Swindon Museum & Art Gallery Collections Development Policy 2012- 2017 Governing Body: Swindon Borough Council Date approved by governing body: August 2013 Updated December: 2013 Date at which policy due for review: March 2017 This policy is a revision of the Acquisition and Disposal policy previously adopted by Community, Culture and Recreation Commission of Swindon Borough Council on 12 September 2007. The Acquisition and Disposal Policy will be published and reviewed from time to time, at least once every five years. The Arts Council will be notified of any major changes to the Collections Development Policy, and the implications of any such changes for the future of existing collections.

1.

Introduction

This policy deals with the collections of Swindon Museum & Art Gallery (SM&AG) and sets out to explain why we collect, what we collect, and how we want to acquire new material. The policy applies to all items acquired for the collections managed by SM&AG. The acquisition policy sets out SM&AG’s principles of collecting and how these relate to existing collections. It also states the criteria for future acquisition, including subjects or themes, the time periods and geographical areas. The policy takes into account the acquisition policies of other Accredited museums in the region, together with related bodies such as archives and libraries with a legitimate interest in collecting items. Vision “To enable people of all ages to discover and enjoy Swindon’s heritage and Art collection” Statement of Purpose Swindon Museum and Art Gallery holds a remarkable art collection which now has a reputation as one of the best British 20th Century Art collections outside London. The Museum has displays of local history, archaeology and geology, telling the story of Swindon's Jurassic past, its connections with the Roman Empire and the more recent social history of this thriving town. Regular activities include family workshops and interactive trails, school visits, temporary exhibitions and adult learning talks.

1.1.

Why Do We Collect?

The Museums Association’s definition of a museum or art gallery is: '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.' 1.2.

Collections and our Community

Our audiences appreciate a museum and art gallery that has a clear purpose, has interesting and relevant stories to tell, and reflects the character and history of our local communities and the collections we have developed.

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Our museum aims to collect items that tell us something important about the area and people that it serves. Local collecting helps to create a common sense of place and community identity. Our art gallery aims to collect nationally and internationally important art from Britain in the 20 th and 21st centuries to build a collection that inspires both the local community and the wider public. 1.3.

Conditions and Collecting

There may be practical factors which influence what a particular museum collects, not least whether an object can be cared for properly, its size in relation to the available display areas and storage spaces. Some objects require specialised and expensive care over a long period. We are also scrupulous about observing various legal and ethical concerns about how and what we collect. We are required to ensure that the Donor really does own the object and / or has a right to gift it. We will not accept, under any circumstances, for example, illegally collected birds eggs, stolen artwork, or improperly obtained archaeological objects.

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2. Swindon Museum Swindon Museum opened in 1920 in Victoria Hall on Regent’s Circus. The idea for a town museum had started in 1912 when the geologist Charles Gore offered the town his collection. The building was used for war work in the First World War so opening to the public was delayed. Charles Gore became the museum’s first curator, and his collection of geological and archaeological specimens formed the initial collections, along with the similar collection from William Morris, the founder of the Swindon Advertiser, and Alderman J Powell who donated a collection of decorative art and pictures. In 1930 the museum moved to its current location at Apsley House on Bath Road in Swindon’s Old Town. 3. Overview of current collection SM&AG has a large and diverse objects in its collections that reflect the various stages in the museum’s development. The collection is stored at five different locations and displayed at Swindon Museum and Art Gallery. The collection benefits from the acquisition of high quality objects and collections throughout the museum’s history. However, between the late 1980s and early 2010s, the collection has seen significant periods of uncontrolled acquisition, including items of poor quality, items duplicating collections already held, collections outside the scope of previous Collections Development Policies and items with limited documentation. During this period, documentation procedures were not fully embedded meaning that information about the collections is significantly lacking in part. This means that the museum does not have in-depth knowledge of all its collections, including knowledge of the total extent of the collection, knowledge of the significance of all its collections or understanding of duplication within the collections. SM&AG intends to commission a Collections Significance Review which will be used to revise this Collections Development Policy. 3.1.

Geology

SM&AG has significant collections of fossils from the Kimmeridge Clay, Oxford Clay and Purbeck and Portland Beds all represented in the Swindon area. These collections include specimens from Charles Gore’s collections and those of William Morris, a local antiquary, geologist and newspaper proprietor, which were acquired in 1912 before the public opening of Swindon Museum. More recent accessions include largely complete skeletons of the ‘Welcome Avenue Ichthyosaur’ and the ‘Cambria Bridge Pliosaur’. There are also reference fossil collections such as the Blackmore Collection acquired in the 1920s and a small mineral collection. 3.2.

Archaeology

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The archaeology collections consist of artefacts and related natural materials recovered from the ground, mostly dating from the Palaeolithic to AD1700. They contain special finds (worked metal, bone, glass, stone etc) and general finds (large quantities of pottery, animal bone, tile wall plaster etc). Collections from before 1997 were drawn from the geographical area of the former Borough of Thamesdown and neighbouring parishes. A few early donations came from other parts of England. A small amount of foreign archaeology is held, consisting of Egyptian, European, Near Eastern and African artefacts. SM&AG is the designated store for North Wiltshire to receive English Heritage grant-aided excavation archives. The majority of the collections consist of excavation archives, generated by government-funded employment initiatives, Swindon Archaeological Society and developer-funded investigations. There are an estimated 11,000 individual objects and 42 cubic metres of general finds, from approximately 60 excavations. There are in addition surface finds, both field walking and chance finds. The strengths of the existing collections are in the Romano-British and Early Medieval periods. Of particular note are: Groundwell Ridge (1976 and 1996 onwards) – Iron Age farmsteads with wellpreserved roundhouse remains. Finds from the site at Groundwell Ridge/Abbey Meads (now Scheduled) indicate a significant Romano-British temple or villa complex. Wanborough – Roman town on Ermin Street, notable for high quality ironwork and unusual raised building. Purton and Whitehill Farm – well-preserved kiln sites from the Romano-British pottery industry, which dominated the West Swindon area in the 2 nd century AD. Swindon House – evidence for the early Saxon settlement in the Old Town area, with finds of weaving tools and structural remains of sunken-floored houses. Minety – Late Medieval pottery kiln site. M4 motorway – Wiltshire section (finds, Swindon Museum; paper archive, Wiltshire Heritage Museum, Devizes). SM&AG also holds a number of coin hoards, gold, bronze and semi-precious materials of high quality and value. 3.3.

Social History

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The original Swindon Museum, founded on the geological collections of Charles Gore and paintings and objects collected by Alderman J Powell contained several items of local and social history significance. Among these were items such as a group of Swindon public house pewter mugs, a series of local naïve paintings of local buildings and the Wilts and Berks Canal, and the unique collection of medals and collars belonging to ‘Bruce the Collecting Dog’ of Swindon. These items were not acquired as part of a policy but rather for their local interest or curiosity. Current Collection categories: 3.3.1. Photographs SM&AG has a collection of about 3,000 local postcards (including the Fred Stevens collection, acquired in 1981) and two significant collections of glass negatives, the work of professional and amateur photographers (Woodfield Collection of c1915-39 and Harris Collection of c1910-1914). The largest local collection (40,000 items) is the group of photographs of local people (mostly children) taken between the 1940s and 1970s by Albert Beaney. 3.3.2. Printed Ephemera There is a significant collection of ephemera relating to local companies and traders, leisure activities (sport, theatre and cinema) and amateur societies and organisations such as churches. The ephemera collection includes a comprehensive group of Swindon postal material (Eade Collection). 3.3.3. Costume This collection includes local uniforms and general costume and accessories (mostly female and infant or child). There is a notable collection of shoes dating from 1948 to 1978 which were given by Morses; a local mail order company. Other shoes have since been added to this collection. 3.3.4. Coins and Medals Historically, SM&AG assembled a representative collection of British coinage which included 17th and 19th century local traders tokens and checks. There is also a collection of campaign medals (not always with a local connection) and miscellaneous medals relating to local events and clubs. 3.3.5. Pottery and Glass These collections are mainly social history collections but also may be considered as decorative arts. The core of the collection is a large group of stoneware and glass bottles and jars of local mineral water manufacturers and general traders. There is also a selection of fine china items (including particularly teapots), china produced for local chapels and souvenir wares including a large group of Swindon Borough Council crested china. 3.3.6.

General Domestic and Working Life

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Items relating to the domestic, working and leisure life of people in the Swindon area have been acquired by SM&AG since its establishment. These collections do not make comprehensive group at any period, but the largest holding are for the period of the first 50 years of the 20th century. SM&AG’s collections are underrepresented in recent social history material dating from 1945 onwards although some areas of specialist collections (e.g. the Garrard Collection or theatre programmes held as part of the printed ephemera collections) cover this period. Domestic life is represented through unrelated items which do not form coherent groups reflecting life in a particular decade or era. There are few examples of products manufactured in Swindon or of items relating to the important service industry sector. 3.3.7. Industrial Collection The Garrard Collection is the only collection to represent comprehensively an area of industrial production in Swindon, other than the collections of the STEAM Museum. The collection was assembled as a company museum by the Garrard Manufacturing and Engineering Company and consists of approximately 100 examples of production models of record player turntables and associated equipment made by the company in Swindon between 1919 and 1982. There is a small collection of material relating to other companies such as Pressed Steel and Wills, but these collections do not form a coherent group. 3.3.8. Oral History Since 1990 SM&AG has been gathering an archive of oral history recordings based on projects relating to exhibitions. 3.3.9. Agricultural Collection The agricultural collection is a substantial and wide-ranging collection of horse or tractor drawn farm machinery, barn and dairy equipment and hand tools. Many items have a Swindon area provenance but the collection is generally of Wiltshire interest. The collection was collected for display in Swindon’s Agricultural Museum which closed in the 1980s.

3.3.10. Railway Village Museum A range of later Victorian household items, and Education items were collected for permanent display in the Railway Village Museum cottage. This museum has since closed and is managed by STEAM, although it still houses objects belonging to SM&AG. 3.3.11. Richard Jefferies & Alfred Williams Richard Jefferies, the novelist and nature writer was born at Coate in 1848 and died in Sussex in 1887. His birthplace museum (listed Grade 2) contains collections of family memorabilia and photographs, a desk and chest which belonged to the author and other items of furniture, manuscript letters and the

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manuscript of the novel ‘Wood Magic’, and first editions of his works. Most of the personal items are on loan from the Richard Jefferies Society. Alfred Williams, the ‘Hammerman Poet’ is represented by a collection from his library, first editions of his works and others as well a small number of personal items including a sideboard and christening gown. 3.4. Historic Collections The original Swindon Museum, founded in 1912 and opened in 1920 contained large collections of natural history and ethnography. These, and some other minor groups of non-local items, are defined as ‘Historic Collections’. SM&AG currently retains these collections and has used specialist curators of mineralogy, natural history and ethnography to advise on their importance and collection care.

Collection Categories: 3.4.1. Natural History Including several hundred mounted specimens of birds, mammals and fish, and two cabinets of butterflies and moths. Also includes the Todd Herbarium of countywide importance collected by Miss E Todd and numbering several thousand specimens. Sea shells by Miss Philpott prior to 1912, mainly exotic. A representative collection of Wiltshire mollusca: land snails collected by C D Heginbotham and presented to Swindon Museum as a reference collection. 3.4.2. Ethnography Mostly African items and including the Longland Collection given to Swindon Museum in the 1920s. Souvenir items from around the world. Ethnographical and antique musical instruments (The Winslow Collection). 3.4.3. Firearms A small collection of antique firearms. 4. Future themes and collecting 4.1. SM&AG’s objective is to build a collection based on geological, archaeological and historical objects from the area pertaining to Swindon Borough Council. 4.2. SM&AG’s collection represents this history through objects, images and documents to build a picture of the physical area, the people who have lived, worked and shaped the land in the area and the industries that have supported the area. 4.3. To achieve this end, SM&AG collects in three major areas: archaeology, social history and geology.

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4.4. Archaeology Material of good quality of any period from within the Borough area will be acquired by agreement through donation from private individuals and archaeological units, or occasionally purchased, which will enhance displays or improve the study collections. The criteria for deciding the quality of artefacts or archives are: 1.

If their condition is such that they will survive storage, with conservation if necessary.

2.

If they have display potential, because they are complete or are able to be reconstructed.

3.

If they provide evidence of human or natural processes, spatial distribution or site history.

4.

If they can be accommodated within the storage space available.

5.

If they are better quality or more complete examples of an object already in the collections.

6.

If they relate to an existing artefact or archive in the collections and could shed new light on it.

7.

If they have a secure provenance.

Particular reference will be made to chronological or thematic gaps in the collections. For example, the collections lack artefacts from the Neolithic and Bronze Ages, the Later Middle Ages and the 16 th to 18th centuries. The majority of material acquired will derive from scientific excavations by archaeological units. However, occasional chance finds of intrinsic importance may be acquired by passive collecting. SM&AG’s Guidelines on the Donation of Archaeological Archives will apply. SM&AG is covered by the Borough Council’s general policy that metal detectors shall not be used on the Borough’s land. It will not knowingly acquire an item which has been removed without the landowner’s permission. Because of SM&AG’s limited storage capacity, discussion will take place with archaeological units to limit the size of archives, before they are deposited at SM&AG. From April 2014, a per box charge will be introduced on all new archives. Guidelines on the Selection, Retention and Dispersal of Archaeological Site Archives have been drawn up and are obtainable from Swindon Museum.

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The collection of foreign archaeology is closed to acquisitions. 4.5. Social History The collecting of social history items will be focused on the following areas: 4.5.1.

Photographs

To add selectively to the collections listed above and to seek photographic records of Swindon in the period 1945-80. Develop policy with Swindon Reference Library and Wiltshire and Swindon Record Office. 4.5.2.

Printed Ephemera

Identify areas of strengths and collect with particular relevance to existing collections (e.g. Garrards collection) and develop policy with Swindon Reference Library and Wiltshire and Swindon Record Office. 4.5.3.

Costume

Restricted collecting of items of local importance. 4.5.4.

Coins and medals

Collect only local checks, tokens and medals which relate to the social history of the Swindon area. 4.5.5.

Pottery and glass

Restricted collecting of Swindon bottles and jars. Continue to build representative collections of Swindon souvenir, commemorative and domestic (e.g. public house tankards etc.) items. 4.5.6. General Working and Domestic Life Continue to collect only material relating to businesses, people, and leisure and cultural activities from Swindon and other towns and villages in the area covered by Swindon Borough Council which build a picture representing living and working in the Swindon area. 4.5.7. Agricultural collection Seek advice from agricultural specialists curators on the importance of the collection and rationalise the collection, within the terms of this policy, to reflect the farming industry of the Swindon area within the limits of SM&AG’s storage capabilities and conservation requirements. The Service will not make additions 10

to agricultural collections except smaller items able to be stored with the rest of the collection made or used in Swindon which are also examples of local industry. 4.5.8. Industrial collection Garrard collection: continue to collect any examples of turntables not currently in the collection together with examples of commercial products from each decade of Garrard production. Develop collection of other Garrard products (e.g. clocks) and publicity material, etc. Other industries: build a representative collection of 20 th century industry in Swindon, with particular emphasis on Pressed Steel, Wills and Arkells. Develop a contemporary collecting policy with current industries in Swindon. 4.5.9. Oral history Continue to develop oral history archive, based on specific projects. 4.6. Natural History No additions will be made to this collection. Seek advice from specialist curators on the importance of the collection and rationalise the collection, within the terms of this policy. 4.7. Geology Additions of fossil specimens will be made to this collection only in exceptional cases to be judged on a case-by-case basis. Seek advice from specialist curators on the importance of the collection and rationalise the collection, within the terms of this policy. 4.8. Ethnography No additions will be made to this collection. The collection will be rationalised within the terms of this policy. 4.9. Firearms No additions will be made to this collection. The collection will be rationalised to represent Swindon specific material, within the terms of this policy. 5.

Geographical area to which collecting relates

SM&AG’s collecting area shall be the area of the Borough of Swindon. This area includes the parishes of Swindon, Stratton St Margaret, Haydon Wick, Highworth, Hannington, Castle Eaton, Inglesham, Lydiard Tregoze, Blunsdon St Andrew, South Marston, Stanton Fitzwarren, Covingham, Wanborough, Bishopstone and Hinton Parva, Liddington, Chiseldon, Wroughton. Historically, SM&AG collected material from the wider Borough of Thamesdown, which included Purton. No further collecting will be made in these areas, but previously collected material will be retained. Please see our Guidelines and

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Conditions for the Preparation and Deposition of Archaeological Archives for specific instructions for the deposition of archaeological archives. 6.

Art Gallery

The Swindon Collection was established in 1944 as one of a number of initiatives in the arts linked to the establishment of a new public library. Important benefactors at that time included F C Phelps, S B Cole and most notably H J P Bomford whose gift of some twenty works including pieces by Ben Nicholson, Graham Sutherland, Henry Moore and L S Lowry still forms the core of the collection. From the 1960s the Borough Council sought advice for purchases from Lawrence Gowing and then Richard Morphet of the Tate Gallery. Richard Morphet’s contribution over more than 30 years has enabled the Collection to reach a position among regional collections of its relatively small size and budget pre-eminent for the range and quality of its works. 6.1. Overview of current collection 6.1.1.

The Swindon Collection of Modern British Art

The collection consists of over 400 works, mainly of works in oil, drawings and prints. Owing to the constraints of space, there are very few sculptures. The collection consists of works by contains works by 20 th and 21st century artists of national and international reputation. The Collection has strong groups of works representing early 20th century drawings from observation, paintings inspired by French example, the Seven and Five Society, urban realism, Neo-Romanticism, abstraction, art of the 1960s and 70s which focuses on the exact procedures of making, and recent representational painting. Artists who may be singled out for particularly fine examples of their work include Bomberg, Hitchens, Wadsworth, Collins, Hilton, Hamilton, Turnbull, Hodgkin, Hoyland, Hambling and Milroy but the purpose of the collection has been always, through works of high quality, to provide an understanding of the achievements of 20 th century British Art as a whole. The comprehensiveness and status of the Collection were demonstrated when a full catalogue was published in 1991. More recent acquisitions include works by younger artists such as Tony Bevan, Kathy Prendergast and Turner Prize nominee Steven Pippin. 6.1.2. Studio Ceramics The Studio Ceramics Collection which was started in 1966 represents major traditions in British ceramics in the last 50 years. Although some potters, such as Katharine Pleydell-Bouverie and Ivan Martin, have local connections, the collection has been built up to represent creative traditions and key individual artists nationally, in line with its original purpose as an educational study

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collection. The collection has notable works by Hans Coper, Lucie Rie, Ray Finch, David Leach, Sara Radstone, Fiona Salazar, Carol McNicoll and Jennifer Lee, several of which have been acquired through the Contemporary Craft Society. 6.1.3. Local art collection Since the 1950s a collection of works with local interest has been developed. Some are by people living or working in the area; others are by visiting artists and tutors from the local college. The works in this collection vary considerably in both subject matter and quality of execution. Some have local interest as they depict local people and scenes. Others are of more general subject matter. A number of the pictures have historical value as the buildings they represent no longer exist or have changed their usage. Some show locations which have been redeveloped since the works were acquired. It is recommended that this collection is rationalised within the terms of this policy. 7. 7.1.

Future themes and collecting Swindon Art Gallery’s objectives are: 

To selectively collect nationally and internationally important British Art from the 20th and 21st centuries



To selectively collect images of local places and people

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To selectively collect and build a collection of 20 th and 21st studio ceramics for educational use

To achieve this end, Swindon Art Gallery has designated 3 separate collecting areas. 7.2 Swindon Collection of Modern British Art We will continue the principle of acquiring works of nationally and internationally important 20th and 21st century British Art. The collection will continue to focus on collecting from the major artists and movements of 20 th and 21st century British art, Where possible, art objects will be chosen to take into account their relationship to existing works enhancing the open-ended network of references and relationships between pieces which makes the Collection distinctive as a collection of modern British art. We will focus on developing the collection by acquiring primarily 2D media, but will consider other media in exceptional circumstances where a strong relationship with existing collection items exists. Future collecting will be weighted towards the acquisition of smaller works, but larger works will be considered where appropriate. The limitations of the current purchasing budget means that a decision may be made to acquire work on a biennial or triennial basis to maximise funds available. 13

SM&AG will also continue to rely on the Contemporary Art Society’s subscription scheme which has provided many works of the highest quality in the past, making choices on the same basis as outlined above. We will continue to seek grant aid towards the purchase of relevant pieces and will accept appropriate donations. The gallery hopes to build a new relationship with an eminent advisor in the Art Gallery profession to follow in the footsteps of Lawrence Gowing and Richard Morphet. 7.3

Local Art Collection

The art gallery will continue to build a collection of local images produced in the 20th and 21st century. These works will be of places and people associated with the Swindon area. They will be selected by stringent collecting criteria for both exceptional local interest and artistic merit. 7.4

Studio Ceramics

We will concentrate on acquiring regional, national or international quality examples by living potters of works that show recent developments within ceramics. 7.5

Geographical area to which collecting relates:

The Art Gallery’s collecting area for the Swindon Collection of Modern British Art and the Studio Ceramics collection shall be artists from or working in the British Isles. The Local Collection’s area shall be artists from or depicting places in and people from the area covered by Swindon Borough Council.

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Limitations on collecting

SM&AG 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. 8.

Collecting policies of other museums

SM&AG 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 specialism, in order to avoid unnecessary duplication and waste of resources. Specific reference is made to the following museum(s): STEAM: The Museum of the Great Western Railway Lydiard House Wiltshire Heritage Museum Salisbury and South Wiltshire Museum Victoria Art Gallery, Bath Southampton Art Gallery 9.

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 governing body of SM&AG itself, having regard to the interests of other museums. 11. Loan Collections There is a strong presumption against accepting material on loan except for specified limited term display and exhibition use. A small amount of unclaimed or untraced loan material from the period prior to the introduction of the current policy has remained within the care of Swindon Museum. A review of this type of material will take place during the period of this policy, and unwanted items returned or disposed of in accordance with formal guidelines. Any material for the collection will be fully processed and documented in the normal way.

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12. Information on the legal framework for acquisition and disposal a. SM&AG 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 SM&AG can acquire a valid title to the item in question. b. In particular, SM&AG 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). c. In accordance with the provisions 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, SM&AG 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 DCMS in 2005. d. So far as biological and geological material is concerned, SM&AG 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. e. SM&AG 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, such as 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 (in England, Northern Ireland and Wales) or reporting finds through the Treasure Trove procedure (in Scotland). f. Any exceptions to the above clauses 11a, 11b, 11c, or 11e will only be because SM&AG is either: acting as an externally approved repository of last resort for material of local (UK) origin; or 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.

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In these cases SM&AG will be open and transparent in the way it makes decisions and will act only with the express consent of an appropriate outside authority. Spoliation SM&AG will use the statement of principles ‘Spoliation of Works of Art during the Nazi, Holocaust and World War II period’, issued for non-national museums in 1999 by the Museum and Galleries Commission. Human Remains As the museum holds or intends to acquire human remains from any period, it will follow the procedures in the ‘Guidance for the care of human remains in museums’ issued by DCMS in 2005. Repatriation and Restitution SM&AG’s governing body, acting on the advice of SM&AG’s professional staff, if any, may take a decision to return human remains, objects or specimens to a country or people of origin. SM&AG will take such decisions on a case by case basis, within its legal position and taking into account all ethical implications. Management of archives As SM&AG holds archives, including 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 (3rd ed., 2002). 13. Themes and priorities for rationalisation and disposal a. By definition, SM&AG has a long-term purpose and should possess (or intend to acquire) permanent collections in relation to its stated objectives. The governing body accepts the principle that, except for sound curatorial reasons, there is a strong presumption against the disposal of any items in SM&AG’s collection. b. SM&AG will establish that it is legally free to dispose of an item. Any decision to dispose of material from the collections will be taken only after due consideration following the Museums Association’s Code of Ethics and Disposal Toolkit. c. When disposal of a museum object is being considered, SM&AG 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.

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d. Decisions to dispose of items will not be made with the principal aim of generating funds. e. Any monies received by SM&AG governing body from the disposal of items will be applied for the benefit of the collections. This normally means the purchase of further acquisitions but in exceptional cases improvements relating to the care of collections may be justifiable. Advice on these cases will be sought from MLA. f. 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 SM&AG acting on the advice of professional curatorial staff, if any, and not of the curator of the collection acting alone. g. Once a decision to dispose of material in the collection has been 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. h. 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. i. The announcement 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, SM&AG may consider disposing of the material to other interested individuals and organisations. j. 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 (The UK Documentation Standard) Procedure on de-accession and disposal. Archaeology Guidelines on the Selection, Retention and Dispersal of Archaeological Site Archives have been drawn up and are obtainable from Swindon Museum. The status of general finds in store may be subject to review, in order to improve the quality of study collections. For example, subsequent acquisition of archives from similar sites with higher information potential may suggest that older material could be dispersed, as researchers would find the more recent archives more productive. Under-use of the archive could be a consideration, as long as 18

the under-use is related solely to the nature of the archive and cannot be remedied in any other way. Any dispersal is authorised to be carried out by the specialist curator, in consultation with experts as required and to professional standards. Geology SM&AG will seek the advice of specialist curators on the importance and relevance of the collection and rationalise the collection, within the terms of this policy. Social history – photographs SM&AG will not be rationalising this collection as it is relevant within the terms of this policy. Social history – printed ephemera SM&AG will not be rationalising this collection as it is relevant within the terms of this policy. Social history – costume SM&AG will not be rationalising this collection as it is relevant within the terms of this policy. Social history – coins and medals This collection will be assessed for relevance and importance and will be rationalised within the terms of this policy. Social history – pottery and glass This collection will be assessed for relevance and importance and will be rationalised within the terms of this policy. Social history – general domestic and working life This collection will be assessed for relevance and importance and will be rationalised within the terms of this policy. Social history – industrial collection

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This collection will be assessed for relevance and importance and will be rationalised within the terms of this policy. Oral history SM&AG will not be rationalising this collection as it is relevant within the terms of this policy. Agricultural collection SM&AG will seek the advice of specialist curators on the importance and relevance of the collection and rationalise the collection, within the terms of this policy. Historic collections – natural history SM&AG will seek the advice of specialist curators on the importance and relevance of the collection and rationalise the collection, within the terms of this policy. Historic collections – ethnography SM&AG will seek the advice of specialist curators on the importance and relevance of the collection and rationalise the collection, within the terms of this policy. Historic collections – firearms SM&AG will seek the advice of specialist curators on the importance and relevance of the collection and rationalise the collection, within the terms of this policy. Art Gallery – The Swindon Collection of Modern British Art SM&AG will not be rationalising this collection as it is relevant within the terms of this policy. Art Gallery – Studio Ceramics SM&AG will not be rationalising this collection as it is relevant within the terms of this policy. Art Gallery – local art collection

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SM&AG will not be rationalising this collection as it is relevant within the terms of this policy.

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