October 22, 1999
CONTENTS:
- Now on-line: 2000 NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON CULTURAL PROPERTY PROTECTION
- Risk Practices Not State of The Art; U.K. museums face growing exposures, inadequate coverage, report warns
- Art question for murder mystery
- NEW UNESCO DIRECTOR-GENERAL NOMINATED (Patrick Boylan)
- Fire Suppression Workshop Deadline Approaching
- Couple held in sale of artifacts
- Gathering policies re: Theft in Reading Rooms
Now on-line: 2000 NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON CULTURAL PROPERTY PROTECTION
February 13-17, 2000
Crystal Gateway Marriott,
Arlington, Virginia
Presented by the Office of Protection Services (OPS),
Smithsonian Institution
Telephone: 202.357.3375
Facsimile: 202.357.4132
Email: conf@ops.si.edu
http://natconf.si.edu/
Risk Practices Not State of The Art
U.K. museums face growing exposures, inadequate coverage, report warns Public museums in the United Kingdom face growing property and casualty risks that may not be adequately covered by their current self?insurance practices, a recent report warns. U.K. museums currently are not permitted by the government to buy insurance for these exposures and, therefore, must settle any claims with funds in their already stretched budgets. In special circumstances, namely when a museum is displaying items on loan from private?sector museums or private collections, the government will provide limited indemnification, but this does not extend to a U.K. museum's own collection. Compounding this situation is a "worrying degree" of ignorance among museums about basic principles of risk management, said Jeremy Warren, assistant director of the Museums and Galleries Commission, a national advisory body for public museums in the United Kingdom. The MGC's report, "Museums and Insurance," published in August, examined insurance practices among U.K. museums. The research, conducted by London's City University, examined government policy on insurance for buildings, property, collections and exhibitions, and museums' growing exposure to third?party liability claims. The U.K. government's policy for its national art collections has been to forgo buying insurance. "You do not spend Treasury money twice," said a spokesman for the Museum, Galleries and Cultural Properties Division of the Department of Culture, Media and Sport, the ministry that oversees public museums. The spokesman explained the Treasury's policy is that, because the U.K. taxpayer pays once to acquire a particular item in any given national or regional collection, the taxpayer should not again to purchase its insurance. Since the 1980s, however, British museums and galleries have been able to obtain a government indemnity against potential losses associated with special exhibitions on loan to museums. Under the 1980 National Heritage Act the U.K. government will indemnify public museums for up to two years for certain exhibitions and for loans of private items. The gallery or museum holding the exhibition has to carry a deductible of £5,000 ($8,028) or the equivalent of 1% of the exhibition's total value, whichever is greater. The ministry official said this indemnity has encouraged public galleries and museums to stage exhibitions they otherwise would not be able to, given the potential liabilities. But a number of ambiguities in this coverage are not generally appreciated, such as coverage for the transportation of art items to an exhibition, said Robert Graham, a fine?art specialist at the London?based insurance broker Blackwood Green, a division of Lambert Fenchurch Group P.L.C. If the transportation is arranged and carried out by the museum in question, it is covered under the government indemnity. If the owner of the art item brings his or her own property to the exhibition, however, potential losses to that same property while in transit are not covered by the U.K. government. But U.K. museums have no such plan available for their permanent collections. Nor are they allowed to buy insurance for these works, unlike in the United States. The MGC's Mr. Warren said he would like U.K. museums to follow U.S. practices in insurance and risk management. The MGC is consulting insurance brokers on the matter. The MGC report's key findings include: · A large proportion of independent museums, particularly the smaller museums, are inadequately insured. In a survey of independent museums-those not owned by a branch of the government or a university-97 % of those that responded agreed they are legally obliged to have liability insurance, but only 77% claimed to purchase it. Without this insurance, these museums have no financial or legal defense coverage for claims brought by employees or the public, the report said. Mr. Warren added that injury claims by museum visitors are mounting. According to Blackwood Green's Mr. Graham, "The situation is getting dangerous, especially on the liability side." He explained that exhibitions that feature lasers or interactive sculptures present risks of bodily injury, as do more mundane Conditions such as faulty floors and carpets. And injuries can lead to litigation against museums. The legal fees alone from such litigation, even before any damages are awarded could be enough to severely damage a museum's budget. The U.K. Treasury insists, however, that museums meet such claims from their annual budgets. · None of the national and regional museums surveyed for the report purchases title insurance that would provide coverage for works of art subsequently found to have been stolen or otherwise illegally acquired. Such coverage would reimburse a museum for the money it spent to acquire an item that had to be returned to its rightful owner. · There is serious concern that self-insurance for the collections of national museums and galleries has no binding legal basis. Consequently, there are serious doubts about the ability, let alone the willingness, of the government to compensate a museum in the event it incurs a catastrophic loss. Mr. Graham said there is no problem in arranging coverage for these risks in the private sector. "Specialist art insurers are crying out for the business," he said. The MGC's Mr. Warren said he wants public sector museums to be able to arrange their own insurance from their budgets, if they so choose. He said an integrated?package insurance policy of the type that U.S. museums purchase would be a good model to follow. This single policy would generally cover such risks as property, liability, goods in transit and title defects. The MGC report suggested that British museum associations explore developing a similar program for their members. Several museum directors and curators contacted for comment on the MGC report's findings declined comment or said they were unaware of the report.
Copies of "Museums and Insurance" are available for £21.25 ($34.04), including shipping, from the Museums and Galleries Commission, Queen Anne's Gate, London SW 9AA, United Kingdom; 44207233-4200; fax: 442072330933.
Subject: Art question for murder mystery
From: "David B. van Hulsteyn" dbvh@roadrunner.com
Hi,
For a murder mystery I am writing, I am trying to do research about an art theft. In my plot, a schlock painting is painted over a very valuable painting (like a Georgia O'Keeffe).
My questions are:
1. How does one paint over an existing painting without destroying the original?
2. How does one find the original painting. Is it with x-rays? If so, what type?
Thanks for your help. I am the author of 5 published books and would be glad to acknowledge your help in the acknowledgments.
Best wishes,
Peggy van Hulsteyn (PeggyLane@aol.com)
From: Boylan P P.Boylan@city.ac.uk
Subject: NEW UNESCO DIRECTOR-GENERAL NOMINATED
The current Chairman of the World Heritage Committee, Mr. Koichito Matsuura, has today been nominated as the next Director General of UNESCO (out of 11 candidates) by the UNESCO Executive Board to a secret ballot of the full General Conference on 12 November.
Today's UNESCO press release is reproduced below.
Patrick Boylan
=====================================
EXECUTIVE BOARD NAMES KOICHIRO MATSUURA OF JAPAN AS CANDIDATE FOR POST OF UNESCO DIRECTOR-GENERAL
Paris, October 20 {No.99-221} - UNESCO's 58-member Executive Board - whose 157th session opened on October 5 - today nominated, in the third round of voting, Koichiro Matsuura as its for the post of UNESCO Director-General, to replace the present Director General Federico Mayor at the end of his second 6-year mandate.
Mr Matsuura's candidacy will be submitted to the approval of UNESCO's General Conference on November 12.
Born in 1937 in Tokyo, Koichiro Matsuura trained in law (Faculty of Law, Tokyo University) and (Haverford College, U.S.A.). He began his career at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1959, where he has served as of the Economic Cooperation Bureau (1988), of the North American Affairs Bureau (1990), Deputy for Foreign Affairs (1992-94) and Ambassador to France, Andorra, & Djibouti, since 1994. He presently chairs UNESCO's World Heritage. Mr Matsuura has published six books on Japanese diplomacy,, and on relations between Japan and France and Japan and the States.
UNESCO's Executive Board, chaired by Christopher J Chetsanga (Zimbabwe), chose Mr Matsuura among 11 candidates, following interviews with each of them on October 13.
If UNESCO's General Conference does not approve the candidate chosen by the Executive Board in its secret ballot November 12, the Board must choose another candidate within 48 hours.
The eleven contenders for the post were: Ghazi Algosaibi, Ambassador of Saudi Arabia to the Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; Senake Bandaranayake, Ambassador of Sri Lanka to France; Ion Caramitru, Romania's Minister of Culture; Lawrence Carrington, former representative of Trinidad and Tobago to the Executive Board; Gareth Evans, former Foreign Affairs Minister of Australia; Daniel Janicot (France), Assistant Director-General for the Directorate of UNESCO; Rosario Manalo, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Philippines; Makaminan, representative of Indonesia to the Executive Board; Koichiro Matsuura, Japan's Ambassador to France; Pál Pataki (Hungary), former Chairperson of the Executive Board; Ismail Serageldin (Egypt), Vice-President of the World Bank.
From: CCAHA CCAHA@CCAHA.ORG
Subject: Fire Suppression Workshop Deadline Approaching
CCAHA ANNOUNCES SECOND WORKSHOP IN DISASTER MITIGATION SERIES
**There is a Mail-In Workshop Registration form at the end of this press release.**
The Conservation Center for Art and Historic Artifacts (CCAHA) is offering three emergency preparedness workshops that focus on mitigation strategies. The workshops are designed to help institutions reduce the possibility of disaster and prevent, or limit, potential damage to collections.
The first workshop, "Be Prepared... Conducting A Vulnerability Assessment," has already taken place, but there is still time to register for the other two workshops in the series.
These workshops are made possible through the generous funding of The William Penn Foundation and they are co-sponsored by: Heritage Investment Program, Tri-State Coalition of Historic Places, Delaware Valley Archivists Group, Philadelphia Area Consortium of Special Collections Libraries, the Museum Council of Philadelphia and the Delaware Valley, and the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts.
The workshops are intended for staff who are involved in collections care activities or have responsibility for the safety of collections such as librarians, archivists, curators, collections managers, stewards of historic house museums, site and facilities managers, and security and safety staff.
All of the workshops will be held at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA.
NOTE: This workshop has taken place "Be Prepared... Conducting a Vulnerability Assessment" Tuesday, October 19, 1999
"Be Prepared... Fire Protection and Suppression" Thursday, November 4, 1999 Registration Deadline: October 27
Critical to the selection of an appropriate fire protection and suppression system is the assessment and analysis of the hazards and risks faced by a collection. This workshop will focus on the need to review current fire protection procedures and systems in historic and cultural institutions. The goal of the workshop will be to equip participants with up-to-date information to make informed decisions on fire prevention.
Speakers:
Nicholas Artim, Director, Fire Safety Network
John M. Watts, Jr., Director, Fire Safety Institute
"Be Prepared... Assessing Health and Safety Risks"
Thursday, December 2, 1999 Registration Deadline: November 19
This workshop will alert participants to the health and safety risks present at the time of an emergency, including air quality, fire safety, electrical hazards, structural instability, chemical and biological hazards (mold, pests, lead, asbestos, contaminated water and soil), pests, and those hazards inherent in collections themselves (arsenic, formaldehyde). The workshop will also address an institution's legal obligations to staff and visitors in regard to health and safety, and the psychological stresses faced by those in an emergency situation.
Speakers:
Monona Rossol, President, Arts, Crafts, and Theater Safety, Inc.
(ACTS) Charles Cook, Public Health Advisor, Emergency Service and Disaster Relief Branch of the Center for Mental Health Services
These workshops will be held at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Hamilton Auditorium, 118 North Broad Street, (Broad & Cherry Streets), Philadelphia, PA 19102
8:30 A.M. Registration and Coffee
9:00 A.M. - 4:30 P.M. Workshop
Lunch is not provided - site has a cafeteria & many local restaurants.
For more information about these workshops, please contact:
Preservation Services Office
Conservation Center for Art and Historic Artifacts (CCAHA)
264 South 23rd Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Tel.: 215.545.0613 Fax: 215.735.9313 E-mail: ccaha@ccaha.org
Couple held in sale of artifacts
By Hector Gutierrez
Denver Rocky Mountain News Staff Writer
A New Mexico couple walked into a lower downtown art gallery last week and tried to sell stolen Indian artifacts -- including burial moccasins and a chief's blanket -- worth about $100,000, police said Wednesday. The gallery paid $29,000 for the items, but the check was written by Denver police detective Ron Mayoral, who'd been posing as the owner of the David Cook Fine American Art gallery. Ricky and Pauline Whitted, both 40, were being held Wednesday in lieu of $100,000. They also may face federal charges in connection with the thefts of precious valuables stolen from galleries in Santa Fe, Taos and Albuquerque. Items stolen include a Navajo chief blanket worth $38,000; an 1870s Blackfeet beaded pipe bag worth $18,000; an 1860s child's bonnet worth $12,000; a pair of 1890s burial moccasins worth $7,850; a pipe bag worth $5,000; three silver and gold watches worth $1,500; and other jewelry worth about $1,000. Denver detectives were alerted to the couple's whereabouts Oct. 11 after the couple approached Jamie Kahn, co-director of the David Cook Fine American Art, in the 1600 block of Wazee Street, and showed her three items. Kahn had a bad feeling about the deal. "You're not often offered 100-year-old materials for half off," Kahn said. The gallery's owner showed Kahn some fliers from New Mexico art galleries alerting other businesses to some thefts there. When Kahn called the Matthew Chase Gallery in Santa Fe, the owner confirmed that the items the couple had offered to sell were stolen from his business, police said. That's when the gallery called police, and Mayoral and detective Avis Laurita showed up for a crash course in Indian artifacts. Laurita acted as a saleswoman stocking merchandise. The couple arrived the afternoon of Oct. 11 for a scheduled appointment, bringing items they said were family heirlooms. After agreeing to accept the $29,000 check from the detective, the couple was arrested. Police say the couple carried out the thefts by posing as customers. While one occupied a salesperson, the other would swipe the expensive items. Detectives said the 1996 truck the couple was driving was stolen in New Mexico in October.
http://insidedenver.com/news/1021art0.shtml
From: Rachel Howarth rjh@mail.utexas.edu
Subject: Gathering policies re: Theft in Reading Rooms
Hello RBMS folks,
I am Rachel Howarth and I attend the RBMS Public Services Discussion Group and serve on the RBMS Security Committee. At the ALA annual meeting of PSDG, Security Committe guests introduced a discussion about Reading Room security policies. For example, what are the *specific* steps for public services staff to take if they observe a theft in process: call the police? call campus security? approach the person yourself? The RBMS Theft Guidelines offer general suggestions, but the group(s) felt that a compilation of various specific policies would prove useful to librarians/archivists who have not yet developed their own step-by-step policies, and to Security Committee members working on the revision of the existing Guidelines. I offered to gather a set of sample Reading Room security policies from different institutions and bring them to the ALA Mid-winter meeting for discussion/distribution. If your institution has developed a set of procedures governing Reading Room security (or would like to take this opportunity to compose one), I would very much appreciate your mailing, or emailing, it to me at the address below. If you have questions about this project, please email me directly rjh@mail.utexas.edu.
Many thanks,
Rachel Howarth
Head of the Reading Room
Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center
The University of Texas at Austin
P.O. Box 7219 Austin, TX 78713-7219
Phone: (512) 471-9119 Fax: (512) 471-2899
email: rjh@mail.utexas.edu
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