[BCMA] Adding accession numbers to archaeological items held in a repository

[Moderated BCMA subscriber listserv]

Hi Holly,

If the objects are not yours, it is not recommended to be assigning your
numbers to them using a permanent method. It is advisable, however, assign
numbers to them as you would loan items, and keep paperwork to go with them
that includes where they are from, any information the Nation has about
them, and full condition reports and photographs for each object
(especially important if you are safekeeping these items for others so you
can keep track of any degradation of the objects and address that with the
Nation if it does occur) - it sounds like you're doing this :).

>From your description of the objects, I would consider getting/making
archival boxes with dividers (for example, for the stone tools) and
labelling the boxes with a chart that has the number put on the objects
from the excavations, and then your own assigned numbers for your record
keeping. If you can attach a small, archival tag on a string to the object,
that can also work, but may not work for all objects depending on their
shape and composition. What CRM software are you using? I know in
PastPerfect's user guide they give a good example of how to number incoming
loan objects and record them in the system. I would consider this approach
as an option.

I hope this helps. Best of luck!

Maureen

On Thu, Dec 14, 2023 at 12:10 PM Moderated BCMA subscriber listserv <
listserv at lists.museum.bc.ca> wrote:

> Dear all esp Holly
> I'm a conservator , a Brit married to a Canuck,currently in  theUK, so
> cannot come and see or do anything now .
> paper labels adhered are not safe, paper burns, gets eaten falls off  and
> turns to papier mache in a flood , rips - try tyvek
> It might be more of a hassle but can you use Paraloid b72 or 67 chemically
> it is a methyl methacrylate copolymer , your most important neighbours to
> the south call it Acryloid , made by Rohm and Haas available from
> conservation supplies
>
> If you have to make it put in a mesh, with colour doesnt come out or
> dissolve in IMS(alcohol) acetone (or you could toluene ) I'd do in acetone
> and suspend the 'beans' in the solution .
>
> It should be ok with any artefact  , that does not need conservation , any
> queries  Holly or others may have , ask away
> Paul Harrison BSc  archaeology conservation MSc historic  metallurgy  FIIC
> (other queries my sphere too  can be asked)
>
> On Wed, 13 Dec 2023 at 00:38, Moderated BCMA subscriber listserv <
> listserv at lists.museum.bc.ca> wrote:
>
>> Hello all,
>>
>> The Kitimat Museum & Archives serves as a repository for archaeological
>> materials uncovered in the Kitimat area, with the approval of the Haisla
>> Nation. These materials include stone tools, animal bones, and
>> glass/metal/ceramic objects, from both pre- and post-contact eras. They
>> come to us with a number already assigned to them based on the site they
>> were recovered at, ex. GaTe9:13. We then give them our own accession
>> numbers like any other artifact, ex. 2023.40, for record-keeping purposes.
>>
>> What we're wondering is whether it's okay to physically add our accession
>> numbers to the artifact, using the nail hardener and ink method (as we do
>> for all our other non-paper/textile artifacts). Some of them already have
>> the site number added to them, typed on tiny strips of paper that are
>> adhered to the artifact. Would adding our own numbers damage the artifacts,
>> esp. the organic ones? Furthermore, are the artifacts not truly 'ours' as
>> we are merely a repository for them, and if that's the case, is it
>> appropriate to add our numbers, or would it merely cause further confusion?
>>
>> If anyone can advise on this issue, it would be much appreciated.
>>
>> Thank you,
>> Holly Peterson
>>
>>
>>
>> *Holly Peterson | She / Her*
>>
>> *Manager of Collections & Programming*
>>
>> Kitimat Museum & Archives
>>
>> 293 City Centre
>>
>> Kitimat, BC   V8C 1T6
>>
>> Tel:  250-632-8951
>>
>> Website:  www.kitimatmuseum.ca
>>
>>
>>
>> *The Kitimat Museum & Archives is located on the traditional and unceded
>> territory of the x¯a’isla Nation.*
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
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>>
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