by Eileen Corcoran

Recently, I received a call from a local historical society that was looking for some guidance on the issue of purchasing objects for their collection¹. A few of its board members had questions and concerns about the practice of paying money for historical artifacts. Was purchasing really something that history museums do? What are the pros and cons of paying money for objects? Are there guidelines that can help them in making decisions on whether or not they should buy objects? Like many small museum boards, this organization’s members had little to no real education or experience with collections administration, and no professional staff to guide them. I pledged to help them find information to guide them in their endeavors.

I thought it would be simple to find some reference materials to help out the organization. Unfortunately, there didn’t seem to be much available on the subject. Sure, there has been plenty written on collections issues such as deaccessioning, donations, illegal antiquities, unclaimed property, etc. but seemingly nothing directly on the topic of purchasing in the small museum.

Why is there such a lack of treatment on this topic? Much of it probably has to do with the history of museums themselves. The original function of museums was as a collection. Private collectors who wished to share their life’s work with others turned their collections into museums or "cabinets of curiosities". Collectors-turned-museum administrators naturally turned to purchasing as a way to increase collections. Science and art museums today continue to be very active collecting agencies, often adding to their collections through purchasing. The history museum is a more recent development, multiplying rapidly in the U.S. in the last 100 years. Most history museums are less-active collecting agencies than art or science organizations².

As organizations that may not be actively collecting, what are some of the reservations or concerns small museums or historical societies may have about purchasing objects?

• "We don’t want to set a precedent"
  One major concern of the historical society I talked with was the fear that if an organization pays money for one object, everyone else is going to expect to be paid for theirs. This concern has been compounded recently by the increasing interest in historical collecting and the popularity of Antiques Roadshow and E-bay. Now everyone knows (or thinks they know) that great aunt Mabel’s porcelain dog collection is worth a lot of money. Museums are often unable to compete with the private market, and certainly do not want people to believe that they can.

• "We don’t have the money to buy objects"
  With many small organizations there are barely enough funds to cover the electric bill, let alone purchase objects for their collections. Which is the better use for ever dwindling resources? Unfortunately, lack of funding will probably be the limiting factor for the majority of organizations when deciding on their purchasing procedures.
  

• "We already have too much stuff"
  The lack of collections management and defined collections scope in the early history of many museums has left a number of organizations with too many objects in their collections. Couple this with a decided lack of funding (especially for collections care), and you are left with organizations that have no space, no staff, and no ability to preserve what they already have. Is it really a good idea to buy more objects when you can’t properly care for the ones you already have?
  

• "We don’t want to get swindled"
  Many a museum’s fear would be to find out that its prized possession is a fake. Even worse is when you paid money for the offending object and now have nothing to show for it. Though the issue of fakes, frauds, and theft is more prominent in the art and antiquities world³, the history community is not exempt. Are you really sure that corroded button came from a Civil War uniform? Is that out-of-state dealer really reputable? Is that furniture really as old as it looks? A "hot" history market and new technologies have made it even more tempting for crooks to create or pass something off as "authentic". Even people with good intentions may not know that their great grandfather’s lamp really isn’t a Tiffany.
  

WHY PURCHASE?
All of the above concerns are valid for any organization trying to decide its position on purchasing objects. Even after considering these potential pitfalls, there are definite reasons why an organization may want to pursue purchasing:

• Obtaining what you desire or need
  The Henry Ford Museum in Detroit recently paid over $400,000 for the bus on which Rosa Parks staged her famous protest. While most history museums don’t have that kind of money to work with, we can probably think of a few objects or items that we really wish we had in our collections. Purchasing may be the only way to obtain a one-of-a-kind item or items, fill a gaping hole in the collection, or add something of great significance to your organization and its mission. For most local history museums, these objects won’t be of national significance, like the Rosa Parks bus, but are probably important locally. Maybe they come from the town founders, prominent families, local businesses or underrepresented communities. Perhaps they commemorate important local events or inventions or help to understand the changing face of a town or neighborhood. It’s up to each organization to figure out what their "bus" might be, but if it comes around you certainly don’t want to miss it.
  

• Objects for specific exhibits or programs
  Let’s say you want to mount an exhibition on your town’s 1893 centennial celebration. You have a limited number of items already in your collection, but you need more to make the exhibit work, and you only have six months to obtain them. You can put a call out to members and the community for donations, but chances are you might have to buy some objects to complete the exhibition. When your needs are very specific, purchasing may be the best, and most hassle-free, option.
  

• Change in mission or purpose
  Museums and historical societies, like any organization, change over time. When a museum makes a significant change in its mission or purpose, chances are that its collections will need to change too. Purchasing is a relatively quick way to obtain the objects you now need. It also provides evidence to the public about the changes you have made. If they see you are now buying certain types of objects, they may be more likely to start donating other items you want.
  
  Along with purchasing, changes in mission and purpose often also include deaccessioning. Current museum ethics hold that money gained through deaccessioning should only be used for new acquisitions or direct care of the collections⁴. This influx of funds from deaccessioning is often what makes purchasing possible. Please remember, however, that deaccessioning is not a process that should be taken lightly. Museum collections are not liquid assets.
  

• The Bargain Sale
  One last thing to mention about purchasing objects is what’s known as a "Bargain Sale". A bargain sale is an arrangement between owner and museum where the owner sells the object (or objects) to the organization for substantially less than fair market value. The owner may then take the difference between the sale price and the fair market value as a tax-deductible "gift" or "donation" to the organization⁵. A bargain sale is just another option for museums when trying to acquire objects, but it carries with it a set of specific rules and guidelines. An organization should read-up on these rules before engaging in a bargain sale.
  

WHAT SHOULD I DO?
"A museum is judged by its collections. Their possession accounts for its existence; their character determines its worth." Carl E. Guthe ⁶

An organization’s decision to purchase (or not to purchase) is ultimately an integral part of a sound set of collections policies and procedures. Every museum or historical society chartered by the New York State Board of Regents is required to have a collections management policy that includes a section on acquisitions. The main aspect of a collections policy that will affect purchasing is the scope of collections. The scope defines the parameters of a collection, often in terms of subject, geographic area, and time period. It is tied directly to the organization’s defined mission, and should encompass both what is already in the collection(s) and what the organization would hope to collect. Your scope of collections should drive all your acquisitions, especially your purchases.

In addition to collections scope, another important thing to have are set procedures for the acquisitions process. Your acquisition procedures should provide a set of guidelines for staff, board members, and donors to follow. Again, these procedures should be able to apply to all acquisitions, not just purchases, but you might have separate aspects of those procedures that apply directly to buying objects. These could include:

• Who has authority to purchase objects? Who makes purchasing decisions?
• Are there monetary limits for purchases? Where do the funds come from? Are there different procedures for objects costing more than a set amount?
• Where can objects be purchased from—private dealers? E-bay? Other museums? The general public?
• Who authenticates or appraises the objects?

The organization might also want to consider potential conflicts of interest in the purchasing process. Should board members and/or staff be excluded from selling objects to the organization? How about their families or friends? Even the appearance of impropriety can be detrimental to an organization. Set procedures let everyone know what they are supposed to do and how to go about doing it, while hopefully preventing confusion, controversy, and mistakes.

Even with set policies and procedures, how do you find the money to pay for objects? One way is to establish a separate fund or line item in your budget for acquisitions. You may find that there are often members/friends who would like to give to an acquisitions fund. Establishing a separate fund helps to keep purchased acquisitions from being a drain on your budget, while giving people more control over how their monetary donations are spent. Even if you do not establish a separate fund, it might be a good idea to include "collections purchases" as a separate item in your budget. This helps set up a limit on the amount that can be spent in a year (and makes people think harder about what they are spending the money on), while giving you the flexibility to use the money elsewhere if needed.

Another consideration that should drive purchases (and other acquisitions) is community and donor relations. It is important to keep community members (members, visitors, donors, etc.) informed about the practices and procedures you’ve established for your collections; to tell them what you do, why you do it, and how they can help. Openness and honesty about your collections practices will help build a rapport with owners of desired objects (whether the items are purchased or donated); will help people understand what you are interested in acquiring; can drive monetary donations to an acquisition fund; and will help avoid that fear of "setting a precedent".

The decision whether or not to purchase objects for collections is up to each individual organization. You should take into account the factors described above and decide for yourself the right course of action. Purchasing objects for collections has been a part of standard museum practices since the beginning. It is not something that an organization should fear or dismiss, but it should be approached with the same forethought and care that is applied to other parts of your organization’s administration and collections stewardship.


Footnotes
¹ This article applies strictly to the practice of purchasing objects for a museum’s permanent collection, not the practice of purchasing items for educational, research, or administrative purposes.

² In 2000, New York State’s chartered museums added more than 300,000 items to their collections, with an estimated total value in excess of $81 million (no breakdown is available based on type of museum). Data taken from the New York State Education Department Annual Report- Museums, Historical Societies, and Similar Cultural Agencies, 2000. available on-line at www.manyonline.org.

³ For access to more information on this topic, visit the International Council of Museums’ (ICOM) website at http://icom.museum/traffic_links.html for a collection of links related to the illicit traffic of cultural property including Nazi-era looting, archaeological artifacts, databases of stolen art, and the international antiquities trade.

⁴ See the AAM Code of Ethics for Museums (www.aam-us.org), or the New York State Chartering Program guidelines (www.nysm.nysed.gov/charter).

⁵ For more information on bargain sales see pp. 377-378 of A Legal Primer on Managing Museum Collections by Marie Malaro. 1998, Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, DC.

⁶ The Management of Small History Museums. 1964, The American Association of State and Local History: Nashville, TN; p.21.

Eileen Corcoran is Program Coordinator for the Upstate History Alliance.

© 2003 UHA