Significance 2.0: a guide to assessing the significance of collections
Roslyn Russell, Kylie Winkworth
© Commonwealth of Australia, 2010
ISBN 97 80977544363 (pbk)
Collection analysis and policy development
Policy and minimum requirements for management of cultural collections (2006)
Report cover reproduced courtesy of the University of Melbourne
An analysis of significance across collections helps organisations to develop a common policy across collections; set priorities for conservation, storage and exhibition; and identify gaps in collections.
The University of Melbourne collections
The University of Melbourne has developed a 'Policy and minimum requirements for management of Cultural Collections' to deal with its thirty-one identified cultural collections, ranging from classics and archaeology, engineering and medicine, musical instruments, zoology, art, rare books, historic maps, special collections and archives, and collections currently managed by Museum Victoria.
Significance assessment underpins the management of these collections: under the general requirements of the Policy, 'A fully documented significance assessment of the Cultural Collection should be undertaken at the earliest possible opportunity by the Collection Manager, in accordance with the methodology Significance: a guide to assessing the significance of cultural heritage objects and collections (Heritage Collections Council, 2001).'
Significance in action
Significance assessment applications and case studies
- Aquisition
- Deaccessioning
- Conservation treatment
- Collection risk assessment
- Collection care
- Copying and digitisation
- Collection analysis and policy development
- In situ collections
- Shared collections
- Exhibitions and interpretation
- Online exhibitions
- Online access and education
- Assessing cultural heritage website quality
- Nominating to a register
- Applying for a grant
- Advocacy and resourcing
- Fundraising and promotion
- Thematic studies and regional surveys
- Collections mapping
- Significance training
Key
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