Preserving Cultural Heritage in the Digital Age - Sending Out an S.O.S. - Nicola Lercari
CollectionSpace at the Phoebe A. Hearst Museum of Anthropology: A Strategic Information Platform
Preserving Cultural Heritage in the Digital Age - Sending Out an S.O.S. - Nicola Lercari
Christopher R. Hoffman
University of California, Berkeley
Benjamin W. Porter [+]
University of California, Berkeley
Michael T. Black [+]
University of California, Berkeley
Description
This chapter traces the interesting history of digital collections management systems at museums generally and specifically at UC Berkeley's Phoebe A. Hearst Museum of Anthropology. It relates challenges encountered, including financial obstacles, issues that arise with the development and adoption of new technologies, and the need to satisfy different users and stakeholders. By providing an introduction to methods of curation/collection management in museums and discussing related issues that museums face on a day-to-day basis, as well as the historical background of contemporary information curation and digital platforms, this chapter offers a real-world case study of the volume’s theme of digital data curation and presentation. The authors pinpoint a major shortcoming in traditional collection management systems: the lack of “quick, accurate, and comprehensive information retrieval” and present their work on digital collection management through the platform CollectionSpace to address this problem. The chapter also presents a critical discussion of digital collection management systems' sustainability-- building and maintaining public-facing information and collections--at a university museum. It reflects on the lessons learned by staff and museum directors over the museum's centennial history.