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APPENDIX 2517 June, 1991. Mr. Owen Faherty, Committee of Public Accounts, Leinster House, Dublin 2. Dear Mr. Faherty, You will recall that you wrote to me some time ago seeking clarification as to: (i) the estimated time to complete stock-taking at the National Museum and (ii) the number of books held by the National Library. I have been in touch with the Directors of both the Museum and the Library in order to clarify matters for you. The Director of the National Museum has assured me that all items acquired by the Museum are indexed on acquisition and are subsequently catalogued. Safety and security procedures are reviewed from time to time and staff undertake spot checks on a regular basis on various individual parts of the Museum’s collections. That practice is consistent with the practice in other major cultural institutions worldwide. The Director of the National Museum has clarified that the practice of stocktaking is more appropriate to a commercial entity with a turnover of saleable commodities rather than to a cultural institution such as the National Museum. The Director of the National Library estimates that there are approximately 700,000 books and pamphlets in the National Library. In addition, the Library holds files of over 2,000 current periodicals (including newspaper titles) and approximately 38,000 non-current periodicals (including newspapers). There are 50,000 catalogued manuscripts in the Library and also uncatalogued manuscripts for which basic lists exists. The uncatalogued manuscripts consist mainly of records of landed estates and public access is not given to this material until cataloguing is completed. Yours sincerely, PÁDRAIG O hUIGÍNN, Secretary, Department of the Taoiseach. |
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