CO-OPERATION OF MUSEUMS

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 88, 30 April 1937, Page 6

CO-OPERATION OF MUSEUMS

Specimens No Longer Jealously Guarded EDUCATION OF PUBLIC ' The need for co-operation and good fellowship between musenms and art galleries of New Zealand and other parts of the British Empire was stressed by the Director of the Doininion Museum at Wellington, Dr. W. It. B. Oliver, when he oificially opened the new wing of the art gallery

and museum at Napier last evening, IHe said that through co-operation various institutions aH over the country I were benefitting mutually, and the good jfeeling existing was piaying an imI portant part in helping the institutions to become more attractive to the public. "I specially value the invitation becanse it is an dndication of the f riendly [feelings that are being developed between art galleries and museums uot only in New Zealand but between New Zealand and Australia and further afield, " he said. "The idea that a museum should be a centre for jealously accumulating all the specimens and holding on to them is, I am pleased to 6ay, passing away. It ds now recognised that all art galleries and museums are serving the sarne purpose, that of educating the public, and whether a specimen is in Napier

or in Wellington is merely the accident of locality and in no way should affect the use of that specimen." A great impetus to the fraternising of curators of art galleries aud museums, he said, was given recently by the action of the Carnegie Corporation of New York in providing funds for a meeting in Melbourne. This was held last May and by its means curators >f rom Perth to Wellington and from Brisbane to Hobart were brought [together. it made all the difference to Icnow personally those of kindred institutions. The Melbourne meeting was followed by ono in Auckland last January, when many curators from Australia and New Zealand again met at business and social gatherings. All that helped to cultivate friendly feelings between curators and between governing • committees, thus ensuring mutual aseistance among the ihstitutions to the good of all. "Through this personal contaet aud also through a better appreciation of art galleries and museums by the public," said Dr. Oliver, "curators are, I am sure, developing a habit of mind that regards the museum specimen in

whatever museum it happens to be deposited, as avaiiable equally to any other museum iu New Zealand. In other words, a museum no longer hesitates to lend its specimens to a kindred institution for any length of time it may be useful to that institution. Tho ' same remark applies equally to works cf art." Another phase of tlio friendly reciprocal feelings between museums was the loan, sometimes for long periods of time, of specimens required for seientific research. And that was not coufined to small objects. Dr. Oliver had lent to him several cases cf specimens. There was at preseiit in the Dominion Museum the skull of a whale which took a large packing-case for its transportatiou ' from Christchurch to Wellington. Thcreby hung a tale 4nvolving several museums, l'or it was the Wanganui Museum that a few years ago procured tho skeleton of a rare apecies of whale. Tho curator of that tnuseum was good enough to allow the speakev to describe that specimen, which presented some remarkable and unique features. In order to make alL the comparisons he required for his work, he borrowed a fairly large vvhalc's skull from the Canterbury Musemn. But in addition to that lie wrole lo the priricipal museums in England and Ameriea. and obtained a series oi' photograplis of skeletons of allied species of whales. Jj'iually, he examined other 'specimens 'in the Svdney and Auckland Museums, and so he had avaiiable the resources of tho museums of the whole world, and the specimens and inf prination he .. required were generously given. "Now this mutual assistance among museums is tho ltind of thing that wc should cultivate," said Dr. Olivor. "It is deliberately being encouraged bv the Carnegie Corporation of New York. which has initiated a scheme of exchange of exhibits, and once started there is no reason, other than tTausportation expenses, why it should not be continued and expanded. In other words, museums should get into the habit of making use of the exhibits in cthev museums bv borvowing thcm and setting thcm up in their own museums for as long as it is not inconvenicnt to the'lending instilutiou. "•