Annex I: Working Document on Loans
(Paper for the Board of Trustees, 20 May 2000:
approved by the Museum Management Board, 4 November 1999)
PREAMBLE
1. This policy covers all loans of objects
for exhibition both outgoing from and incoming to the British
Museum, for any duration. It covers the entire range of loans
from single objects to travelling exhibitions of a large number
of objects. It does not apply to movements of objects outside
the British Museum for conservation or study purposes.
2. The British Museum makes loans under
powers conferred by section 4 of the British Museum Act of 1963.
This states that:
The British Museum may lend for public exhibition
(whether in the United Kingdom or elsewhere) any object comprised
in the collections of the Museum: provided that in deciding whether
or not to lend any such object, and in determining the time for
which, and the conditions subject to which, any such object is
to be lent, the British Museum shall have regard to the interests
of students and other persons visiting the Museum, to the physical
condition and degree of rarity of the object in question, and
to any risks to which it is likely to be exposed.
No loan can be made that overrides the intentions
of the Act.
PRINCIPLES
3. The British Museum makes loans for the
following reasons:
(a) to further knowledge, understanding and
scholarship relating to the works in its care;
(b) to increase national and international
co-operation by the exchange of material and exhibitions;
(c) to enhance the reputation of the British
Museum and its good standing nationally and internationally; and
(d) to make the collections more widely accessible
within the UK because it holds them in trust for the whole nation.
4. There will be occasions when a purpose
of making loans is to raise funds for curatorial activities. In
these cases the Museum will not make loans in circumstances that
would be damaging to the Museum's standing and reputation. It
will not make loans in circumstances when this might jeopardise
the British Museum's title to ownership or control of the object.
5. As a general principle, the British Museum
will not make any stipulation or request to those to whom it is
lending that it would itself regard as unreasonable if required
of it by any institution from which it was borrowing.
GUIDELINES
6. There is no reserved list of objects
that can never be lent. Nevertheless there is a prima facie
presumption against lending very large objects, and those that
form an important part of permanent displays and which the public
reasonably expects to see in the British Museum. Works of art
that suffer from exposure, such as works on paper and textiles,
or which are particularly fragile, will be lent less readily and
less frequently than those of more durable materials.
7. Borrowers will have to demonstrate that
the works they have requested form an essential part of their
display (whether temporary or permanent), and that the exhibition
itself is coherently thought through and intellectually valid.
In deciding whether to lend the British Museum will take account
of:
— the absolute importance of the object;
— the structural condition and stability
of the object;
— whether equivalent works could be
found elsewhere;
— whether the exhibition is in the
United Kingdom or abroad;
— the resources available within the
British Museum to administer loans and the notice period; and
— whether the benefits to the British
Museum from making the loan is proportional to the effort it makes
in achieving it (there will be some requests, even within the
UK, that are too trivial to be acceptable).
8. Loans to Museums and Academic Institutions:
The British Museum will only lend to properly
established organisations and to proper venues, whether run publicly
or privately. This means that they must satisfy:
— the requirements of operations in
that they must have a professional staff competent to deal with
the administration and handling of the loan;
— the requirements of security as defined
by the National Security Advisor who must approve each loan venue;
and
— the requirements of the British Museum
as to humidity, temperature and lighting conditions, and as to
the construction and dressing materials employed in the display.
9. Loans must be insured or indemnified
at replacement value, or, if that is impossible, market value.
They must be couriered at all stages of their journey by a responsible
individual of the British Museum or of another approved organisation.
They must be covered by a signed legal agreement appropriate to
the size and complexity of the loan.
10. Loans to profit-making or other types
of non-academic premises:
In the case of loans to premises operated for
commercial purposes, the following additional stipulations apply:
— the British Museum will only lend
to dealers, firms or fairs that have a record of support of national
or regional museums, and will not lend to those that have a reputation
for offering material of dubious provenance for sale;
— the exhibition itself should be a
contribution to scholarship, and should have a published catalogue;
— it should not contain any works that
are at that time for sale;
— it must not include any antiquities
or other works of art that have suspect origins (either as having
been stolen or illegally exported); and
— it must be open to the general public.
11. All loans will be fully costed. In addition
to the direct costs of conservation, photography, packing, shipping
and couriers's expenses, these will include the indirect costs
of the time of the couriers, curators and other administration.
To simplify calculations, and to enable borrowers to calculate
an accurate budget, the administration costs are set in advance
at a standard level per destination (not per object lent), but
will increase in proportion to the complexity of the loan.
12. The British Museum will charge for loans
as follows:
— loans in the UK: to recover direct
costs;
— loans abroad: to recover direct and
indirect cost (though the indirect costs can be waived in reciprocal
deals with foreign institutions, and in other special cases);
— entire exhibition for touring the
United Kingdom: the direct costs of the tour but not the indirect
costs; and
— entire exhibitions for touring abroad
and other loans made in order to generate funds: fees will be
subject to separate negotiation aimed at maximising the return
to the Museum and as a minimum covering the direct and indirect
costs.
13. Unless a specific agreement has been
made for an individual loan, incoming receipts from loans should
be used (a) to cover direct costs, (b) to cover the indirect costs
incurred by Departments.
14. Loans that draw on more than one Department's
collections will be treated as a single loan, and one Department
will take responsibility for its administration.
15. In requesting incoming loans the British
Museum will observe the same principles as it applies to outgoing
loans. In particular it will not seek to borrow objects for exhibitions
that have no scholarly content or that it does not have the professional
skills to handle (such as large paintings etc), or where it lacks
the necessary infrastructure, or where the objects are of dubious
provenance or have contested ownership.
RESPONSIBILITIES
16. The Keeper in whose curatorial charge
the object(s) rests is responsible for:
— ensuring that the principles and
guidelines are implemented for any loans he/she may authorise
or recommend to the Director/Trustees if outside his/her authority;
— taking into account the views of
any curator within that Department who has curatorial care of
the object when making the decision;
— ensuring the views of the Department
of Conservation are sought and taken into account;
— ensuring the return of the object
and the reporting of any damage that may have occurred; and
— ensuring that the costs and recoveries
remain within the budget.
17. The secretariat will be responsible
for drawing up any contracts for loans, and for negotiating and
settling any claims for loss or damage. Accounts will be responsible
for recovery of charges after notification from Departments.
18. If any loan is recommended that goes
beyond these principles or guidelines, it must be referred to
the Trustees for a specific decision before any commitment can
be given.
ASSURANCE
19. The British Museum courier escorting
the loan in either direction will on return complete a short report
for the file giving assurance that the principles and guidelines
have been observed. A report will also be made for the file stating
that the objects have returned safely. If any serious problem
arises with a loan, the fact should be reported to the Director,
and then, if the Director thinks fit, the Trustees. The Director
is responsible for seeking assurance that the objectives of the
loans policy are being met, by seeking on occasion information
about what loans are being turned down and by analysing a sample
of loan files.
| 
