ICOM International Council of Museums - Museo Estancia Jesuitica ...

Summary
Maroević: The Museum Object as historical Source and Document
Museum object is the object of any reality, collected and preserved in the museological
context to be the document of that reality. Museum is the institution in which we
actualize and communicate the past using museum objects. In aim to realize this
mission and to develop the understanding of a historical diversity, we constantly
research the historic identity of museum objects and develop the ways and methods of
interpreting their meanings.
There are three main dimensions of interpreting and communicating the history in
museums: the time, the space and the society. Concerning time, we try to understand
any time of the museum's object life, searching for the important points in which the
object participated in historical events. The space is a horizontal scope of any time
period. Every time has different spatial frameworks as: urban, rural, natural, political or
any other scope to be identified. The objects reflect the relations of their life inside or
outside the building. The society denotes relationships among people or groups of
people and the role of objects within any of the social environment. Its characteristics
have been changed concerning time and space, as well as the social development.
Museum objects participate in every of these dimensions or their interrelations. Using
their basic characteristics: material, form and meaning, we can understand the
significance of the object. The material has been changing through the time,
documenting it simultaneously. The form is a part of the space, outer or indoors, with
the function to participate as a tool, furniture, decoration etc. of various historic
environments. The meaning or the importance has the direct relationship with society in
any of its forms: from a family to the nation or the race.
So, the museum object is always a certain historical source and a document of life,
events or any human actions. Any object can be historic document, concerning its
historical and social identity. The classification on: artefacts, objects of art,
archaeological, natural or any other kind of objects is not relevant, if we want to
interpret the history in museums. The most important is their historical evidence, and
their ability to be the witnesses of a historical event, process or time concerned.
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