Allow me to explain what this forum is intended to do.
Museums hold many, many important artifacts. Still, most artifacts of value (I'm sure its over 99%), historic or otherwise, are in the hands of private collectors. I personally would like to see much more of these objects in the hands of professional organizations, but collectors certainly play a part in saving what we call material cultural heritage... you folks would call them artifacts... maybe collectibles.
The plan is to provide professional advice to you, the collector, in storage and display methods. The right storage method can extend the life of an artifact by thousands of years. Decades at the very least. We will do what ever we can to help, with the interests of your artifacts in mind. Whether you collect as an investment or out of personal interest, I'm sure these methods are in your best interest too.
We are the staff of the Brenham Heritage Museum. We have fifteen years between the two people moderating this forum. We have worked for the Texas Park Service, the Witte Museum, the Imperial War Museum (London), the British Museum, the Star of the Republic Museum, the St. Barbe Museum of the New Forest Coast, the San Antonio Conservation Society, and the San Antonio Spanish Governor's Palace. We have experience in textiles, firearms, paper artifacts, furniture, ceramics, and art. We will provide the best advice we can give... but as a disclaimer... we cannot be responsible for damage or loss of artifacts. We can advise, but the risk must remain yours.
That's just legal stuff, I'm sure you understand. Ask away. We will check back regularly. Even if we have not had activity in months... which may happen, let's be honest... we will answer your question.
I assure you... we haven't seen everything. Actually, we are looking forward to hearing about unusual artifacts in this forum. We can assure you we can come up with a safe storage solution for anything you can throw our way. Ask, and ye shall be rewarded.
Paper is so important in so many cases. Sadly, these objects weren't always intended to be anything but temporary. We can help you ensure the long life of your historic paper objects. It may not be as simple as you would think. Advice is only a question away.
Furniture is made of whatever you can imagine. Wood, leather, metals, textiles, bone, hair... even paper can be part of a piece. Because they are made of so many different materials, display can be problematic. We want to make sure you know the facts, so you can keep your precious possessions safe for the next generation. Ask away.
Ceramics are generally pretty resilient by design. Crockery, stoneware, china... pretty reliable materials. There are some hang ups... glass, for example. Glass can be finicky. Whatever your concerns, we would be happy to help.
Textiles can be brittle or robust, thick or thin, natural or synthetic... all are potentially important. Improper display can put stress on seams or weave, effectively destroying an artifact. It doesn't matter what textile you have, we can help. Uniforms, quilts, dresses, flags... we've seen it all. And we can give solid advice in your quest to show off your hard-earned collection.
Firearms can be tough to deal with... what we call a hybrid object. They are also heavy. They have many details to consider when choosing a display method. Ask away. The approximate weight would be useful... as would all constituent construction materials.
Museum Skills » Search for museumskills's content
Thu Jan 03, 2013 3:37 pm
