Two seagull feathers in the museum's collection are tipped for destruction. Photo / Getty Images
Two seagull feathers in the museum's collection are tipped for destruction. Photo / Getty Images
The fate of two seagull feathers and a souvenir mug hang in the balance, with a list of items to be removed from Rotorua Museum's permanent collection to be considered on Thursday.
Rotorua Lakes Council's Operations and Monitoring committee will decide whether or not to recommend to the council to deaccession - permanently remove - 36 items from the currently closed museum's collection.
The items include a number of items of clothing beyond repair or items with no known connection to Rotorua, such as a 1960s milkshake machine, a dinghy, a bath, a vial of mercury and two seagull feathers.
In a report prepared for the meeting, Te Whare Taonga o Te Arawa Rotorua Museum director Lizzie Marvelly said the items for deaccession were either not relevant to the region, duplicates of objects already in the collection or in very poor condition.
"The museum offsite storage facility is overcrowded and deaccessioning the proposed objects will give the collections team more space to prepare the collection for display in the reopened Whare Taonga building."
She said it would also allow the museum to acquire other objects that needed to be preserved for the Rotorua community.
Two seagull feathers in the museum's collection are tipped for destruction. Photo / Getty Images
Items would be removed either by returning them to donors, sale, transferring to the education collection or the collection of another museum, or destruction.
She said the museum was "unusual" in that it did not have a deaccessions programme, with only one item - a length of plaited kauri gum "hair" - deaccessioned in 2014.
"As we move towards reopening, however, this is a good time to start a normal, business-as-usual deaccessions programme, as there are objects in our collection that sit outside the scope of our collections policy.
"Over the decades, these objects have built up and are taking up valuable space that should be utilised for taonga, objects, artworks, artefacts and or specimens that fit without the bounds … and are relevant to the Rotorua Te Arawa region."
In her report Marvelly noted any costs were likely to be transport costs returning items to donors or their families, were already budgeted for, and were expected to be "minimal".
Proceeds from sales of any of the items were to be retained "for collection purposes".
If recommended to the council, the council's final decision will likely be at its next meeting on April 29.
Te Whare Taonga o Te Arawa Rotorua Museum. Photo / Andrew Warner
The decision will not undergo public engagement but Marvelly's report noted the museum had consulted with the donors of the objects or their heirs where possible and made "all reasonable efforts" to establish legal title.
The museum will publish its intention to deaccession objects on its website for 30 days, the report said.
KA KITE TO ALL THIS?
Some of the below objects are listed among the 36 to be deaccessioned.
Victorian skirt In "extremely poor condition" and no known Rotorua history For destruction
Two seagull feathers "These are commonly found objects with no known provenance." For destruction
Two insects from Australia (spiny leaf insect and spider) No known Rotorua significance For transferral to education collection or destruction
Clinker dinghy Used for sea fishing in Ōpōtiki in 1940s, purchased as exhibition prop and then accessioned into collection "This has no known Rotorua significance and the family would like it returned. It uses considerable storage space."
Vial of mercury "This is a hazardous substance and has no known Rotorua history". For destruction
Souvenir cup with scene of Te Aroha No Rotorua significance. "Te Aroha Museum is interested in acquiring".
Nineteen items of clothing, a walking stick, a record album and a 1960s milkshake machine "These have little Rotorua significance and are duplicated elsewhere in the collection."
