Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 7 Oct 1999

Vol. 508 No. 5

Written Answers. - National Museum.

Ivor Callely

Question:

110 Mr. Callely asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands the progress made on a total inventory of the National Museum collection, that is, documented, catalogued and photographed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [19299/99]

Minister for Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands (Miss de Valera)

I responded to a broadly similar question on the issue of the progress made on the creation of a comprehensive computerised inventory on 7 May 1998 – Question No. 25.

The Deputy will already be aware from my earlier reply that a programme was initiated in 1995 to prepare a computerised inventory of the National Museum's collections, focusing in the first instance on those objects in the art and industry collection which were then due to be transferred to the new National Museum facility at Collins Barracks. In addition, work has commenced on inventorying the collection of the Irish antiquities division and on inventorying the collection of the Irish folklife division in preparation for the transfer of that collection from storage in Daingean to the new Folklife Museum at Turlough Park House, Castlebar, County Mayo.

This new inventory of artefacts, which is a long-term process of property by documenting all of the artefacts in the museum's extensive collections, is ongoing at this time. I am pleased to say that to date over 50,000 items have been included in the inventory, an increase of 18,000 items since May 1998.