Security Resources
Threats to Your Museum
Museum security is the art of protecting your museum,
collections, personnel, and visitors from risks whether they are
from natural disasters such as fires, floods, or sickness or from
man-made disasters such as thefts or vandalism. Museums need to
have safety and security plans to ensure that its staff is prepared
to respond to fire, water emergencies, and other large-scale threats
to collections. Emergency and disaster planning is clearly part
of the broader concern about the fabric of an institution. So a
museum emergency or disaster plan is but one element in a larger
safety and security strategy to guide the entire institution's policies
and procedures during such events as criminal acts, natural disasters,
structural fires, serious medical emergencies, or releases of dangerous
fumes and gases. Developing a manual of procedures to anticipate
all these threats to the entire institution is clearly a process
in which all museum personnel must participate.
History has shown the wisdom of taking precautions before events
that no one wants to happen or can imagine happening-any catastrophe
likely to affect the entire structure of an institution and the
security of its collections. This section is divided into several
sections that provide resources for overall museum security as well
as for dealing with specific threats. There is also a section for
safety and emergency forms for your museum, as well as a section
for disasters and disaster planning.
The
Museum Security Network works to provide a wealth of information
and resources on all topics of interest in Museum Security.
Suggested Guidelines for Museum Security is a manual
compiled by the Standing Committee on Museum, Library, and Cultural
Property of the American Society for Industrial Security and the Museum
Association Security Committee of the American Association of Museums.
Theft
The essence of theft prevention is knowing what
you have and vigilance. If museum collections materials are not
clearly identified and described, proof of ownership will be difficult
to establish even if stolen materials are discovered in someone's
possession. A fist step is an inventory of your collection and better
yet, full registration of all of the collections materials. You
should also mark your collections materials with an identifying
mark that included at least, the registration number for each object.
This ownership mark not only identifies artifacts as the property
of the museum, but also discourages theft, especially if the mark
is not readily removable. Indelible marks are especially important,
since staff commit most thefts from museum collections.
The following websites provide information about marking your objects:
http://www.mda.org.uk/labels.htm
http://www.collectioncare.org/cci/ccin.html
Access to secure storage areas must be carefully monitored. Cleaning,
maintenance, and janitorial staff should always be admitted in the
company of a staff member, and unauthorized visitors should never
be left alone in storage areas. Allowing a potential thief full
and unsupervised access to museum materials is tantamount to encouraging
theft. In general, the more information a visitor can gain about
your physical plant, the greater the risk to your collection. Make
sure you know who has keys and keep extra keys in a safe and locked
place.
Ideally, exhibition areas should be separated from storage areas
by a locked door that can be opened only by authorized personnel.
Materials on exhibit are especially vulnerable to theft and mutilation.
Exhibits featuring rare or other special materials can attract thieves
or vandals. Exhibit cases should be within a controlled area so
that they can be monitored. The cases should be securely locked
and constructed from materials difficult to dismantle or damage.
Should you have a theft of valuable objects from your museum, these
organizations handle all thefts related to objects from museums
and they assist in the recovery of stolen materials.
The FBI Art Theft Program Website includes resources to report the theft of works of art valued at $2,000 or more as well as resources on legislation regarding the theft of works of art and artifacts.
The Art Loss Register is an organization that helps victims of art theft and also acts a clearinghouse for the reporting art thefts and recovery of stolen art.
Collections Theft Response Procedures by Wilbur Faulk and Laurie Sowd is available as a book on-line.
Fire and burglar alarms should be monitored on a regular schedule and, if possible, should be connected to a fire or police department or a remote guard or security post manned 24 hours a day. Burglar alarms should be set when the museum closes and should include both door and motion alarms. Fire alarms should be designed to alert the occupants of the building while at the same time notifying the appropriate emergency services. The most effective fire alarms for museum are ionization detectors, since they react to combustion gases rather than heat, flame, or visible smoke.
Fire
Protecting
Your Institution From Wild Fires: Planning Not To Burn And Learning
To Recover by Michael Trinkley, Ph.D.
The National
Fire Prevention Association (NFPA) provides free brochures
on fire prevention. They can be contacted at:
1 Batterymarch Park
Quincy, MA 02269-9101
617-770-3000
Fax: 617-770-0700
E-mail: webmaster@nfpa.org
Water
FLOOD
RECOVERY BOOKLET
Emergency
Drying Procedures for Water-Damaged Collections
Emergency measures to be taken in case of flood damage to collections.
The American
Institute for Conservation has several brochures with tips
on dealing with objects in a water emergency:
Tips for the Care of Water-Damaged Family Heirlooms and Other Valuables
Saving Water Damaged Textiles
Saving Photographs After the Flood
Insurance
Insurance should be part of a museum's risk management plan. It offers financial protection to shield your museum and collections from catastrophic monetary loss. The companies listed below are a few of the most prominent companies that offer fine arts (museum) insurance.
Fine
Arts Risk Management
1530 Wilson Blvd, Suite 900
Arlington, VA 22209
888-812-3276
FAX 703-312-6404
Huntington
T. Block Fine Arts Insurance
CHUBB & Son,
Inc
15 Mountain View Road
Warren, NJ 07061-1615
908-903-2000
FAX 908-903-3838
CHUBB also has an on-line
Newsletter on various aspects of fines arts insurance coverage
particularly for collectors, but some aspects apply to museums.
AIG
Fine Arts Insurance
80 Pine Street, Third Floor
New York, NY 10005
212-770-2922
FAX 202-809-1533
Henderson Phillips Fine Arts Insurance
4525 Wilshire Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90010
800-871-9991
**Disclaimer
This is by no means an exhaustive list,
nor is it meant to be an endorsement on the part of the New Mexico
Association of Museums.
Museum Resources
