Gloucester City Council

COMMITTEE : GLOUCESTER LEADERSHIP TEAM CABINET BRIEFING CABINET DATE : 17 TH MARCH 2009 1ST APRIL 2009 15 TH APRIL 2009 SUBJECT : MUSEUMS’ COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT POLICY DECISION TYPE : EXECUTIVE WARD : ALL REPORT BY : CABINET MEMBER FOR HERITAGE & LEISURE NO. OF APPENDICES : APPENDIX ONE: COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT POLICY REFERENCE NO. : PT01049B (final version 20/3/2009 11.00am)

1.0 PURPOSE OF REPORT

1.1 To share with members the latest version of the Museums’ Service’s Collection Development Policy prior to its submission in May 2009 to the MLA (Museums, Libraries, Archives) as part of the Museums’ Accreditation process.

1.2 To seek Cabinet approval for the Collection Development Policy, Cabinet being the Museums’ governing body.

2.0 RECOMMENDATIONS

2.1 That Cabinet approves the Collection Development Policy.

3.0 BACKGROUND

3.1 In the past, some Museums had a ‘no-refusal’ policy for donated items. This led to the acquisition of large collections that had little relevance and depended upon the whims and enthusiasms of individual curators. Collection Development Policies were introduced twenty years ago to bring collections into focus: to strengthen the good and to eliminate the bad and/or the irrelevant. Moreover, an effective Collection Development Policy prevents adjacent Museums collecting from the same geographical areas.

3.2 A good Collection Development Policy is, therefore, essential to the proper management of the Council’s collections. A Collection Development Policy sets out what Gloucester Museums collect and, by implication, what they do not collect. It enables staff to accept items as suitable to collections or to reject them as being unsuitable. It is a powerful tool when dealing with public donations and enables officers to refuse items without giving offence. It helps to ensure that collections are focused on the core purpose of the service which is to tell the fascinating 2000 year story of Gloucester to all communities and visitors.

PT01049B 1

PT01049B 2 3.3 The current emphasis of the Collection Development Policy is responsible acquisition and the proper management of collections. That means that even if an item should fall within the scope of the Collection Development Policy, its size or the potential difficulties in conserving the item could prevent its acceptance by the Museums’ Service.

3.4 In practise, in the current phase of the Council’s collections, the emphasis is upon rationalisation and refocusing through careful management. The collections consist of some two hundred thousand items and not all of them are relevant or sufficiently provenanced to be of use.

3.5 In addition, as the Council’s portfolio of properties is reduced collections can no longer be stored ‘free of charge’; and, consequently for the first time in one hundred and thirteen years, the stored collections will involve an annual, and as yet undetermined, cost to the Council. It is vital, therefore, that collections are appropriately controlled and not irresponsibly acquired. This is what the Collection Development Policy sets out to do.

3.6 In recent months, under the supervision of the Director of Regeneration, a list of disposals has been prepared. This list has been prepared according to MLA guidelines and will be submitted to GLT and Cabinet in due course.

One thing is clear. Each item in the collections of the future will have to justify its existence in a way that was not the case previously.

3.7 The Collection Development Policy is set out as follows. The first section deals with the general principles of collection development laid down by the MLA (Museums, Libraries, Archives). The second section sets out the Council’s individual collections by type and any scope for development or otherwise.

4.0 PROGRESS

4.1 See above.

5.0 FUTURE WORK

5.1 See below.

6.0 CONCLUSIONS

• That collections are responsibly controlled in a sustainable way for the benefit of Gloucester’s citizens; • That the Museums’ Service achieves the Accreditation standard.

7.0 FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

7.1 There should be no financial implications resulting from this policy other than the better control of Museums’ expenditure.

PT01049B 3 8.0 LEGAL IMPLICATIONS

8.1 An agreed Collection Development Policy is fundamental to Museums’ Accreditation. Without Accreditation Museums will not be able to seek external funding.

9.0 RISK MANAGEMENT IMPLICATIONS (Authors to complete) Identify all key risks (scoring 8 and above) for the recommendation including the impact and likelihood of the risk occurring and what measures will be taken to mitigate the risk.

9.1 Failure to approve the Collection Development Policy will mean that Museums’ Accreditation will not be granted and external funding cannot be sought.

10.0 PREDICTIVE IMPACT ASSESSMENTS (EQUALITIES) (Authors to complete) Identify all risks for customers and staff, in the areas of gender, disability, age, race, religion, sexual orientation etc.

10.1 Proper control of the collections will enable future judicious acquisitions in respect of the equalities strands.

11.0 OTHER CORPORATE IMPLICATIONS

1. Community Safety (Author to complete)

There are no implications under this heading.

2. Environmental (Author to complete)

There are no implications under this heading.

3. Staffing (Author to complete)

There are no implications under this heading.

4. Trade Union (Author to complete)

There are no implications under this heading.

Background Papers :

Published Papers :

Person to Contact : Andrew Fox Tel: 01452 396124 E-mail: [email protected]

MVJ/PT01049B 20.3.2009

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APPENDIX ONE

PT01049B 5 Gloucester City Council

GLOUCESTER MUSEUMS SERVICE

Collection Development Policy

February 2009 – February 2010

Ver. 2.0

PT01049B 1 Collection Development Policy

Name of museum : Gloucester Museums Service

Governing body : Gloucester City Council

Date policy was approved by governing body : t.b.c.

Date at which policy is due for review: April 2014

PT01049B 2 Contents

1. INTRODUCTION AND GENERAL PRINCIPALS OF COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT 1.1. Purpose of the Collection Development Policy 1.2. Museum’s Statement of Purpose 1.3. General description of the collections 1.4. Period of time and/or geographical area to which collecting relates 1.5. Limitations on collecting 1.6. Collecting policies of other museums 1.7. Policy review procedure 1.8. Acquisitions not covered by the policy 1.9. Acquisition procedures 1.10. Spoilation 1.11. Repatriation and restitution of objects and human remains 1.12. Management of documentary archives 1.13. Disposal procedures

2. SPECIFIC COLLECTING POLICIES 2.1. Archaeology Collecting Policy 2.2. Numismatics 2.3. Social History Collecting Policy 2.4. Art Collecting Policy 2.5. Natural History Collecting Policy 2.6. Photographic Images, Digital Media and Archives Collecting Policy

PT01049B 3 1 INTRODUCTION AND GENERAL PRINCIPALS OF COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT

1.1 Purpose of the Collection Development Policy The policy has been written in order to comply with requirements of the Museum, Libraries and Archives Council’s Accreditation Scheme, which sets nationally agreed standards for UK museums.

It describes the collections currently held by Gloucester Museums Service and sets out clearly the scope for future collecting as well as the limitations on collecting.

It ensures that collecting and disposal is carried out in an ethical way, and in a way that promotes a good working relationship with other museums and archives in Gloucestershire.

This document will be made freely available to the public.

1.2 Museums Service Statement of Purpose Museums enable people to explore collections for inspiration, learning and enjoyment. They are institutions that collect, safeguard and make accessible artefacts and specimens, which they hold in trust for society. (Museums Association, Code of Ethics for Museums)

The vision of Gloucester Museums Service is to be recognised as a quality service which reaches out to all ages and communities to celebrate and animate the 2000 year story of Gloucester in ways that promote learning, pride in the city, tourism, entertainment and fun.

1.3 General description of the collections Gloucester Museums Service comprises Gloucester Folk Museum and Gloucester City Museum & Art Gallery, which between them hold collections of archaeology, social history, numismatics, art and natural history artefacts and specimens. While the Folk Museum holds most of the social history items and the City Museum holds most of the other collections, there is some overlap between the two.

1.4 Period of time and / or geographical area to which collecting relates Gloucester is the county town of the modern (post-1974) and ancient (pre-1974) county of Gloucestershire. From 1483 to 1974 it was a county borough in its own right, incorporating from 1483 to 1662, the Hundreds of Dudstone and Kings Barton, which included the following villages and parishes:

Badgeworth, Barnwood, Birdlip, Brockworth, Brookthorpe, Churcham, Churchdown, Down Hatherley, Elmore, Gloucester, Great Witcombe, Harescombe, Haresfield, Hartpury, Hempsted, Highleadon, Highnam, Hucclecote, Lassington, Longford, Longlevens, Maisemore, Matson, Minsterworth, Norton, Pitchcombe, Prinknash Park,

PT01049B 4 Quedgeley (part), Rudford, Sandhurst, Shurdington, Twigworth, Up Hatherley, Upton St Leonards, Whaddon.

The City Council and its Museums Service has always collected from these historic areas, but after consultation with other local museums in 2007, the new collecting area has been decided as follows:

Ashleworth, Badgeworth, Barnwood, Birdlip, Brockworth, Chaceley, Churcham, Churchdown, Down Hatherley, Forthampton, Gloucester, Great Witcombe, Hartpury, Hasfield, Hempsted, Highleadon, Highnam, Hucclecote, Lassington, Longford, Longlevens, Maisemore, Matson, Minsterworth, Norton, Prinknash Park, Quedgeley, Rudford, Sandhurst, Tirley, Twigworth.

Gloucester City Council will not normally collect material from outside the geographical area managed by the council, except in one or more of the following circumstances, and then only after consultation with the appropriate representative of the relevant local authority area:

i. where they would enhance an existing grouping previously acquired, as for example items associated with a previously acquired source or group

ii. where the relevant District does not have an Accredited museums service and/or is unable or does not expect to be able to provide the necessary expertise or resources to manage the item(s)

iii. where the museum service of the relevant District has waived the right to collect the item(s)

iv. where the depositor has expressed a specific desire (after due advice on collecting policies) for the item(s) to be deposited with the City Council’s Museums service.

Some historic collections are not from the geographical area defined above and these will be described in the individual collecting policies.

1.5 Limitations on collecting

The City Council recognises its responsibility in acquiring additions to its collections, to ensure that care of collections, documentation arrangements and use of collections will meet the requirements of the Accreditation Standard. It will take into account limitations on collecting imposed by such factors as inadequate staffing, storage and care of collection arrangements. Items will not be acquired if they present an actual or potential health and safety hazard to staff or a biological hazard to the collections.

PT01049B 5 1.6 Collecting policies of other museums The museum will take account of the collecting policies of other museums and other organisations collecting in the same or related areas or subject fields. It will consult with these organisations where conflicts of interest may arise or to define areas of specialisms, in order to avoid unnecessary duplication and waste of resources.

Specific reference is made to the following:

i. Bristol Museum and Art Gallery, Bristol City Council ii. Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum, Cheltenham Borough Council iii. The Museum in the Park, Stroud District Museum Service iv. The Corinium Museum, Cirencester, Cotswold District Council v. The Soldiers of Gloucestershire Museum, Gloucester vi. The National Waterways Museum, Gloucester vii. The Dean Heritage Museum, Soudley viii. Gloucestershire Archives In addition, archival material will be deposited with Gloucestershire Archives where appropriate, e.g. where the archive is not directly related to an object in the collection, or where the level of care would be more suitable, such as when special conditions are required.

1.7 Policy review procedure The Acquisition & Disposal policy will be published and reviewed from time to time, at least once every five years. The year when the policy is next due for review is noted on Page 1.

The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council will be notified of any changes to the Acquisition & Disposal Policy, and the implications of any such changes for the future of existing collections.

1.8 Acquisitions not covered by the policy Acquisitions outside the current stated policy will only be made in very exceptional circumstances, and then only after proper consideration by the Cabinet, or (under agreed delegated powers) the Cabinet Member responsible for the Museums Service, having regard to the interests of other museums.

1.9 Acquisition procedures The service will exercise due diligence and make every effort not to acquire, whether by purchase, gift, bequest or exchange, any object or specimen unless the governing body or responsible officer is satisfied that the service can acquire a valid title to the item in question.

PT01049B 6 In particular, the service will not acquire any object or specimen unless it is satisfied that the object or specimen has not been acquired in, or exported from, its country of origin (or any intermediate country in which it may have been legally owned) in violation of that country's laws. (For the purposes of this paragraph `country of origin' includes the United Kingdom).

Under the terms of the UNESCO 1970 Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property, which the UK ratified with effect from November 1, 2002, and the Dealing in Cultural Objects (Offences) Act 2003, the museum will reject any items that have been illicitly traded. The governing body will be guided by the national guidance on the responsible acquisition of cultural property issued by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport in 2005.

So far as biological and geological material is concerned, the service will not acquire by any direct or indirect means any specimen that has been collected, sold or otherwise transferred in contravention of any national or international wildlife protection or natural history conservation law or treaty of the United Kingdom or any other country, except with the express consent of an appropriate outside authority.

The City Council will not acquire archaeological antiquities (including excavated ceramics) in any case where the governing body or responsible officer has any suspicion that the circumstances of their recovery involved a failure to follow the appropriate legal procedures. This includes reporting finds to the landowner or occupier of the land, and to the proper authorities in the case of possible treasure as defined by the Treasure Act 1996.

Any exceptions to the above will only be because the museum is either:

i. acting as an externally approved repository of last resort for material of local (UK) origin

ii. acquiring an item of minor importance that lacks secure ownership history but in the best judgement of experts in the field concerned has not been illicitly traded; or acting with the permission of authorities with the requisite jurisdiction in the country of origin; or in possession of reliable documentary evidence that the item was exported from its country of origin before 1970.

iii. In these cases the museum will be open and transparent in the way it makes decisions and will act only with the express consent of an outside authority.

The museum holds human remains within its collections and will follow the procedures in the ‘Guidance for the care of human remains in museums’ issued by DCMS in 2005. In addition, the museum holds a separate Human Remains Policy.

The City Council will not normally accept any gift or bequest to which any special conditions apply (e.g. that items be displayed permanently or kept in separate room) except where such conditions are intended to protect the item against disposal. In all cases, reference will be made to the limitations on collecting as specified in this policy. Religious artefacts that fulfil the criteria of the collecting policy, but require special conditions, will be assessed on their own merits.

PT01049B 7 The City Council reserves the right to refuse any bequest that the City Council has not explicitly agreed to accept during the lifetime of the donor.

The purchase of items within the terms of this policy will be dealt with according to the Council’s Standing Orders relating to Contracts (Contract Standing Orders).

1.10 Spoilation

Spoliation relates specifically to material works of art that may have been wrongly taken during the Holocaust and World War II. The service will use the statement of principles ‘Spoilation of Works of Art during the Nazi, Holocaust and World War II period’, issued for non-national museums in 1999 by the Museums and Galleries Commission.

1.11 Repatriation and restitution of objects and human remains The service's governing body, acting on the advice of the service's professional staff may take a decision to return human remains (unless covered by the ‘Guidance for the care of human remains in museums’ issued by DCMS in 2005), objects or specimens to a country or people of origin. The service will take such decisions on a case by case basis, within its legal position and taking into account all ethical implications and available guidance. Where this is the case, the disposal procedures below will be followed.

The disposal of human remains from museums in England, Northern Ireland and Wales will follow the procedures in the “Guidance for the care of human remains in museums”.

1.12 Management of documentary archives As the service holds documentary archives, including digital material, photographs and printed ephemera, its governing body will be guided by the Code of Practice on Archives for Museums and Galleries in the United Kingdom (2002) and subsequent amendments.

Documentary archive material will normally be collected after consultation with Gloucestershire Archives, which is the appropriate specialist body to preserve such material. The only exception might be if this material relates to, or enhances, new or existing museum collections. (Similarly, Gloucestershire Archives’ collecting policy is not to accept artefacts but to offer them to the Museum Service).

1.13 Disposal procedures The governing body will ensure that the disposal process is carried out openly and with transparency.

PT01049B 8 By definition, the City Council’s museum service has a long-term purpose and should possess (or intend to acquire) permanent collections in trust for society, only in relation to its stated objectives. The governing body therefore accepts the principle that sound curatorial reasons for disposal must be established before consideration is given to the disposal of any items in the museum’s collection.

The disposal decision-making process

The service will establish that it is legally free to dispose of an item and agreements on disposal made with donors will be taken into account.

When disposal of a museum object is being considered, the service will establish if it was acquired with the aid of an external funding organisation. In such cases, any conditions attached to the original grant will be followed. This may include repayment of the original grant and a proportion of the proceeds if the item is disposed of by sale.

The Museum Service will not undertake disposal of items motivated principally by unrelated corporate financial reasons.

When disposal is motivated by curatorial reasons, the procedures below will be followed and the method of disposal may be by gift, exchange or sale. When all other methods have failed, or if the item is too badly damaged or deteriorated to be of any use or for reasons of health and safety), the object may be disposed of by destruction.

Any decision to dispose of material from the collections will be taken only after full consideration of the reasons for disposal. Other factors including the public benefit, the implications for the museum’s collections and collections held by museums and other organisations collecting the same material or in related fields will be considered . External expert advice will be obtained and the views of stakeholders such as donors, researchers, local and source communities and others served by the museum will also be sought.

Responsibility for disposal decision-making

A decision to dispose of a specimen or object, whether by gift, exchange, sale or destruction (in the case of an item too badly damaged or deteriorated to be of any use for the purposes of the collections), will be the responsibility of the governing body of the service acting on the advice of appropriately-qualified professional curatorial staff and not of the curator of the collection acting alone.

Use of proceeds of sale

Any monies received by the service governing body from the disposal of items will be applied solely for the benefit of the collections and/or the objectives of the Museums Service. This normally means the purchase of further acquisitions but in exceptional cases improvements relating to the care of collections may be justifiable. Any monies received in compensation for the damage, loss or destruction of items will be applied in the same way. Advice on these cases where monies are intended to be used for the care of collections will be sought from MLA.

PT01049B 9 The proceeds of a sale will be ring-fenced so that it can be demonstrated that they are spent in a manner compatible with the requirements of the Accreditation standard.

Disposal by gift or sale

If a decision to dispose of material in the collection is taken, priority will be given to retaining it within the public domain, unless it is to be destroyed. It will therefore be offered in the first instance, by gift, exchange or sale, directly to other Accredited Museums likely to be interested in its acquisition.

If the material is not acquired by any Accredited Museums to which it was offered directly, then the museum community at large will be advised of the intention to dispose of the material, normally through an announcement in the Museums Association's Museums Journal, and in other professional journals where appropriate.

The announcement relating to a gift or sale will indicate the number and nature of specimens or objects involved, and the basis on which the material will be transferred to another institution. Preference will be given to expressions of interest from other Accredited Museums. A period of at least two months will be allowed for an interest in acquiring the material to be expressed. At the end of this period, if no expressions of interest have been received, the service may consider disposing of the material to other interested individuals and organisations giving priority to organisations in the public domain.

Disposal by exchange

The nature of disposal by exchange means that the museum will not necessarily be in a position to exchange the material with another Accredited museum. The governing body will therefore ensure that issues relating to accountability and impartiality are carefully considered to avoid undue influence on its decision-making process.

In cases where the governing body wishes for sound curatorial reasons to exchange material directly with Accredited or unaccredited museums, with other organisations or with individuals, the procedures in paragraphs above and below will be followed:

i. If the exchange is to be made with a specific Accredited museum, other Accredited museums, which collect in the same or related areas, will be directly notified of the proposal and their comments will be requested.

ii. If the exchange is proposed with a non-accredited museum, with another type of organisation or with an individual, the museum will make an announcement in the Museums Journal and in other specialist journals where appropriate.

iii. Both the notification and announcement must provide information on the number and nature of the specimens or objects involved both in the museum’s collection and those intended to be acquired in exchange. A period of at least two months must be allowed for comments to be received. At the end of this period, the governing body must consider the comments before a final decision on the exchange is made.

PT01049B 10 Documenting disposal

Full records will be kept of all decisions on disposals and the items involved and proper arrangements made for the preservation and/or transfer, as appropriate, of the documentation relating to the items concerned, including photographic records where practicable in accordance with SPECTRUM procedure on de-accession & disposal.

PT01049B 11 2. INDIVIDUAL COLLECTING POLICIES

2.1. Archaeology The existing collection consists of a comprehensive collection of finds from Gloucester, including the archives of major excavations covering 5000 years of occupation in the ancient city and the hinterland within its current boundaries. There are also some important collections from other sites in Gloucestershire such as Nympsfield long barrow, Bevan's Quarry round barrow, Uley Bury hill-fort, Birdlip iron- age cemetery, Bourton-on-the-Water Roman town, Lower Slaughter Roman settlement and the Roman villas at Frocester and Boughspring. Highlights of regional, national or international importance include: Bronze Age : i. The Bourton-on-the-Water hoard of bronze socketed axes. Iron Age : i. The Birdlip celtic grave-group of amber, ornamented metalwork and other materials. Roman : i. Religious sculptures from Gloucester, Lower Slaughter and Bisley comprising one of the best series in Britain; a. the Cross and Oldcroft coin-hoards, the former being one of the largest in Britain b. the Kingsholm warrior grave-group of Visigothic silver c. two pottery kiln-groups from Gloucester d. the finds from the burial grounds at Kingsholm and Wotton Pitch, including grave stones e. the Frocester goblet of engraved glass. Over the years the museum has also amassed an important collection of Roman military and personal items. Anglo-Saxon : i. The St Oswald's Priory and Wotton Pitch sculptures. ii. The Tibberton inlaid and enamelled stirrup. Medieval : i. The Gloucester Tables Set, the oldest complete backgammon set in the world; ii. the St. Nicholas' closing-ring of sculptured bronze; iii. the Woodchester reliquary of sculptured lead.

PT01049B 12 Quantities of archaeological material are approximately: i. Coins 30,000 ii. Metalwork 10,000 iii. Organic (wood, leather etc.) 1,000 iv. Stone 1,000 v. Ceramics 50,000 vi. Bone (worked) 2,000 vii. Bone (animal) 10,000 viii. Bone (human) 12,000

Loans

Loans account for less than 1 % of material comprises mainly individual items such as coins and flints from private collectors, but also includes the Newnham Sword, an important display item.

Collection Development

The City Council will continue to acquire selective archaeological finds and archives of investigations, including excavation, in order to develop a comprehensive collection which helps to tell the story of the city of Gloucester. The Council would particularly welcome opportunities to remedy its lack of prehistoric material and pagan Saxon metalwork. The Council will not collect unstratified human remains.

2.2. Numismatics The existing collection consists of a good range of medieval material including a number of national treasures i. Silver pennies from the mints of Gloucester, Berkeley and Winchcombe, 10th - 13th centuries, including the archive of the definitive Sylloge of Coins of the British Isles Vol 19: Coins of Gloucestershire mints (1973), (180 items) ii. Gloucestershire tokens, 17th century (750 items) iii. Gloucestershire tokens, 18th-19th centuries (examples of all known types) (150 items) iv. Gloucestershire inn-checks and traders' checks, 19th century (120 items) v. Gloucestershire commemorative medals, 18th-20th centuries (120 items) vi. Gloucestershire seals (casts & matrices), 13th-19th centuries (60 items) vii. English coins, 14th-20th centuries (800 items) viii. Reckoning counters, 13th-15th centuries (60 items) ix. Coin weights, 17th - 18th century (70 items) x. Three Gloucestershire hoards, 17th century (200 items)

PT01049B 13 Loans

Less than 1% of material is borrowed in and includes no significant display material.

Collection Development As well as continuing to collect different or better examples in this collection the City Council will seek to fill gaps with a view to possessing, for instance: i. in collection 2.2 (i): at least one good specimen per moneyer per type per reign, and preferably two ii. in collection 2.2 (iii – vi): at least two good specimens (to display obverse and reverse) per type and iii. in collection 2.2 (viii): at least two good specimens per denomination per coinage or reign. The City Council will seek to acquire hoards of hammered coins (i.e. pre-1662) found in Gloucester. The City Council will not purchase trade tokens from outside of the Gloucester area, but will continue to accept donations of good quality examples to fill gaps in the collection.

2.3. Social History These collections cover the social history, crafts and industries of Gloucester and Gloucestershire from the Tudor period to the present day. They include much irreplaceable material collected in the 1930's and are of higher quality than those seen in more recently established museums.

Working Life i. Arable and dairy farming, concentrating on the Vales of Berkeley and Gloucester. Regionally important dairy collection. ii. Fishing on the lower Severn; a unique collection. iii. Gloucestershire trades and crafts, including the hurdle-maker, wheelwright, carpenter, basket-maker and thatcher; tanner, currier, saddler and shoemaker; farrier, blacksmith, plumber, and tinsmith. iv. Wholesale and retail distribution including the ironmonger, grocer, butcher and chemist. v. Gloucester manufacturing including bell-founding and agricultural engineering, matchmaking, millwrights and transport industries. Nationally important pin-making collection.

Domestic and Family Life i. A range of collections covering heating and lighting; cleaning and laundering; storage, preservation, preparation and cooking of food; drinking vessels and accessories ii. Leisure occupations, hobbies, crafts and pastimes including an important collection of 19 th –20 th century toys and games.

PT01049B 14 Personal Life i. A large range of costume and accessories from across Gloucestershire or with local associations. These date from the 17 th century and include a good series of 19 th -20 th Century dresses (some published). ii. A fine collection of embroidered agricultural smocks and samplers; lace; christening gowns and wedding outfits; children’s clothes and some occupational costume. Community Life i. A good county-wide collection illustrating customs, traditions, superstitions, friendly societies, police (loan), weights and measures and medical and dental practices. ii. Collection includes the very important Hale loan of 17 th century judicial robes and a 19 th Century Lord Chancellors Purse.

Topography i. Maps, plans, photographs and works of art depicting Gloucester and Gloucestershire.

Transport i. A small collection including a 1938 Leyland Metz fire-engine which served in Gloucester; an unusual Dursley Pedersen and a small representative group of bicycles, a horse-tram of Gloucester Tramway Co.; a Cotton motor-cycle and Cotton Sturdy three wheel truck; a Lister Autotruck and a collection of live steam models made locally including a ride-on steam roller.

Loans Less than 1% of social history material is on loan.

Collection Development In general these collections will be developed to improve quality rather than to increase quantity, volume or themes. Development collaboration with neighbouring Museum Authorities holding similar collections will be sought where appropriate. Future collecting will aim to fill gaps and focus on relevance to the City’s multi-cultural and youthful 21 st century population.

Working Life The City Council will develop this collection and acquire items from Gloucester manufacturers, wholesale distributors and shops, local crafts and occupations.

The craft collections including those of the blacksmith, tinsmith, wheelwright, carpenter, shoemaker and plumber are considered complete and will only be added to with supporting material of outstanding interest.

PT01049B 15 The dairying, farming and Severn fisheries collections are considered complete to the mid 20 th century. These will normally only be added to with contextual material such as photographs, ephemera, audio and video memoirs etc. and items from the recent past.

Domestic and Family Life The City Council will develop this collection and acquire items representing the lives of the diverse cultures of the people of Gloucester covering the following themes; homes and contents; laundry and sanitation; food and drink; toys and games; hobbies, crafts and pastimes and home entertainment.

Collecting will concentrate particularly on items from the later 20 th century and pre 1850.The collection of 19 th -20 th century household appliances is almost complete. We will not collect further examples of cookers, washing machines and mangles, refrigerators, vacuum cleaners, sewing machines or typewriters unless of outstanding interest or unless a poor example can be replaced with a better one.

The collection of television sets, radios, gramophones, home entertainment systems and computers will be added to selectively so that it is representative of the technological change in Gloucester people’s lives.

Personal Life The City Council will develop this collection by reducing existing duplication and adding selected later 20th- and 21st- century costume, costume accessories and personal items, civic and occupational costume, toiletries, and items relating to minority ethnic communities.

Community Life The City Council will develop the collection with particular reference to the history, folk-lore and traditions of Gloucester’s diverse community groups, local government and local organisations, education, welfare, sport and entertainment.

Topography The City Council will actively acquire items depicting the City and, where appropriate, the County.

Transport Owing to shortage of display and storage space the City Council will normally acquire only small items, photographs and pictorial items in this category.

PT01049B 16 2.4. Art The existing collection consists of the following type and quantities of material: i. Sculpture (17 items) ii. Oil Paintings (188 items) iii. Water-colours and drawings ( 220 items) iv. Fine art prints (54 items) v. Gloucestershire topographical prints (223 items) vi. Pottery and porcelain (283 items) vii. Silver, including work by William Corsley of Gloucester (1640-1691) (168 items) viii. Glass (189 items) ix. Clocks, watches, sand-glasses and the finest provincial collection of barometers (127 items) x. Furniture (75 items)

These collections are all of high artistic quality, their main strengths being: i. Landscape painting ii. Furniture and decorative arts from Queen Anne to George III iii. Work of outstanding Gloucestershire artists and craftsmen iv. Gloucestershire topography.

Loans Some 2% of fine art material is on loan to us including items from a private estate under the tax exemption scheme (L347-351).

Collection Development

The City Council will continue to acquire works of good quality made by Gloucestrians or associated with Gloucester or illustrating Gloucester and Gloucestershire, normally as gifts, bequests and loans. It would particularly welcome opportunities to acquire a landscape of the Gloucester area by Peter de Wint (1784-1849) and work by the outstanding Gloucester clockmaker James Green (1721-1757). The City Council will consider the offer of gifts, bequests and loans of other works of European art of outstanding quality on their individual merits.

PT01049B 17 2.5. Natural History Collecting Policy

The City Council holds the following natural history collections: Botany: (i) Gloucestershire herbarium, including the archive of the Definitive Flora of Gloucestershire (1948) (16,000 specimens) Entomology : (i) British beetles (6,000 specimens) (ii) British butterflies (3,000 specimens) (iii) British moths (14,000 specimens) (iv) Other British insect groups (2,000 specimens) Biology: (i) British birds and mammals (500 specimens) (ii) British land and freshwater molluscs (2,000 specimens) (iii) World-wide marine shells (historic collection) (6,000 specimens) (iv) Palaearctic birds' eggs (3,000 specimens) Geology: (i) British fossils, (including 5,000 brachiopods) (ii) British rock samples (1,000 specimens) (iii) World-wide minerals (teaching collection) (2,000 specimens)

Loans Loans account for less than 1% of the natural history material and include four insect cabinets, on loan since the 1930s.

Collection Development

The City Council will acquire only outstanding examples of natural history not already present in the collection, in particular, local rocks and fossils, which may assist in telling the City’s history. No invertebrates, taxidermy specimens or spirit specimens will be considered, except in exceptional circumstances. No birds eggs will be accepted.

PT01049B 18 2.6. Archives

The City Council holds a good collection of archives including documents, such as manuscript and printed materials; books; photographic images on a variety of media such as lantern slides, prints and negatives; digital media including sound, images and text, and audio and video tapes.

Archives are accessioned and are therefore part of the collection. Examples include:

Archaeology • watching briefs • evaluations • desk top studies • photographs relating to excavations

Natural History • collectors’ field notebooks detailing lists of species collected and their locations • an annotated book previously owned by a collector of natural history specimens

Social history • oral histories • videos showing traditional trades and crafts relating to objects in the collection • historical books • glass slides, negatives and prints of Gloucester prison, c.1900.

Loans There are no loans in this collection

Collection Development The City Council will continue to collect social history archives illustrating Gloucester’s history, traditions and contemporary life, including the working life, domestic and family life, personal life and community life of its residents. Contemporary images will also be collected as an historic record for future generations. No further natural history archives will be collected unless they are specifically connected to a collection of specimens currently held by the City Council, or are part of a collection of specimens that the City Council wishes to accession and that falls into the criteria specified in Section 2.5.

The City Council will not collect archives that are better suited to the Gloucestershire Archives collection, or that require specific storage requirements that can be provided by them (See Section 1.12). Furthermore, the Council will consider transferring archives currently in the collection to Gloucestershire Archives if they come within these categories. Any transfers will be made in accordance with the Disposal Procedures specified in Section 1.13.

PT01049B 19 Archaeological Archives

Deposition of archives must be notified to the Archaeology Officer after the project has been signed or the research project has been devised, and before any fieldwork begins. If the result of the work is likely to fall within the area of the Museum Service Acquisition and Disposal Policy and there is an agreement to hand over the archive, then an accession number will be assigned on receipt of a completed Notification of Project form. The archive will only be accepted if it has been prepared to the standards specified in the Guidelines for the Deposition of Archaeological Material (2007). Exceptions will be made only in exceptional circumstances e.g. historical archaeological investigation undertaken by antiquarians.

Concluding Remarks

This Collection Development Policy is an important working tool. Its aim is to assist the City Council in keeping its museum displays and services fresh, relevant and focused upon telling the fascinating history of Gloucester. The policy will be reviewed regularly with the next review scheduled for February 2010.

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