Throughout this policy objects held in any of the Museum’s collections shall be referred to as artifacts.
Careful handling of artifacts is a critical element of a preventative conservation program. If artifacts are not handled properly, they break and/or deteriorate, and their value as documents of the past diminishes. Furthermore, artifacts are a non-renewable resource; once destroyed, the original artifact is gone forever. All museums have a duty to preserve their collections “in a condition as close to their original state as possible” so that people in the future as well as the present may enjoy and benefit from the collections. Therefore, once an object crosses the Museum’s threshold, it is no longer an object, but rather an artifact. No matter what the use of an artifact may have been in the past, it is now an artifact and must be treated as such. The most preventable form of damage comes as a result of improper handling of artifacts. By properly training every individual who will come in contact with artifacts preventable damage to the Museum’s Artifact Collection is minimized.
Every individual in the Spurlock Museum who works with or comes in regular contact with the Artifact Collection is required to: read the Artifact Handling Manual; sign the Artifact Handling Agreement Form; and attend an intensive, two-hour artifact handling workshop led by the Collections Manager and/or Assistant Collections Manager. After a successful completion of the artifact handling workshop, the Collections Manager and/or Assistant Collections Manager must sign a document authorizing the employee to handle artifacts. Only after completing the artifact handling workshop can employees handle artifacts.
In addition, all individuals must attend a safety course on the handling of firearms from the University of Illinois Police Department prior to handling any firearms in the Museum’s collections. Individuals must refresh this course every five years.
On occasion an outside person (e.g. a scholar, donor, or curator) will need to handle particular artifacts. This is allowed only under the supervision of the Collections Manager, Assistant Collections Manager, Registrar, or Assistant Registrars. Prior to handling any artifacts, the outside individual may forego the training workshop, but must read the Artifact Handling Manual and sign the Artifact Handling Waiver Form.
The Artifact Handling Manual is a key document articulating the standards of care all staff are expected to demonstrate in working with the Museum’s collections. It is used in training all individuals, both staff and visitors, who will handle the Museum’s artifacts.
The Collections Management Section is responsible for the contents in the Artifact Handling Manual. It addresses the following topics:
Artifact Handling Manual Topics
- The importance of proper handling of artifacts;
- Guidelines for handling artifacts;
- Procedures for planning and implementing artifact moves;
- Rules for working around artifacts;
- Personal safety and security procedures while handling artifacts;
- Procedures if a person is injured or if an artifact is damaged;
- Basic security procedures;
- Artifact security;
- Reporting abnormal conditions;
- Correct and incorrect ways to load carts and handle artifacts; and
- Photographic illustrations of equipment and materials used in handling and moving artifacts.
National Park Service Museum Handbook, Part 1, 1:1.