Deaccessioning in Germany
Almost all cultural heritage issues are not part of the national law, but of the Länder. This means there is no national legislation on deaccessioning and disposal.
Any specific legislation on this subject has not been found in the Länder legislation neither. There is a national guideline on deaccessioning, developed and published by the German Museums Association, in 2011. However, the act on deaccessioning and disposal seems to be still something alien to German museum professionals. The realization that it will become a necessity is growing, but practical implementation is not common.
Country details for Germany
| Official name: | Federal Republic of Germany |
| Number of residents: | 82,67 million |
| Number of museums: | 6,712 |
| Parameters: | Guidelines |
Deaccessioning possibilities in Germany:
LEGISLATION
Germany has no national (nor Länder) legislation on deaccessioning and disposal.
GUIDELINES
The German Museums Association (Deutscher Museumsbund) has developed a guideline on deaccessioning and disposal in 2011:
Nachhaltiges Sammeln. Ein Leitfaden zum Sammeln und Abgeben von Museumsgut (2011).
Next to this, the German Museums Association, together with ICOM Germany, has published the Positionspapier zur Problematik der Abgabe von Sammlungsgut (2004).
Dirk Heisig (German Museologist) has made an effort to start the discussion on deaccessioning and disposal by writing a book Entsammeln. Neue Wege in der Sammlungspolitik von Museen (2006), with different reflections on the subject and giving a possible format for guidelines.
OTHER TOOLS
Germany has no other tools on deaccessioning and disposal.
CLASSIFICATION SYSTEMS
Germany has no national classification system for museum objects.
NATIONAL REGISTER OBJECTS
Germany has no national register of museum objects.
ACCREDITATION SCHEME
Germany has no official museum accreditation scheme.
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