W. Turner painting in the collection of Royal Holloway, University of London to the Getty Museum to fund the maintenance of the building, despite the fact that the original benefactor had expressly requested that the collection be kept intact. Many ethical guidelines for deaccessioning require that the funds generated by disposing of collection items be used only to increase or maintain

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