An increasing number of objects stored by Danish museums are falling apart, a report shows. The acceleration of mold and decay is blamed on "changing climate patterns" (Stephen Gadd, "National Museum under fire over decaying artefacts Sub-standard storage facilities a problem for Denmark’s museums" CphPost.dk July 5, 2018).
Storage facilities are often old building such as redundant schools, cellars, lofts or barns that don’t have air conditioning systems installed to control damp and temperature. A note from the Danish national auditor, Rigsrevisionen, reveals that around 1,000 historical arteficts have been thrown away by Denmark’s National Museum due to damage from mold, rats or insects, reports DR Nyheder. The report goes on to criticise the museum for not solving its storage problems, despite them being pointed out as long ago as 2007.It has been suggested that none of the lost items were particularly irreplaceable from a historical or cultural point of view, the objects "deaccessioned" were things that are very well represented in collections already. The problem, of course, is money – or the lack of it for proper care. There is therefore a risk of further items being lost or damaged before the problem is sorted out. Measures need to be taken by those responsible for museums in that country so that items will not be lost to decay but it will also be easier to locate things needed for exhibitions as they will be know better what they have got and where it is, which seems not to be the case at present.
Why can they not sell what is not needed to collectors to preserve asnd display, rather than keep everything jumbled together in stores that are not fit for the purpose?
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