Deaccessioning policies : a practical guide for art museums

In this thesis, deaccessioning practices and policies in today's art museums are\ud examined, specifically in regards to the modern ethical, legal and educational\ud responsibilities of a museum, and where deaccessioning is defined as the permanent\ud removal of an object from a collection. By conducting a literature review and case\ud studies of four museums involved with deaccessioning, current best practices and\ud policies are explored. Four specific measures are identified as playing key roles in\ud establishing an optimum deaccessioning policy, including the adoption of\ud professional standards, gaining a historical perspective, adhering to all legal criteria,\ud and creating an open dialogue with fellow deaccessioning institutions. It is\ud concluded that with deaccessioning becoming more widely covered in public\ud forums, museums must understand their obligations to the public in explaining\ud deaccessioning. Although the deaccessioning debate will continue, museum\ud professionals need to play a more active role by educating themselves and their\ud communities