Significance Two spear heads from the Dick Roberts collection at the WA Museum Image copyright WA Museum Image of spear heads from the WA Museum's Dick Roberts collection. Assessing the significance of an object is a fundamental requirement when considering it for inclusion into the collection. Significance refers not just to the physical fabric or appearance of an object. Rather than focusing solely on what the object looks like, establishing significance explains the objects’ meaning for the museum. Assessing significance determines decisions regarding interpretation, conservation and can provide well-reasoned arguments for declining a donation or deaccessioning an object. What is significance? Significance includes all of the facets of an object that contribute to the story that the object tells. It is when the history, uses, social and spiritual values of an object are known that the object gains meaning. Significance means the importance of an object to a particular museum or collection and may vary depending on the mission statement and policies of the museum. Significance is not fixed in time but may alter with changes in communities, culture, politics, science and the environment. Significance assessment and practice is a dynamic process that will continue to develop and adapt as the circumstances and demands on collecting organisations change. Both the individual significance of an object and its value to the collection must be considered in the assessment process. Why prepare a statement of significance? The Collections Council of Australia defines a statement of significance as being “a reasoned, readable summary of the values, meaning and importance of an item or collection.” Preparing a statement of significance will: Allow better understanding and communication of an item or collection’s meaning Enhance access to and use of collections Ensure provenance and associations of items and collections are fully recorded Provide a reference point for making conservation and collection management decisions The process The process of analyzing the object, understanding its history and context and identifying its meaning for the community, allows the museum to demonstrate why the object is important to the collection. There are three variations on this process to address the significance assessment of single items; for a collection or parts of a collection; and for cross-collection projects. The following steps in the significance assessment process are recommended by the Collections Council of Australia (CCA). (Significance 2.0: a guide to assessing the significance of collections, Collections Council of Australia Ltd, (2009, p23) provides more detail for these steps.) Collate a file containing all details about the object and its history. This object file should be updated regularly as new information comes to hand. Research the history and provenance of the item. Consult donors, owners and knowledgeable people. Explore the context of the item. Analyse and describe the fabric and condition of the item. Consider comparative examples. Identify related places and items. Assess significance against the criteria. Write a succinct statement of significance. Take action, list recommendations, policies and tasks arising. For a more accurate analysis and to standardise the significance assessment process, the CCA recommends that museums use a consistent and agreed set of criteria. The criteria Four primary criteria apply when assessing significance: Historic significance Objects that have a proven association with a known individual, some event or period in history that is considered by the museum as significant Artistic or aesthetic significance Objects may be considered significant for their beauty; patina of age; craftsmanship; style; design; technical accomplishment Scientific or research significance This refers to items of current scientific value or research potential such as archives, natural history or archaeological collections. Social or spiritual significance Objects held in community esteem for their cultural or social associations There are an additional five comparative criteria which are used as modifiers of the primary criteria to evaluate the degree of significance: Provenance Is essential in assessing significance. It is the chain of ownership and context of use from the objects’ origin until it is acquired by the museum. Knowing the provenance enables the museum not only to tell powerful stories surrounding the object but also related stories that may be revealed by the investigation process. If there is no provenance, the museum runs the risk of falsifying the history and origins of the object. Rarity or Representativeness Objects that represent a particular category of object, or activity, way of life or theme relevant to the museum Rare or uncommon objects that relate to the museum’s mission statement and policies Condition or completeness Objects that may be complete or intact, for example, a complete dinner set in good or original unrestored condition. Interpretive capacity An objects ability to interpret and demonstrate particular themes, people or ideas relative to the organisation’s mission, purpose, collection policy and programs. It may be that some small museums lack the resources to consider all the criteria when assessing significance, however it is advisable to adhere to these guidelines where possible. Do keep in mind that it is not necessary to find evidence of all criteria to justify an objects’ significance. Indeed, an object may still be highly significant if only one or two criteria apply. For museums that have not included significance assessment in their policies and procedure before now, the following main steps can guide the way collections are managed. Trial significance assessment Gain more knowledge about significance assessment – refer to Significance 2.0 Evaluate how significance assessment enhances understanding of the object Discuss how and where the museums significance assessment trial will be used Incorporate significance assessment in the collection policy and procedures Communicate with the museum’s committee Review the collection policy to decide where significance assessment fits best Include a space in the documentation for a statement of significance about the object Assess the significance of single important objects or whole of collection Set a goal to do a set number of significance assessments a year or consider applying for grant funding to employ a consultant to undertake a whole of collection significance assessment Assess significance before starting conservation or restoration work As conservation work should not alter the significance of an object it is important that the object’s significance is understood and recorded before starting conservation work. References and further reading: National Standards for Australian Museums and Galleries Collections Council of Australia, Significance 2.0: a guide to assessing the significance of collections Heritage Collections Council, ReCollections, at the Australian Institute for the Conservation of Cultural Material (AICCM) website (in particular see p.29-38) Museums Australia Victoria, Videos of presentations to the seminar on Significance, 2013 Community Heritage Grants, National Library of Australia provide funding for significance assessments Museums Australia Inc (NSW), Museum Methods, A Practical Manual for Managing Small Museums, Section 3.2 Significance and objects