----------------------------Original message---------------------------- We are perhaps more fortunate than most in that we are not the only library within our museum. (There is no precise count, as definitions differ on what constitutes a "library".) Our primary clientele is a single curatorial department, Dept. of the Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas. As such we can afford to be more stringent in our lending policies. We lend out (indefinitely) materials to our departmental staff only. They are only just "down the hall", so it is with the understanding that we will borrow back materials as requested by the public and other visitors. Once a year we do an inventory of the signed-out materials. We have yet to initiate a recall; there probably isn't enough shelf space. As a courtesy we also lend to conservation staff working with our department. Some of their offices are some distance from the library, but we lend with the same recall rights. We will lend out to individual professional staff elsewhere in the building on a case-by-case basis, decided by either of the two librarians. All library materials in the museum must stay in the building. Only official interlibrary loan requests leave the building. ========================================================================= ROSS DAY - Associate Museum Librarian, The Robert Goldwater Library The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.) 1-212-570 3707 - fax 1-212-570 3879 - http://www.metmuseum.org/ Treasurer, Art Libraries Society of North America (ARLIS/NA) On Thu, 12 Dec 1996, Anne Morris wrote: > ----------------------------Original message---------------------------- > At the Toledo Museum of Art, we not only lend to staff, but we lend to > Museum members, members of our library support group (The Museum Library > League) and to students in the art department of the University of Toledo > (with a current quarter validation). The Library is in the UT building > (state-owned) which is attached to the Museum (privately endowed) and we > have served as the University's art library for 75 years. We do not lend > periodicals, sales catalogues, vertical files, or catalogues of exhibitions > and collections to anyone but staff, nor do we lend materials over a certain > cost, etc., etc. to anyone but staff. And even those materials just listed > don't go out of the Museum building with staff. Sure, a few sneak out. > > There are problems and there are some who wish we did not circulate anything > to anyone, but that is not our tradition. I think we are in a real minority > and am interested to see other answers on the List. > > Anne O. Morris > Toledo Museum of Art > >----------------------------Original message---------------------------- > >I am putting together information about policies regarding borrowing > >rights in art museum libraries. > > > >I am interested to know whether other libraries permit: > > > > internal borrowing [within the building] > > external borrowing [take books home etc] > > > >for the following categories: > > > > permanent staff > > part-time permanent staff > > temporary or casual staff > > voluntary guides/docents > > other volunteers > > interns > > > >Any comments of the reasons for your policies would be appreciated. > > > >Please reply directly to me at: [log in to unmask] > > > >I shall be happy to consolidate the answers for the list if others are > >interested. > > > >Thank you > >J. Margaret Shaw > >Chief Librarian > >National Gallery of Australia Research Library > >GPO Box 1150 > >Canberra ACT 2601 > >Australia > > > >Telephone: 61-(0)6-240 6532 > >Fax: 61-(0)6-273 2155 > > > >E-Mail: [log in to unmask] > > >