Code of Conduct for Researchers 

Museum of Romani Culture, a state contributory organization

 

1 June 2023

 

This supplants the Code of Conduct for Researchers dated 1 July 2020.

 

Basic provisions:

1) The Code of Conduct for Researchers of the Museum of Romani Culture (hereinafter the “Researchers’ Code”) is issued in accordance with Article 8 para. 8.3 letter g) of the Code of Organization of the Museum of Romani Culture as a basic document of its organization and establishes in detail the following:

  1. a) research subjects (information for researchers as to what can be studied at the museum and where),
  2. b) the approach of the researcher to collected materials, documents, and uncategorized sets of items stored at the museum,
  3. c) how to process researchers’ requests,
  4. d) the provision of copies or replicas of documents and materials held by the museum.

2) The provisions of the Researchers’ Code are applied in accordance with the following:

 

  1. a) Act No. 122/2000 Coll., on the conservation of collections of a museal nature and changes to several other laws,
  2. b) The Czech Culture Ministry’s Methodological Instruction of 4 January 2001 on arranging for the administration, inventory and preservation of collections of a museal nature in galleries and museums established by the Czech Republic or its territorial units (regions, municipalities), item no.: 53/2001,
  3. c) Act No. 121/2000, Coll., on copyright, rights related to copyright, and changes to several other laws, as updated,
  4. d) Act No. 101/2000, Coll., on the protection of personal information and changes to several other laws, as updated.

Article 2

The Research Subject

1) The research subject can be collected items, data from the inventory of the museum (categorization cards, catalogues, inventory books [in print form], research reports) and items from the unregistered sets in the collections (related to the sub-collections, such as instruction materials and teaching aides). All documents and materials listed by the museum may only be accessed in person.

  1. a) The collections of the museum are formed by five sub-collections:
  • Romani-related subject matter (MRK),
  • Audio documentation (A),
  • Photographic documentation (F),
  • Video documentation (V),
  • Archaeology (G).

The collection as a whole is sub-categorized into 14 sub-collections:

  • Audio Documentation (A),
  • Photographic documentation (F),
  • Video documentation (V),
  • Textiles (T),
  • Jewellery and Valuables (Z),
  • Traditional crafts, jobs and professions (R)
  • Documentation of Romani interior decoration (I),
  • Documentation of the development of Romani dwellings (E),
  • Fine Arts (U),
  • Invitations and Posters (L),
  • Echoes of Romani culture in the culture of majority societies (O),
  • Written Materials (P),
  • Self-documentation (S),
  • Archaeology (G).
  1. b) the uncatalogued collections of the museum comprise study aides and documentation collections categorized according to each sub-collection. They include tangible objects, digital video recordings, and digitalized forms of analogue audio and film/video recordings.

2) In the interest of the necessary protection of the collected items, researchers are not allowed to study any collections that have yet to be processed (only material that has been properly processed in the inventory system is provided to researchers for study) and also not allowed to study any collected items, the physical state of which could be harmed through researcher use (see Act No. 122/2000, Coll., Section 9 para. 4).

3) If the physical state of the items does not facilitate access, and if copies or replicas have been made of those items, the museum will provide access to the copies or replicas of such items for research purposes.

4) Researchers will be provided the items for study in an amount that can be managed during the time allocated for their study. If both the character of the collections and the state of their processing allows, it will be possible for more than one collected item or uncatalogued item to be made available during a single researcher’s visit. Providing such access to a larger number of collection items will be proposed by the curator and approved by the manager of the Department of Collections.

5) Services provided on the basis of an inaccurate, non-specific, or too widely formulated commission, as well as commissions presuming that museum staff will provide their own expertise and insight, are considered research services and will be charged for according to the applicable Pricelist for Services.

6) The museum does not provide collections or documentation from other museums to researchers for study.

 

Article 3

Locations designated for conducting research

1) The study of collected items and those from the uncatalogued collection is allowed only in designated spaces on the grounds of the museum. Researchers are not allowed to enter the spaces where the collected items are stored. The only time a researcher may be allowed to access the depositories is if the materials are untransferable or difficult to transfer; they may be studied in the presence of a museum staffer with the consent of the director. For these exceptional cases, the Depository Rules apply to the entry of persons not affiliated with the museum into the depository, including the condition that such persons be accompanied by the curator of the depository and that the entry of a person not affiliated with the museum be recorded in the Depository Book.

  1. a) Researchers who are accessing the sub-collections of Crafts, Documentation of Romani dwellings, Documentation of Romani interior design, Textiles, Jewellery, Echoes of Romani culture in majority-society cultures, Posters, Written Materials, Self-documentation and the uncatalogued collections of archival documents shall be allowed to make use of the Reading Room on the second floor or the conference room on the third floor of the MRK building;
  2. b) Researchers accessing the sub-collections of Audio documentation, Photographic documentation and Video documentation are allowed to use the addition in the attic (common space) of the MRK building;
  3. c) In addition to these locations, researchers may use the curator’s workspace under exceptional circumstances (the necessity of using technical equipment);
  4. d) The researcher, before entering the locations designated for research, will remove and leave behind any outerwear, hand luggage or similar items in the designated place.

2) The following is not permitted in the space designated for research:

 

  1. a) Using one’s own reproductive technology (camera, scanner, smartphone) unless otherwise agreed (see Article 6, point 6);
  2. b) Consuming any kind of beverages or food, smoking;
  3. c) Endangering the materials provided in any way;
  4. d) If the material requires, the curator will instruct those manipulating the collected items or materials from the uncatalogued collection to wear gloves.

3) The museum staff are not obligated to aid the researcher with reading text, translating it into other languages, interpreting the realia related to the collected items, materials from the uncatalogued collection, the documentation of the museum, etc.

4) Research services are provided to those requesting them in the above-described spaces Monday through Friday from 9:00 do 15:00. Under exceptional circumstances it is possible to provide other times for the research by appointment.

5) In association with the studied subject matter, the researcher may also use books, magazines and newspapers from the Library at the museum while upholding the Library’s Code for Lending, during its opening hours to the public.

6) Distance research

Information about the collected items or items from the uncatalogued collection can be provided to researchers as extracts from the collection inventory. Collection items can be provided to researchers for study by e-mail in the form of digital photographs and scans of preview quality with the museum’s protective watermark. A list of the provided services will be kept by the collection curator along with the subjects of such inquiries in a separate Excel table stored in the Research file.

 

Article 4

The process for handling researchers’ requests

1) The researcher is required to pre-arrange the exact date, time and specific requirements of the research visit. A written request to study materials, whether from the collections, the uncatalogued collection, or the documentation stored at the museum (Appendix No. 1) has to be delivered to the designated museum staffer in writing (including e-mail) at least 10 working days prior to the presumed date/time of the study.

2) A request to study materials can be handled as follows:

  1. a) Should the museum consent to the researcher’s visit, a designated employee of the museum entrusted with negotiating and preparing the items in collaboration with the collection curator will communicate with the researcher and agree on the concrete materials and their specifications. The requested documentation or item does not have to be made available to the researcher if the museum has reserved it for processing and use in its own research program and profile tasks. The definition of the scope of the sources provided, or the decision to not provide a researcher with sources for study, will be performed by the manager of the Department of Collections on the basis of recommendations from the staff member responsible for research services and the relevant curator.
  2. b) If consent to research is not given, the entrusted employee of the museum will inform the researcher of this in writing and can refer the researcher to information published and visual records of the sources requested for research purposes.

3) Prior to handing over collected items, materials from the uncatalogued collection or documentation for study, the researcher is required to complete the following:

 

  1. a) A Request to Study the Collections of the Museum (Appendix No. 2);
  2. b) Consent to the Processing of Personal Information (Appendix No. 3);
  3. c) The entrusted employee of the museum will register the research in the Researchers’ Book (Appendix No. 4), which the researcher confirms by signing.

4) Should the same sources need to be repeatedly used over the course of one month, it is not necessary to write a new Request to Study in the Collections of the Museum or Consent to the Processing of Personal Information for each visit during that month.

5) If there are doubts about the safety of the materials provided, the researcher will study them under the curator’s supervision during the entirety of the visit.

6) When studying on the museum premises, the researcher will follow the instructions of museum staff members precisely – i.e., the employee who has been entrusted with research services and the curator of the relevant collection. Staffers are not tasked with providing any aid to the researcher during his or her study of items from the museum collections or from its uncatalogued sets.

 

Article 5

The Researcher

1) All citizens of the Czech Republic basically have the right to study the documentation stored at the museum, or items from the collection or from the uncatalogued sets on the basis of permission granted by the relevant professional staffer of the museum (i.e., through the Record of Study at the MRK Collections). Those interested in such study shall prove their identity by showing their state-issued identification card or its equivalent to the staff; if the researcher is a foreign national, a valid passport shall be shown.

2) The Researcher is obliged to:

  1. a) Respect the exact date and time for the study visit agreed to with the museum;
  2. b) Handle the museal items so as to prevent them from being damaged; refrain from interfering with the system for organizing the material; refrain from using written documents as blotters or coasters; refrain from directly copying or tracing from them, underlining text in them, crossing text out or inscribing anything on them;
  3. c) Should damage occur that was demonstrably caused by the researcher, this fact will be immediately reported to the curator, who will record the incident in writing and through photographic documentation (Appendix No. 5). The researcher is responsible for arranging for the item to be repaired at his or her own expense (the costs necessary to restoring the damaged materials) or to pay for the damage. Generally applicable legal regulations apply to redressing the damage caused;[1]
  4. d) Identify possible risks during the research work and proceed so as to prevent them;
  5. e) If it is impossible to prevent a risk inherent to the research work, the study should be interrupted, and the curator or his or her superior should be informed of the existence of the risk and propose measures to either eliminate or reduce the risk;
  6. f) After the study visit ends, the researcher shall return the documentation or items to staff in the original order and state in which they were provided;
  7. g) When departing the museum, the researcher shall wait until the entrusted staffer has checked the loaned materials and recorded them as returned;
  8. h) The researcher is allowed to use the information acquired through studying the museal items solely for purposes specified in the request to study them. In his or her scholarly or other works, the researcher is obliged to list the name of the museum, the collection studied at the museum, and the inventory numbers of the items studied. The same applies to the uncatalogued collection items.

3) The researcher is further obliged:

  1. a) To uphold the purposes and ways of using the source material which were stated in the researcher’s Request and in the Record of Study in the Museum Collections;
  2. b) New information discovered through the researcher’s study which could augment or clarify the entry record in the official inventory for the items in the collection shall be given to the museum for its use, on the understanding that the museum will acknowledge the researcher’s authorship of the findings.

Article 6

Reproducing documentation, replicating items and providing copies and replicas

1) The researcher can request reproductions (digital images, copies, scans, etc.) for the research study of the item, written material or documentation made available, with the exception of the current inventory list of items, written materials and documentation, and aides to such record-keeping.

2) Reproductions can be provided within a reasonable timeframe and a reasonable number only if it is technically possible and if such activity does not endanger the safety and state of upkeep of the item.

3) Eligibility for replication or reproduction shall be assessed by the curator and the production of copies or photographs can be refused with regard to the nature of the collections or sources at issue.

4) The museum shall provide reproductions to the researcher in exchange for payment per the updated Pricelist for Services. Providing reproductions does not affect the protection of any copyright or intellectual property rights related to the item.

5) A person who is not a researcher, or who is not requesting reproductions in relation to research studies at the museum (e.g., a person requesting reproductions on the basis of an informational request about collected items to be publicized through the press, the Internet, etc.) may request reproductions. Such persons are provided reproductions under the exact same conditions as researchers are, and all the regulations of this Researchers’ Code of Conduct apply to them as far as reproductions are concerned.

6) If the researcher is working with a specific type of material (e.g., written material), the researcher may, on the basis of a prior request (in the relevant section of the Request to Study) be allowed to use his or her own equipment to make a reproduction (e.g., with a camera). Reproductions produced in this way may solely serve the purposes of the specific researcher involved and shall never be shared or used for any other purposes. If a researcher would like to use such reproductions of materials for purposes that are different, it is necessary to proceed according to the stipulations of this article.

 

Article 7

Common and final provisions

1) Museal items can be studied by researchers solely under the conditions established in this Code of Conduct for Researchers.

2) The study of these museal objects must not endanger the interests of society, the state, or the interests of any living persons protected by law.

3) If the researcher violates any of the basic obligations set forth by this Code of Conduct for Researchers, he or she can be denied access to the museal objects in future, or any already-awarded consent to such access may be revoked.

4) Exceptions to the regulations of the Researchers’ Code of Conduct may be permitted only by the director of the museum.

5) The Code of Conduct for Researchers applies to all research staff of the Museum of Romani Culture and external researchers.

6) The manager of the Department of Collections and the museum’s internal auditor are responsible for monitoring whether the Code of Conduct for Researchers is being upheld.

7) The Code of Conduct for Researchers becomes valid when signed by the director of the Museum of Romani Culture and is in effect as of 1 June 2023.

8) The Code of Conduct for Researchers 2/2020 of 1 July 2020 is no longer in effect as of the date on which the next Code of Conduct for Researchers takes effect.

 

 

 

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