10th July 2011, 07:15 PM
(This post was last modified: 10th July 2011, 09:06 PM by Madweasels.)
...and I say again. We have been here before. Idea followed by idea followed by idea. Loads of them And the common denominator? Money. Each and everyone of them needs funding - and there is none around. Yes, try to sell scraps - but how do you manage such a scheme (staff and storage space). Yes, dispose of the bulk duplicates (after sampling) but who is going to pay for the specialists to do it and the skips to take it away. Yes, get a large central store (old hangar) for an entire region - but who pays the utilities bills, security - not least the shelving and logistics getting the stuff into there.
This entire 'crisis' has been caused by our very own industry - in all senses of the word. It is of all our own making - not just the LA curators, the museums, the archaeologists - but all of us in this fine industry and by our own industry in the field. And why? Because no one, quite frankly, has been willing or identified to take responsibility for it. And that is because of the ridiculous property law in this country that makes everything that is animal, mineral or vegetable, bar some exceptions (treasure and items whose owner can be identified - livestock for example), that is found on one's land is your very own property. Everything. We go on and on about how it it everyone's heritage, but the law says it BELONGS to the landowner, and we set up groups and forums to deliberate how archiving should be done, but unless we can get a single organisation or institution who is willing to accept responsibility for it, and to whom title can be transferred, PLUS a shed load of dosh in perpetuity then nothing, absolutely nothing is ever going to happen. Changing the law would help for future archives but this couldn't be applied retrospectively. That would amount to a nationalisation or state requisition, which however much the more left of centre of us here might prefer is never going to happen.
And while I am here venting. Just when will you commercial units stop moaning at the museums curators and start sending invoices to Local Authorities insisting that they pay rent for the storage of this stuff in your stores? And if they don't pay after 30 days, or 60 or whatever, take them to court!!! Start action to remind the LA's that, according to all the guidance, this stuff is supposed to end up in their manors, not the stores of the commercial units. The LAs are the ultimate recipients and it is to their museums (whether they exist or not - the guidance makes no real distinction) that title and long term care is transferred. Even if they do cough up in lieu of building museums to store the stuff, at least the commercial units's stores will then be paying for themselves, and perhaps the lovely storage element of the overheads they charge the next client could be put to better use. I would suggest outreach officers (as the Southport Group would like) or, perhaps more preferable to many in this groups, upping the day rates of their field staff and seeing to it that their salaries get topped up. Hey, maybe even use it for pensions. OK, sorry there - I got carried away.....
Just realised, if the units have any potential for lowering the overhead they will take it to undercut their opposition. Lovely downward economic spiral in action.
This entire 'crisis' has been caused by our very own industry - in all senses of the word. It is of all our own making - not just the LA curators, the museums, the archaeologists - but all of us in this fine industry and by our own industry in the field. And why? Because no one, quite frankly, has been willing or identified to take responsibility for it. And that is because of the ridiculous property law in this country that makes everything that is animal, mineral or vegetable, bar some exceptions (treasure and items whose owner can be identified - livestock for example), that is found on one's land is your very own property. Everything. We go on and on about how it it everyone's heritage, but the law says it BELONGS to the landowner, and we set up groups and forums to deliberate how archiving should be done, but unless we can get a single organisation or institution who is willing to accept responsibility for it, and to whom title can be transferred, PLUS a shed load of dosh in perpetuity then nothing, absolutely nothing is ever going to happen. Changing the law would help for future archives but this couldn't be applied retrospectively. That would amount to a nationalisation or state requisition, which however much the more left of centre of us here might prefer is never going to happen.
And while I am here venting. Just when will you commercial units stop moaning at the museums curators and start sending invoices to Local Authorities insisting that they pay rent for the storage of this stuff in your stores? And if they don't pay after 30 days, or 60 or whatever, take them to court!!! Start action to remind the LA's that, according to all the guidance, this stuff is supposed to end up in their manors, not the stores of the commercial units. The LAs are the ultimate recipients and it is to their museums (whether they exist or not - the guidance makes no real distinction) that title and long term care is transferred. Even if they do cough up in lieu of building museums to store the stuff, at least the commercial units's stores will then be paying for themselves, and perhaps the lovely storage element of the overheads they charge the next client could be put to better use. I would suggest outreach officers (as the Southport Group would like) or, perhaps more preferable to many in this groups, upping the day rates of their field staff and seeing to it that their salaries get topped up. Hey, maybe even use it for pensions. OK, sorry there - I got carried away.....
Just realised, if the units have any potential for lowering the overhead they will take it to undercut their opposition. Lovely downward economic spiral in action.