Vol. 475 No. 3
62 Mr. Callely asked the Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht the likely opening date for the new Collins Barracks Museum; the theme or form of heritage in this new museum; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4760/97]
The Deputy will be aware from my replies to previous questions that arrangements in relation to the opening of Phase II of the new National Museum facility at Collins Barracks are at an advanced stage. It is hoped to open Phase 1 to the public about the second half of this year. Planning work is under way on further phases of the development which will not come on stream for some years.
The new National Museum facility will provide, through the exhibition of material, including that from the Art and Industry and Folklife collections, much of it previously unseen, an outline of the history of Ireland from 1600 to the present day in a unique and imaginative setting appropriate to a National Museum at the end of the 20th century. It will also provide much needed conservation, storage and research facilities.
The theme of Phase 1 at Collins Barracks will be the excellence of craft and applied art as found in industrial and traditional products of postmedieval Ireland, hopefully reflecting the social and economic history of the period. The teaching of industrial design and the use of craft and design to mirror the growth of the spirit of emerging nations will also be featured.
63 Mr. Callely asked the Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht the progress with the proposed new computerised cataloguing system of items in the National Museum; the system and likely recordings; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4761/97]
In April 1995, a programme commenced on a pilot basis of cateloguing and documentation of artefacts to facilitate an orderly and efficient move of relevant collections of the National Museum to the new National Museum facility at Collins Barracks.
The aim of the programme is to create a computerised inventory of all the artefacts being transferred to Collins Barracks. This inventory will include in the case of each artefact a description of the artefact, detailed information as to its current location, as well as a photographic and paper record.
Since the commencement of the programme, approximately 20,000 artefacts have been documented in the manner outlined. Accommodation for 75 per cent of these artefacts has already been provided at the Collins Barracks facility, under Phase 1 of the development of the complex.
