126 REPORT— 1887. 



Cambridge were prepared by such authorities as Sedgwick, McCoy, and 

 Salter. The Blackgate Museum, Newcastle-on-Tyne, issues a catalogue 

 of inscribed and sculptured stones, illustrated by nearly 200 admirable 

 woodcuts. The catalogue of the Duke of Newcastle's Museum at 

 Alnwick Castle is richly illustrated. The Saffron Walden Museum has 

 also a rather costly illustrated catalogue. The Edinburgh National 

 Museum of Antiquities has issued an illustrated catalogue at the price of 

 sixpence, of which nearly 20,000 copies have been sold. 



The Liverpool Museum has several illustrated catalogues of the Mayer 

 Collection of Art Treasures, and has issued a series of ' Museum Reports ' 

 upon some special collections of mollusca and lepidoptera, illustrated by 

 coloured plates. Besides the above, only about twenty museums appear 

 to possess permanent catalogues, not illustrated, about an equal number 

 publish handbooks and guides, which are sold at various prices from one 

 penny to sixpence, and a somewhat larger number issue Annual Reports, 

 in which the progress of the museum and the donations of the year are 

 registered. Some of the handbooks and guides are exceedingly well 

 done, giving a vast amount of information in a terse and popular style. 

 Those issued by the Liverpool Museum ; the Marlborough College ; the 

 York Philosophical Society ; the Albert Institute, Windsor ; the Free 

 Museum, Nottingham ; the SheflSeld Public Museum ; and the Agricultural 

 College, Cirencester, are particularly good. The Liverpool Museum has 

 published a ' Museum Memorandum Book,' prepared by the Rev. H. 

 H. Higgins, ' containing plans showing the main features in the Natural 

 History Department of the Liverpool Free Public Museum, with ruled 

 spaces for memoranda invited to be made on the spot, price one penny ; 

 pencils ready pointed, one halfj^enny ; millboard tablets for writing on, 

 one halfpenny.' This is a novel and very interesting experiment, and 

 shows that the authorities of this museum are devoting thought and 

 labour to the task of making their museum as widely educational as 

 possible. 



28. Duplicates. — The large number of duplicates which accumulate 

 in many museums and are stored away for years in drawers or boxes 

 might be of considerable value if they were distributed. Curators often 

 feel this, but the distribution is difficult to accomplish. Many of the 

 duplicates were gifts, and there is an unreasonable idea that gifts must 

 not be given away elsewhere ; many, being little cared for, lose their 

 labels and become valueless. Moreover, there is much difficulty in 

 ascertaining where particular duplicates are wanted and what can be got 

 in exchange. About fifty museums report that tbey have large collec- 

 tions of duplicates, and about twenty-five have a small number. At 

 Birmingham, Brighton, Nottingham, Salford, and Cardiff a large number 

 of duplicates are distributed to schools or other museums as fast as they 

 come in. The Dublin Science and Art Museum is organising its dupli- 

 cate department for the purpose of periodical distributions to other Irish 

 museums. 



A well- understood system of exchange is much wanted. Suggestions 

 have been made that museum inspectors should be appointed, charged, 

 among other duties, with that of arranging exchanges. Others have 

 suggested the formation of a society of curators, meeting periodically. 



29. Selp from Local Societies. — Many of the museums now belonging 

 to the public and supported by the rates were originated by local socie- 

 ties. In some of these cases the societies still render valuable assistance, 



