Managing Archeological Resources from the Museum Perspective

Federal agencies are responsible for archeological collections acquired from Federal lands and through Federally sponsored or permitted projects. With the promulgation of 36 CFR Part 79, Curation of FederallyOwned and Administered Archeological Collections, Federal agencies now have formal guidance about how to meet their statutory obligations for collections management. Archeological collections must be managed effectively if they are to continue to function as important resources for science, heritage education, and the humanities. Archeologists will need to make thoughtful and explicit decisions about the composition and growth of collections. The problem is not simply one of securing adequate storage space. Difficult decisions have to be made in committing scarce and sometimes costly resources to maintain accessibility to collections, as well as to safeguat·d them from theft, loss, or deterioration. One important management decision is the choice of an appropriate repository. Some Federal agencies have in-house facilities; others need to initiate contracts and agreements with repositories that house archeological collections. In this country, state and university museums have traditionally served as major repositories for Federal archeological research collections. The author, who is a curator of anthropology at one of these institutions, points out that archeologists, as resource managers, need to work in concert with repositories in planning for the long-term maintenance of research collections.联邦机构负责管理从联邦土地获取，或通过联邦资助、许可项目获得的考古藏品（archeological collections）。随着《联邦法规汇编》第36编第79部分——《联邦所有与管理的考古藏品的管理》（36 CFR Part 79, Curation of FederallyOwned and Administered Archeological Collections）的颁布，联邦机构如今获得了正式指南，用以履行其在藏品管理方面的法定义务。若要使考古藏品持续作为科学、遗产教育与人文学科的重要资源，就必须对其进行高效管理。考古学家需要就藏品的构成与扩充做出审慎且明确的决策。这一问题绝非仅仅是获取充足存储空间那么简单。在调配稀缺且有时成本高昂的资源以维持藏品的可访问性，同时保护藏品免遭盗窃、遗失或损坏时，往往需要做出艰难的决策。 一项重要的管理决策是选择合适的藏品托管机构（repository）。部分联邦机构设有内部托管设施，其余机构则需与收藏考古藏品的托管机构签订合同与协议。在美国，州立博物馆与大学博物馆历来是联邦考古研究藏品的主要托管机构。本文作者作为此类博物馆的一名人类学策展人，指出作为资源管理者的考古学家，需与托管机构协作，共同规划研究藏品的长期维护工作。