Open Forum

I am coming to the end of a full collections inventory of our collection and I am looking toward our next steps for accreditation. Our entire collection will have Object ID numbers in a few weeks time, however, almost nothing has been accessioned into our permanent collection (we have aprox. 80 works accessioned in). Even the works that have been accessioned into the permanent collection don't have accession numbers. How would you go about assigning accession numbers to an entire collection? Should they all get one number because they are being accessioned all at once as one group? Should we do two numbers, one for the 80 works already accessioned, and one for the unaccessioned works? Or should I go back and try to make accession numbers for every year, or every group within each year? Our collection is only around 3000 objects. 
All ideas are appreciated!

-Ruth

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Ruth Ackermann
Collections Manager
Richard M. Ross Art Museum, Ohio Wesleyan University
Delaware OH
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​A lot depends on the records you have for the various objects.  Despite the lack of identification numbers or formal accession numbers, do you have a good acquisition records? Have there been regular inventories in which the objects appear? Or are they "found in collection" with limited provenance?

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Andrea deTarnowsky, Historic Site Manager
T.C. Steele State Historic Site
Indiana State Museum & Historic Sites system
Nashville IN
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Original Message:
Sent: 05-16-2018 11:18 AM
From: Ruth Ackermann
Subject: Accession Numbers for Previously Unaccessioned Collection

I am coming to the end of a full collections inventory of our collection and I am looking toward our next steps for accreditation. Our entire collection will have Object ID numbers in a few weeks time, however, almost nothing has been accessioned into our permanent collection (we have aprox. 80 works accessioned in). Even the works that have been accessioned into the permanent collection don't have accession numbers. How would you go about assigning accession numbers to an entire collection? Should they all get one number because they are being accessioned all at once as one group? Should we do two numbers, one for the 80 works already accessioned, and one for the unaccessioned works? Or should I go back and try to make accession numbers for every year, or every group within each year? Our collection is only around 3000 objects.
All ideas are appreciated!

-Ruth

------------------------------
Ruth Ackermann
Collections Manager
Richard M. Ross Art Museum, Ohio Wesleyan University
Delaware OH
------------------------------

We have ID numbers for everything. Unfortunately, we have patchy acquisition records. Only about 1/3 of the collection has paperwork to go along with it. Most of the rest of the collection has identified donors but no paperwork with it. The last 400 or so items are FIC. The collection was started in the early sixties and I am completing the very first complete inventory right now, so there are no past inventories to go on. This is why I am considering accessioning everything under one number since technically it has never been accessioned into our permanent collection.

------------------------------
Ruth Ackermann
Collections Manager
Richard M. Ross Art Museum
Delaware OH
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 05-16-2018 04:24 PM
From: Andrea deTarnowsky
Subject: Accession Numbers for Previously Unaccessioned Collection

​A lot depends on the records you have for the various objects.  Despite the lack of identification numbers or formal accession numbers, do you have a good acquisition records? Have there been regular inventories in which the objects appear? Or are they "found in collection" with limited provenance?

------------------------------
Andrea deTarnowsky, Historic Site Manager
T.C. Steele State Historic Site
Indiana State Museum & Historic Sites system
Nashville IN

Original Message:
Sent: 05-16-2018 11:18 AM
From: Ruth Ackermann
Subject: Accession Numbers for Previously Unaccessioned Collection

I am coming to the end of a full collections inventory of our collection and I am looking toward our next steps for accreditation. Our entire collection will have Object ID numbers in a few weeks time, however, almost nothing has been accessioned into our permanent collection (we have aprox. 80 works accessioned in). Even the works that have been accessioned into the permanent collection don't have accession numbers. How would you go about assigning accession numbers to an entire collection? Should they all get one number because they are being accessioned all at once as one group? Should we do two numbers, one for the 80 works already accessioned, and one for the unaccessioned works? Or should I go back and try to make accession numbers for every year, or every group within each year? Our collection is only around 3000 objects.
All ideas are appreciated!

-Ruth

------------------------------
Ruth Ackermann
Collections Manager
Richard M. Ross Art Museum, Ohio Wesleyan University
Delaware OH
------------------------------

I am also currently doing an extensive inventory of my Museum's collections and I can see from the records points in the past where previous collection managers ran into the same problem you are having. The Museum had these objects with various degrees of records and no numbers. Since our collection already had established a system starting with year he tired to work these previously unnumbered items into the system. Frequently he did that by using the current year, which I now find slightly frustrating since I will come across an object the Museum received in 1998 but has an accession number of 2002. Frustrations aside, I would say the format you choose doesn't matter as much as long as you are clear and consistent. The numbers are really for the benefit of your institution, to help you keep track of your collection, so if it better suits your needs to lump everything with the 80 already numbered then I would roll with it. 

Good Luck!

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Amanda Vance
Curator
Texas City Museum
Texas City TX
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 05-17-2018 11:13 AM
From: Ruth Ackermann
Subject: Accession Numbers for Previously Unaccessioned Collection

We have ID numbers for everything. Unfortunately, we have patchy acquisition records. Only about 1/3 of the collection has paperwork to go along with it. Most of the rest of the collection has identified donors but no paperwork with it. The last 400 or so items are FIC. The collection was started in the early sixties and I am completing the very first complete inventory right now, so there are no past inventories to go on. This is why I am considering accessioning everything under one number since technically it has never been accessioned into our permanent collection.

------------------------------
Ruth Ackermann
Collections Manager
Richard M. Ross Art Museum
Delaware OH

Original Message:
Sent: 05-16-2018 04:24 PM
From: Andrea deTarnowsky
Subject: Accession Numbers for Previously Unaccessioned Collection

​A lot depends on the records you have for the various objects.  Despite the lack of identification numbers or formal accession numbers, do you have a good acquisition records? Have there been regular inventories in which the objects appear? Or are they "found in collection" with limited provenance?

------------------------------
Andrea deTarnowsky, Historic Site Manager
T.C. Steele State Historic Site
Indiana State Museum & Historic Sites system
Nashville IN

Original Message:
Sent: 05-16-2018 11:18 AM
From: Ruth Ackermann
Subject: Accession Numbers for Previously Unaccessioned Collection

I am coming to the end of a full collections inventory of our collection and I am looking toward our next steps for accreditation. Our entire collection will have Object ID numbers in a few weeks time, however, almost nothing has been accessioned into our permanent collection (we have aprox. 80 works accessioned in). Even the works that have been accessioned into the permanent collection don't have accession numbers. How would you go about assigning accession numbers to an entire collection? Should they all get one number because they are being accessioned all at once as one group? Should we do two numbers, one for the 80 works already accessioned, and one for the unaccessioned works? Or should I go back and try to make accession numbers for every year, or every group within each year? Our collection is only around 3000 objects.
All ideas are appreciated!

-Ruth

------------------------------
Ruth Ackermann
Collections Manager
Richard M. Ross Art Museum, Ohio Wesleyan University
Delaware OH
------------------------------