1. Home
  2. HERM
  3. HERM 322: Heritage Collections (C3/B3 and C4/B4)

HERM 322: Heritage Collections (C3/B3 and C4/B4) Report a Broken Link

Effective collections management ensures that an institution’s collections are aligned with its mission and mandate, and that the needs of the source communities are understood and respected. At the same time, accepted methods and techniques must be applied in the cataloguing and management of collections data, and in the conservation, storage, and use of artifacts within those collections. HERM 322: Heritage Collections discusses standards, practices, and procedures used—and challenges faced—in collections management in major conservation and museum organizations in Canada and the United States.

Required Readings

Unit 1

Heritage Collections: The Historical Legacy
Ames, Michael M. “The Development of Museums in the Western World.” In Cannibal Tours and Glass Boxes: The Anthropology of Museums, 15–24. Vancouver: UBC Press, 1992.
Pearce, Susan. “Museums: The Intellectual Rationale and Bibliography.” In Museums, Objects, and Collections, 89–117, 274–287. Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1993.
Eilean Hooper-Greenhill. Museums and the Shaping of Knowledge. London and New York: Routledge, 1992, 191-228. 
Weil, Stephen E. “From Being about Something to Being for Somebody: The Ongoing Transformation of the American Museum.” Daedalus 128, no. 3 (1999): 229–258.

Unit 2

Museum Collections and Conciliation
Task Force on Museums and First Peoples. Turning the Page: Forging New Partnerships Between Museums and First Peoples, 3rd ed. Ottawa: Assembly of First Nations and the Canadian Museums Association, 1994.
UN General Assembly. United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples: Resolution/Adopted by the General Assembly. A/RES/61/295 (2 October 2007), https://www.refworld.org/docid/471355a82.html
Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. Honouring the Truth, Reconciling for the Future: Summary of the Final Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. Winnipeg: Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, 2015. At a minimum, read pages 37–70, 183–190, and 246–258.

Unit 3

Collection Types and Uses
Burcaw, Ellis. “Collecting Theory: History Museums.” In Introduction to Museum Work, 63–72. Walnut Creek, CA: Altamira Press, 1997.
Aitken, Judy. Understanding the Future: Museums and 21st Century Life—The Value of Museums. London, UK: Museums Association, 2005.
Cross, Sally, and Wilkinson, Helen. “Effective Collections (an Introduction): Making Better Use of Stored Collections.” In Making Collections Effective, 7–16. London, UK: Museums Association, 2007.

Home page: [UK] Museums Association http://museumsassociation.org
Alberti, Samuel J. M. M. “Objects and the Museum.” Isis 96, no. 4 (December 2005): 559–571.
Pearce, Susan M. “Approaches to Storage.” In Archaeological Curatorship, 88–102. Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1990.
Palamar, Cassie. “Recreating Historical Environments: The Furnishing Design Process in Historic Site Development.” Alberta Museums Review 12, no. 1 (Spring 1987): 9–10.
Cole, Catherine Cooper. “Determining Whether to Use Original or Reproduction Artifacts at Historic Sites.” Alberta Museums Review 10, no. 2 (Fall 1985): 6–9.

Unit 4

Archival Collections
Booms, Hans. “Society and the Formation of a Documentary Heritage: Issues in the Appraisal of Archival Sources.” Archivaria 24 (Summer 1987): 69–107.

Home page: Archivaria: The Journal of the Association of Canadian Archivists http://journals.sfu.ca/archivar/index.php/archivaria/
Coles, Laura. “3. Bringing Material into Your Archives: Acquiring, Appraising, and Accessioning.” In A Manual for Small Archives, 23–29. Vancouver, BC: Archives Association of British Columbia, 1999.

Additionally, look at pages 153 to 158 of the pdf to see sample forms (Deed of Gift, Transfer, Loan; Sample Accession Record).

Home page: Archives Association of British Columbia http://aabc.ca/
Duff, Wendy M., and Marlene van Ballegooie. “The Foundation of RAD.” In RAD Revealed: A Basic Primer on the Rules for Archival Description, 1–11. Canadian Council of Archives, 2001.
Ritzenthaler, Mary Lynn. “Chapter 5: Creating a Sympathetic Environment.” In Preserving Archives and Manuscripts, 51–66. Chicago: Society of American Archivists, 1993.
Fraser, Crystal, and Zoe Todd. “Decolonial Sensibilities: Indigenous Research and Engaging with Archives in Contemporary Colonial Canada.” In Decolonising Archives, 32–39. L'Internationale Online, 2016.

Unit 5

The Process: Collecting and Documenting
Nova Scotia Museum. Nova Scotia Museum. Nova Scotia Museum Collection Management Policy. Halifax: Department of Communities, Culture, and Heritage, 2016.

Home page: Nova Scotia Museum https://museum.novascotia.ca/
Burcaw, Ellis. “Registration and Cataloguing.” In Introduction to Museum Work, 93–101. Walnut Creek, CA: Altamira Press, 1997.
Gardner, James B., and Elizabeth Merritt. “Collections Planning: Pinning Down a Strategy.” Museum News 81, no. 4 (July/August 2002): 30, 32–33, 60–61.

Unit 6

The Process: Managing Collections Data
Blackaby, James R., Patricia Greeno, and The Nomenclature Committee. The Revised Nomenclature for Museum Cataloging: A Revised and Expanded Version of Robert G. Chenhall’s System for Classifying Man-Made Objects. Nashville: American Association for State and Local History. AASLH Press,1998. Read pages I-1 to I-5 and II-1 to II-7.
Canadian Heritage Information Network. Making Up the Rules: New Documentation Standards for Canadian Museums. Ottawa: Department of Canadian Heritage, 2020 [2012].
Canadian Heritage Information Network. Digital Preservation Toolkit. Ottawa: Department of Canadian Heritage, 2019.
Proctor, Nancy. “The Google Art Project: A New Generation of Museums on the Web?” Curator: The Museum Journal 54, no. 2 (April 2011): 215–221. https://0-doi-org.aupac.lib.athabascau.ca/10.1111/j.2151-6952.2011.00083.x

Unit 7

The Process: Collections Care
Miller, Steven H. “Museum Storage: Out of Sight, Out of Mind?” Museum News (January/February 2006): 57–59.
Michalski, Stefan. “Care and Preservation of Collections.” In Running a Museum: A Practical Handbook, edited by Patrick J. Boylan, 51–89. Paris: International Council on Museums (ICOM), 2004.
Mandrioli, Mauro. “Insect Collections and DNA Analyses: How to Manage Collections?” Museum Management and Curatorship 23, no. 2 (June 2008): 193–199. http://0-dx.doi.org.aupac.lib.athabascau.ca/10.1080/09647770802012375
Podany, Jerry. “Sustainable Stewardship: Preventive Conservation in a Changing World.” In Reinventing the Museum: The Evolving Conversation on the Paradigm Shift, 2nd ed., edited by Gail Anderson, 239–249. Lanham: Altamira Press, 2012.

Unit 8

Managing Collections: Rationalizing and Deaccessioning
Ainslie, Patricia. “Introduction,” “The Deaccessioning Process,” “Going Public,” and “Making the Decision.” In The Deaccessioning Strategy at Glenbow, 1992–1997, 2–13 & 20–29. Calgary: Glenbow Museum, 1995.
Malaro, Marie C. “Deaccessioning: The American Perspective.” Museum Management and Curatorship 10, no. 3 (September 1991): 273–279.
Miller, Steven H. “Selling Items from Museum Collections.” International Journal of Museum Management and Curatorship 4, no. 3 (1985): 289–294.
Canadian Museums Association. “E4: Disposals.” In CMA Ethical Guidelines 1999, 8–10. Ottawa: Canadian Museums Association, 2006.

Home page: Canadian Museums Association http://www.museums.ca
Canadian Museums Association. Deaccessioning Guidelines. Ottawa: Canadian Museums Association, 2014.  

Home page: Canadian Museums Association http://www.museums.ca/

Unit 9

Access, Collaboration, and Repatriation
Clavir, Miriam. “First Nations, Preservation, and Conservation: Personal Perspectives.” In Preserving What Is Valued: Museums, Conservation, and First Nations, 114–216. Vancouver: UBC Press, 2002.
Rosoff, Nancy B. “Integrating Native Views into Museum Procedures: Hope and Practice at the National Museum of the American Indian.” In Museums and Source Communities: A Routledge Reader, edited by Laura Peers and Alison K. Brown, 72–79. London: Routledge, 2003.
Ames, Michael M. “Are Changing Representations of First Peoples in Canadian Museums and Galleries Challenging the Curatorial Prerogative?” In The Changing Presentation of the American Indian: Museums and Native Cultures, edited by W. Richard West, 73–88. Washington, DC and Seattle: National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution and University of Washington Press, 2000.
Peers, Laura. “Sharing Knowledge.” Museum Journal 102, no. 5 (May 2002): 24–25, 27.
Weaselhead, Frank. “Repatriation Experiences of the Kainai.” In We are Coming Home: Repatriation and the Restoration of Blackfoot Cultural Confidence, edited by Gerry T. Conaty, 151–181. Edmonton: Athabasca University Press, 2015.

Note: For this reading, you will have to scroll to Chapter 5 (p. 151) in this eBook.
Aanischaaukamikw Cree Cultural Institute. “Beyond Property and Trade: Establishing a Community Loans Program.” Ottawa: Canadian Museums Association.