FIVE IRISH museums have been recognised by the Heritage Council and awarded interim accreditation under the Museum Standards Programme for Ireland.
The museums selected are the GAA Museum; South Tipperary County Museum; Limerick City Gallery of Art; Cavan County Museum and the County Museum, Dundalk.
If they meet the required standards, they will receive full accreditation in two years. Seven museums already have full accreditation under the scheme.
They include the National Gallery of Ireland, Knock Museum and the National Print Museum.
Forty-seven museums are participating in the Museum Standards Programme.
Two of those – Donegal County Museum and Músaem Chorca Dhuibhne – have already received interim accreditation.
The Heritage Council’s chief executive, Michael Starrett, said the value of the museum sector to the economy could not be underestimated.
Last year, more than three million overseas visitors engaged in cultural or historical visits while in Ireland, he said. “Of these visitors, 1.7 million overseas visitors visited museums or art galleries across Ireland.”
When deciding on accreditation, the judges examined issues such as management standards, care of collections and visitor services.
Mr Starrett said the GAA Museum was selected because of a combination of “professionalism, determination, thoroughness and skill of its staff”. He described South Tipperary County Museum as “a vibrant institution playing an important role in the cultural life of South Tipperary”.
Mr Starrett noted that the Limerick City Gallery of Art had achieved interim accreditation while facing “significant short-term challenges” including the loss of its director and the commencement of building work.
Cavan County Museum also made major improvements “despite working with reduced staffing contingency and limited resources”. The County Museum Dundalk was commended for the quality of its cataloguing and the organization of its stores.
The first Heritage Council conservation award was presented to conservator John Gillis for his work on the conservation of the Fadden More Psalter. The illuminated manuscript was found in a Tipperary bog four years ago.
