Purpose
This policy sets out how the Meridian Athenaeum acquires, manages, documents, and makes available objects in its care. The collections are held in trust for public benefit and for the benefit of source communities, partner organisations, and future researchers.
Acquisition
The Athenaeum acquires objects by gift, bequest, purchase, recovery, field collection, partner transfer, and — in certain cases — voluntary custody by the object itself or its associated custodial entity. All acquisitions require review by the Conservation Committee and registration with the Registrar before formal accession.
Objects are not acquired where title is unclear, where acquisition would conflict with source-community consent, or where the object cannot be held safely under conditions the institution is able to maintain.
Deaccessioning
Objects are deaccessioned only in exceptional circumstances, following review by the Conservation Committee and notification to the Registrar. Deaccessioning is not used as a means of financial management.
Return to source communities, repatriation to originating jurisdictions, and transfer to partner institutions are managed under the Repatriation and Return Protocol (MA-POL-004).
The register
The public register is a selected subset of the full accession record. Not all holdings are listed publicly. Omissions are made under the Registrar's ordinary practice and may reflect preservation, source-community request, courier safety, or temporal stability considerations.
The register records accession number, object name, custody condition, material class, provenance note, and room assignment. Location data within the register may differ from actual storage location where disclosure would create risk.
Collections access
Access to objects is available by appointment through partner and member channels. Public access is limited to the register and approved display items. Supervised research access to objects may be arranged through the Archive.