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Role of Museums and The Professional Code of Ethics

Role-of-museums-and-the-professional-code-of-ethics

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Hatniah Hatniah
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47 views15 pages

Role of Museums and The Professional Code of Ethics

Role-of-museums-and-the-professional-code-of-ethics

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Hatniah Hatniah
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The Role of Museums and the Professional Code of Ethics Geoffrey Lewis Chair, ICOM Ethics Committee The Role of Museums Museums look after the world’s cultural property and interpret ic to che public. This is not ordinary property. I has a special status in international legislation and there are normally national laws co protect it. is part of the world’s natural and culeural heritage and may be of a tangible of intangible character. Cultural property also often provides the primary evidence in a number of subject disciplines, such as archaeology and che nacural sciences, and therefore represents an important contribution to knowledge. It is also a significant component in defining culeural identity, nationally and internationally Historical background to collectis Collections of objects brought together because they have personal or collective associations occur in remote antiquity. Grave goods found with Palacolithic burials provide evidence of this. However, development towards the museum idea occurs early in the second millennium BCE at Larsa in Mesopotamia where copies of old inscriptions were reproduced for educational use in the schools there. Archaeological evidence from the sixth century BCE levels at Ur suggest that not only were the kings Nebuchadrezzar and Nabonidus collecting antiquities at this time, also, about the same time, there was a collection of antiquities in a room next to the temple school which was associated with a tablec describing earlier brick inscriptions found locally. This could be considered to be a ‘muscum label’ Despite the classical origins of the word ‘museum’ neither the Greek nor the Roman empires. provide cxamples of a muscum as we know them today. The votive offerings housed in che temples, sometimes in specially built treasuries, were normally open to the public, often on payment of a small fee. They included works of art, natural curiosities as well as exotic items brought from far-flung parts of the empire but were primarily a religious provision. ‘The veneration of the ppast and of its personalities in Oriental countries also led to the collection of objects while relies were being accumulated at the tombs of carly Muslim martyrs of which those dedicated to Imam-Reza at Meshed in north-west Iran is today housed in a museum near the comb. The idea of al-wagf, involving the giving of property for the public good and for religious purposes, also resulted in the formation of collections. In medieval Europe, collections were mainly the prerogative of princely houses and the church. Such collections had an economic importance and would be used to finance wars and other state expenses, Other collections took the form of alleged relics of Christendom. With the resurgence of interest in its classical heritage and facilitated by the rise of new merchant and banking families, impressive collections of antiquities were formed in Europe. Outstanding among the collections was that formed and developed by the Medici family in Florence and eventually bequeathed ‘o the state in 1743 to be accessible ‘to the people of ‘Tuscany and to all nations. Royal and noble collections Running a Museum: A Practical Handbook The Role of Museums and the Professional Code of Ethics were also formed in many other European countties. By the seventeenth century, inereasing interest into human as well as natural history led to the creation of many specialised collections by the intelligentsia of the day. This is also the period when the first scientific societies were established: and a number formed their own collections, the best known being Accademia del Cimento in Florence (1657), the Royal Society of London (1660) and the Academic des Sciences in Paris (1666). By this time systematic classifications for the natural and artificial world were available to assist collectors in ordering their collections. This reflects the spirit of system, rational enquiry and an encyclopaedic approach to knowledge now emerging in Burope. The first public museums Encyclopaedic museums Ic is in the encyclopaedic spirit of the so-called European Enlightenment that public museums emerge. The Ashmolean Museum, opened by the University of Oxford in 1683, is generally considered to be the first museum established by a public body for the public benefit. This was based largely on the eclectic collections, from many parts of the world, brought together by the ‘Tradescant family and previously displayed to the public at their home in London. It was encyclopaedic in character and this is a feature of two other well-known museums of this carly period: the British Museum, opened in London in 1759 and the Louvre, Paris, opened in 1793; both were government initiatives, the former resulting from the acquisition of three private collections and the latter from the “democratisation” of the royal collections Society museums Leamed societies were also among the exly originators of public museums. This was particularly so in Asia. In The Brtish Museum was established by an act of parliament which stated thatthe museum was “not only forthe inspection and entertainment of the eared andthe curious, bu fo the general use and benefit ofthe public. I opened in 1758 in Montagu House, Bloomsbury (se above) specially purchased forthe purpose. Public access was fre from the outset, although ial it was necessary to apply for 2 ticket to gain admission. visitor from France in 1784, observed thatthe Museum was expressly “Yor the instruction and ratification ofthe public" Te museum comprised classical antiques, natural history specimens, manuscripts as well as ethnographic, numismatc and art ‘material. Te founding law reflected this encyclopaedic thinking of time stating "all arts and sclences have a connexion with eachother But the natural history collections were moved out to form the Natural story Museum, wich opened in 1881 Jakarta the collection of the Batavia Society of Arts and Science was begun in 1778, eventually to become the Central Museum of Indonesian Culture. The origins of the Indian Museum in Calcutta are similar, being based on the collections of the Asiatic Society of Bengal which commenced in 1784. Both museums covered the arts and sciences and were concerned with furthering knowledge about their respective countries. In the United States, the Charleston Library Society of South Carolina announced its intention in 1773 of forming a collection of che ‘natural productions, either animal James Macie Smithson wished to see an instutin established “or ‘the increase and dtfusion of knowledge among men". This was the beginning ofthe world-renowned scientic and educational facity ‘known asthe Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC. The legislation establishing it provided fora building to house an at galery, ary, chemical laboratory lecture has, and museum galeries; “all objects of art and curious research. natural history, plants, geologeal and ‘mineralogical specimens" belonging tothe United States were to be accommodated there. The Smithsonian's frst bulking (pictured above) \was completed in 1855 andthe United States’ National Museum ‘pened three years later. The collections soon out-grew the buldng Today, the Mallin Washington DC is lined with the specialist museums ofthe Smithsonian Istituto, vegetable or mineral’ with a view to displaying the practical and commercial aspects of agriculture and medicine in the province. National museums The role of the museum in contributing to national consciousness and identity developed initially in Europe and wich this the recognition that museums were the appropriate instixutions for the preservation of a nation’s historic heritage. This role continues today and is often emphasised in the national museums of newly ‘established or re-established states. Nineteenth century ‘expressions of this role include the national museurn in Budapest, which originated in 1802 and was built from Running a Museum: A Practical Handbook The Role of Museums and the Professional Code of Ethics ‘One of the frst musoums in South America was founded in Buenos ‘Ares in 1812 and opened tothe public in 1823 as a museum ofthe country, Iwas housed in the university for many year, Now the ‘Argentine Museum of Natural Sciences in Buenos Ales, it moved into Its present building (above) in 1937. The collections cover al feds of ‘natural and human history but are especially trong in paleontology, anthropology, and entomology. money taised fiom voluntary taxes; it later became identified with the fight for Hungarian independence. In Prague a revival in nationalism led to the founding of the national museum in 1818 and its new building, not opened until 1891, beeame symbolic of the Czech national revival. Both initially housed collections from the arts and sciences but as the collections grew they were transferred to other buildings. In Hungary, for example, this led to the formation of specialised museums: Applied Arts, Fine Arts, National Culture and Natural Science. Specialised museums ‘The concept of an encyclopaedic museum of national or global culture thus waned during the nineteenth century in favour of national museums of increasing Running a Museum: A Practical Handbook The Role of Museums and the Professional Code of Ethics In 1835 an Antiquities Service was established by the Egyptian ‘government to protect its archaeological sites and store the artefacts [A museum vas formed in 1858 but the collection was not exhibited in 8 permanent building untl the Egyptian Museum in Cairo was opened in 1902 (see above). Shorty after this, some ofthe collections were transferred to form two new we-known institutions, the Islamic "Museum (1903) andthe Coptic Museum (1908), specialisation. This was accentuated where museums were also viewed as vehicles for promoting industrial design and technical achievement. International exhibitions of manufactures contribured to the formation of a number of such specialised museums, including the Vietoria and Albert Museum and Science Museum in London, the Technisches Museum, Vienna and the Palais de la Decouverte in Ps General and local museums ‘The encyclopaedic idea, expressed now in general museums, remains a characteristic of many regional and local museums. These developed from the collections of private benefactors and societies particularly from the mid-nineteenth century. In Britain, municipal museums were seen as 2 means of providing instruction and The institute of Jamaica was established in 1879 forthe encouragement af literature, science and atin Jamaica By 1891 a science museum had been established and the following year a potralt gallery was opened. Today, it administers a number of history and ethnography museums in erent prt of the iland. Tho scionce museum —now the natural history division ~ is in the headquarters building ofthe Institute in Kingston (above. entertainment to the increasingly urbanised population and developed in the context of reforms to overcome social problems resulting from industrialisation. Where they were established at a port or other centre for international cade, the collections often reflected the global nature of this. These local and regional muscums also had a role in promoting civic pride. ‘few years following independence, the Nigerian government ‘established a National Museums and Monuments Commission with responsibilty fr establishing national museum in the principal cites. This was pat ofa policy to promote the development of cultural identity and national unity. Some of these museums have developed workshops where tratonal rats can be demonstrated ‘The Jos Museum, one of the ealet ofthe national museums, has

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