Whether you’re a visitor or an employee, museums have solutions in case someone accidentally damages unique artifacts. They work hard to protect all their masterpieces, using different techniques like X-ray technology.
And sometimes there are even other paintings that you are enjoying under. We are ready to reveal how museums treat these victims.
If You End Up Breaking Something In A Museum, You Will Not Be The One Paying For It:
In the event that you accidentally damage a unique work of art, such as a painting, sculpture, or vase, the museum is ultimately responsible for the restoration.
They are large institutions and as such, they are very careful about what they store inside. Therefore, they have special insurance policies. These contracts are unique and cover everything you can imagine.
For this reason, the museum may ask you to fill out some documents with your name for insurance purposes. And even though they can kick it out of the museum, that’s extremely rare.
Subsequently, the insurance policy will cover all the expenses necessary for the restoration, whatever the cost and for as long as it is necessary.
If You Destroy Irreplaceable Artifacts, They Will Only Give You A Hard Talking To, And Here’s Why:
When visiting a museum, you must be respectful. Whether you are clumsy or not, you can break something important. But you don’t need to worry too much.
For the museum, all visitors are considered guests and are not financially responsible for restoration costs. In addition, the museums provided funds to help them cover restoration and conservation costs.
If You Damage Something And Are An Employee Of The Museum, This Is What Happens:
You may be lucky enough to spend your days working inside a museum, surrounded by incredible works of art, enjoying history as a day to day life. Like any other workplace, you can make mistakes, but they can be more expensive than usual.
In 2014, a janitor at an Italian museum threw a piece of modern art in the trash. Unfortunately, he mistook it for a pile of garbage.
It was an unconscious movement, so the museum understood the situation. Luckily for him, the museum had a special insurance policy in case an employee damaged a work of art. Hopefully, you’ve been careful from then on!
Museums Also Do The Best They Can To Avoid Accidents, And Here Are Some Examples:
For decades, museums have perfected their methods of protecting art. Museums like the Getty Center (in California) are resistant to fire damage thanks to their reinforced concrete walls. They also have an air system that prevents the entry of smoke and is sprayed as a last resort in an emergency.
The Whitney Museum of American Art in New York built a special flood wall at its new location after Hurricane Sandy in 2012 to block possible flooding from the Hudson River.
In addition, whether they are part of windows or in front of a painting, the glass has a special UV blocking coating. This is very important because UV rays can greatly damage paint colors.
Have you ever damaged something in public? How did you handle the situation?
