European Standards Survey

National Overview 1.1-1-3 - Netherlands

1.1 General

i. Is there a national definition of 'Museum' in your country?

Yes

ii. Published definition:

ICOM: 'A non profit making, permanent institution in the service of society and of its developments, and open to the public which acquires, conserves, researches, communications and exhibits, for purposes of study, education and enjoyment, material evidence of people and their environment.'

iii. Is there national or state legislation governing the activities of museums in your country?

No

iv. Details:

[n/a]

v. Do any museums in your country subscribe to the ICOM Code of Professional Ethics?

50% or less

vi. Your comments in relation to the ICOM Code of Professional Ethics usage in your country:

Code of Professional Ethics for Museums in the Netherlands 'In the autumn of 1999 the NMV distributed a second, revised edition of the Code of Professional Ethics for Museums in the Netherlands. The first edition was published in 1991, after two intensive years of consultation in the Dutch museum world. The text is based on the ICOM Code of Professional Ethics (1987), which was translated and adapted to the Dutch situation in 1989 and 1991. Since its publication in 1991, the Code of Professional Ethics for Museums in the Netherlands has certainly justified itself. Particularly as a guideline in ethical matters and as a means of self-regulation, the code serves the museum sector well. The Committee for the Code of Professional Ethics, which was appointed by the LCM, the SMJK, the NFVM, ICOM-Nederland and the NMV, has had to state a recommendation on the application of the code only on a few occasions. In 1998 a change was made in the articles on 'Deaccessioning and Selection', and a supplement on 'Dealing with dead animal material from zoos' was added. In its conditions for membership, the NMV has stated that members are expected to use the Code of Professional Ethics for Museums in the Netherlands as the basis of their dealings. A similar condition is used by the Netherlands Museum Register Foundation with respect to registered museums.' De Nederlandse Museumvereniging http://www.museumvereniging.nl/engels/nmv/ethics/index.html

vii. Is there a body or organisation responsible for co-ordinating national museum documentation and information?

No

viii. Details:

[n/a]

1.2 Museum Types

1.2.1 Public Museums

i. The table below represents the types of museum within your category public collections.

1.2.2 Private Museums

i. The table below represents the types of museum within your category private collections.

1.3 Additional Comments

i. Your additional comments:

Museum registration in the Netherlands Introduction 'When does a museum function properly? In order measure this, and in order to improve standards, the standards must first be known. Standards give rise to insight and clarity. The registration of museums in the Netherlands is based on the museums' need for standards, as an instrument for quality control and quality improvement. Unlike related sectors such as the archive field and the 'National Trust' of the Netherlands, the Dutch museum sector has no legislation of its own. The NMV (Netherlands Museum Association) and the LCM (Netherlands Museum Advisors Foundation) have therefore - as representatives of the museums - established a number of basic requirements which can and must be fulfilled by every museum, large or small. The Dutch system of museum registration is a form of self-regulation, which elaborates on the Code of Ethics of the International Council of Museums (ICOM) and takes its inspiration from the Registration Scheme of the Museums and Galleries Commission in Great Britain. From an extensive questionnaire, museums evaluate their own performance on a voluntary basis. This is then assessed by authorized representatives of the museum world. A starting point for museum support Both the NMV and the LCM regard the Museum Register as the cornerstone of the Dutch museum establishment. On the basis of the results of museum registration, new policy can be developed and new projects and courses started. Not only the provincial museum advisors, but also the initiators of museum registration have the duty to explain what the minimum standard is and to guide museums in striving for this. At the end of 1999, for instance, they published a manual for writing a policy plan: here museums are given step-by-step instructions for the writing of a policy plan and told what to consider throughout this process. The publication came about partly due to the fact that, through the process of museum registration, it became evident that many museums lacked an adequate policy plan. The NMV and LCM are presently investigating how, in their publications and in their joint range of courses, they can meet the desires and needs of museums as these have become evident through museum registration. The future The execution of the Dutch museum registration scheme is now in full progress. Within three years all Dutch museums will have been invited by the provincial museum advisor to take part in museum registration. As of last year, a start was made in Noord-Brabant. In Gelderland and Overijssel an information session has already been held in 1999; the actual registration procedure will begin this year. The provinces of Zeeland, Friesland and Groningen will also begin in 2000, and in 2001 Utrecht and Drenthe will follow. The museums in Flevoland will be invited by the advisor for Utrecht. It is not yet known when museum registration will be carried out in the province of Limburg and in the city of Amsterdam. But this is not the completion of museum registration. Should there be sufficient support to do so, the basic requirements will be sharpened and extended in the future. Now the emphasis lies with continuity, management, the maintenance and care of the collections. It is, however, conceivable that, at a later stage, consideration will also be given to the quality of museum presentations. The museum register is not a once-only project, but a permanent part of the Dutch museum establishment.' De Nederlandse Museumvereniging http://www.museumvereniging.nl/engels/nmv/projects/musreg.html

Funded by the European Commission - DGX - Raphaël Programme