Prepare, prepare, prepare!
Last week we were delighted to welcome Helena Jaeschke, Conservation Development Officer at South West Museum Development, to the museum as part of the Search & Learn Project.
Helena generously offered her time to provide object handling training for our volunteer team, and talked us through the ways in which we keep both our collections - and ourselves - safe. Volunteers had the opportunity to chose an object and practice completing a condition survey, identifying the possible risks to the object and ways in which it could be safely stored and handled.
Those taking part in the training were keen to play a greater role in collections care and enjoyed a behind the scenes tour of the store with our Curator David at the end of the afternoon. This week they will be putting what they have learned into practice, and helping to take down the displays in one of our gallery spaces which will be refurbished as part of the Search & Learn project.
I think hands-on training like this is a great way to help museum volunteers understand the importance of protecting historical objects. Learning to identify risks before handling or moving something is especially valuable. It reminds me of Crossy Road, a casual arcade game where players must watch for moving traffic and obstacles before choosing a safe path.