Fundamentals

Acquisition is receiving a new object or group of items that will become part of the collection. The object can be accepted into the collection formally or informally, as explained below. The paperwork accompanying an acquisition can range from a simple letter to a detailed legal contract.

All items entering a collection are ‘acquisitions’. The term ‘accession’ is generally taken to mean the official entry in the organization's register where the object's acceptance is formally documented. Acquisitions can be permanent (into the collection) or temporary (for loan or deposit). Thus all accessions are acquisitions – but not all acquisitions are accessioned. Accessions should always be clearly distinguished from temporary acquisitions.

The term ‘object entry’ is also used and often appears on entry and exit forms. An ‘entry’ could be for any purpose and the term can be used for short or long‑term loans as well as for acquisitions.

Many museums have formal acquisition records, including the accession numbers allocated, going back to the time of their foundation and these form a valuable source of knowledge about the objects and the circumstances of their entry into the collection.

Policy

Any collecting organization should have an acquisitions policy. This may also be called the collecting remit or the collections development plan. Whatever its name, it states the type of collection, its aims and purposes, and the types of objects the museum holds and may acquire in the future. It may also define the types of objects that will not be acquired, e.g. ‘Italian decorative art up to 1800, but not ceramics or glass’.

Purpose of the policy

The purpose of an acquisitions policy is to inform visitors, researchers and staff on the types of items that will be accepted into the collection. If an object is offered by gift, the museum can consider if it fits the collecting remit and, if not, can more easily refuse the gift. Likewise, a potential donor who has an object to give can identify the museum that is best placed to receive it. Lack of clarity on acquisitions policy has led in the past to many cases of unwanted objects being accepted that are not in line with a museum's purpose and that have been left unused.