Museums are sanctuaries of history, art and culture, where you can take a step back in time to learn more about ancient civilisations, classical masterpieces or contemporary works. They are spaces to slow down, look closely and gain new perspectives on our shared human heritage and complex conflicts.
Whether you are a museum professional or a regular visitor, there’s a lot to love about museums: the amazing array of objects they hold, their stories and the sense of wonder they create when you walk through their hallowed doors. Museums are a place where you can find answers to many of the questions that have puzzled us for centuries, including who we are and how we came to be.
While some museums focus on the artifacts themselves, others put a greater emphasis on what museums do to educate. Major museums have a mission statement that defines the purpose and scope of the institution.
Museums have a number of functions that contribute to their overall mission, including research, conservation, preservation and exhibition. They can also be educational and community centers. Some of these institutions have very few artifacts, but use memorable exhibitions to engage with the public and tell compelling, memorable stories. The Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles and National Constitution Center in Philadelphia are examples of this type of museum experience.
Many museums are private, which means that they are owned by individuals or organizations. They may have a small group of employees or volunteers who help with operations. They often have a Board of Directors who establishes the policy framework for the museum. They also set standards and best practices for the museum to follow, such as an institutional code of ethics.
There are many different ways that a museum can be structured, from a single building to multiple locations. Museums can be non-profit, which means that they do not make money from their activities, but instead use funds to maintain the museum and its collections. Museums can also be privately funded, which means that they are owned and operated by a for-profit company. The profit that a museum makes is returned to the owners and shareholders.
Noble identified five basic tasks that every museum must carry out: to collect, conserve, study, interpret and display. He compared these responsibilities to the fingers of the hand and said that if a museum omits one of these tasks, it has handicapped itself immeasurably. Museums must carry out all of these tasks in order to be a complete entity and serve society.