Museum Basics (Heritage: Care-Preservation-Management)

Since the second edition was published, wide-ranging changes have occurred within the world of museums and there has seen significant and continuing increases in the number of museums worldwide. More than ever there is a need for a source of up-to-date and high quality information to support studying and working in the sector. Museum Basics has been updated and expanded to integrate developments in new media, the continuing growth in regional and international cultural tourism, growing recognition of the role of heritage and culture in social and economic regeneration and the part that museums can play in this area, and the role of museums in cultural diplomacy at local as well as international level.

With these crucial updates, Museum Basics continues to provide a guide to all aspects of museum work and staff experience from museum organization, through collections management and conservation, to audience development and education. Drawing on a wide range of practical experience, the authors provide an excellent tool that enables museums throughout the world to conquer a common challenge; to keep up-to-date with new ideas and changing practices. Organized on a modular basis, with over 110 units, Museum Basics is a reference to support day-to-day museum management, a key text for students and in-service training programmes, and works brilliantly alongside case studies, project work and group discussion. It is now accompanied by a supporting website that provides even more useful information and case studies to support learning. This is a book that no museum professional, nor museum and heritage studies student will want to be without.

Museums throughout the world have common needs and face common challenges. Keeping up-to-date with new ideas and changing practice is challenging for small and medium-sized museums where time for reading and training is often restricted. This new edition of Museum Basics has therefore been produced for the many museums worldwide that operate with limited resources and few professional staff. The comprehensive training course provided within the book is also suitable for museum studies students who wish to gain a full understanding of work within a museum.

Drawing from a wide range of practical experience, the authors provide a basic guide to all aspects of museum work, from audience development and education, through collections management and conservation, to museum organisation and forward planning. Organised on a modular basis with over 110 Units, Museum Basics can be used as a reference work to assist day-to-day museum management as the key textbook in pre-service and in-service training programmes. It is designed to be supplemented by case studies, project work and group discussion.

This third edition has been fully updated and extended to take account of the many changes that have occurred in the world of museums in the last five years. It includes over 100 new diagrams supporting the text, a glossary, sources of information and support as well as a select bibliography. Museum Basics is also now supported by its own companion website providing a wide range of additional resources for the reader.