I won't donate stuff to a museum because they don't use the stuff that is
donated, they just stick it away in a box or put it in a glass case to be
looked at.  The stuff I have is all practical stuff that is meant to be
used!!!  If I was to give them a table cloth I'd want them to use it if
they were having a feed and needed a tablecloth, not go buy a cheap plastic
one and leave mine in a box somewhere.  If I was to give them a hammer I'd
expect them to use it to pound nails when needed.  What a waste of good
stuff to just put it where nobody uses it.  I am using kitchen utensils
everyday that were my grandmother's & probably my ggrandmother's as well.

However, I will give my grandmother's pressure canner to the local museum
because it would be dangerous to try and use that contraption in this day
and age.  I have several pressure canners but they're nothing like that
thing, which I actually remember her using!!!  Ruth




At 3:15 PM -0800 12/27/04, Cuyler Page wrote:
>> But any good museum should welcome the question.
>>
>> -Heidi
>
>Beautifully put, Heidi.
>
>Every act of Natural or Heritage Interpretation involves these factors as
>well as the personal passion of the presenters/curators and institutional
>marketing values.   No artefact was ever made to be a museum piece.   The
>whole notion of preservation is abstract, subjective and cosmic.   For a
>good read, try David Lowenthal's "The Past Is A Foreign Country".
>
>As with everything, diversity is the name of the game.   However, as a
>public institution (museum) you should be able (and accountable) to know why
>you made your choices and be able to communicate that effectively as part of
>the interpretive experience.   Of course this goal is only as good as the
>people carrying it out.
>
>cp in bc
--
Ruth Barton
[log in to unmask]
Dummerston, VT

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