British Museum Archives

I must say that I was incredibly excited for this visit.  I absolutely adore the British Museum.  The first time I visited I spent almost six hours wandering around, and then went back the next day.  Being one of the most renowned museums in the world, I expected a great archive.  I was shocked and somewhat saddened by what the central archive actually was.  For being such a great and large museum, the state of the central archive was deeply worrying.
      We were led to the basement archive through a series of underground tunnels.  The actual archive space is tight, very tight.  Even with dividing our class in half, the number of people was overwhelming for the space.  The collection consists of the administrative records, donation and acquisition documents, architectural prints, as well as a variety of other materials.  The materials are un-cataloged.  Almost an entire collection of incredible useful and valuable resources virtual unavailable to the public without the aide of the archivist.  Due to the lack of cataloging there are no digitized materials available from the central archive.  The archive is not equipped with environmental controls or fire suppression systems.  Being housed in the basements, there is a large concern for both damp and flooding. 
      Our guide, and the newly appointed central archivist, Francesa Hiller was extremely informative and passionate about the archives.  It was a great pleasure to meet someone who's passion and enthusiasm for their work is clearly visible.  Hearing her talk about the challenges facing the archive in terms of space, funding, and publicity was truly inspiring.  She was able to show us several objects from the collection including original architectural sketches for the museum, older reader room registration cards, including Bram Stoker's, a bomb which was dropped on the museum during World War II and photographs illustrating the destruction of those bombings. 
     The materials housed within the archive are also essential to the Museum and should be given the treatment they deserved.  Not only would the archive be an invaluable resource to researchers, but it would raise awareness and visitation for the Museum as a whole.  The acquisitions records for materials, which are still used in disputes for ownership would be devastating to the Museum if lost or damaged.  If ever there was a case to be made for the importance of funding and awareness for archives, surely the Central Archive would be a poster child.  I can only hope that the other nine archives for the museum's collection are in better shape.