• The museum registrar is responsible for tracking material on loan.museum at luxor - egypt image by Mirek Hejnicki from Fotolia.com
  
  Museums borrow material for exhibition, study, promised gifts, intended purchase, or to fill a gap in the museum's permanent collection. Material found in the collection with no record of where it came from is also treated as a loan until the source is identified. Massachusetts law regarding loans are similar to most other state museum loan laws. The laws did not address material found in collections until 2010, when Disposition of Museum Property bill was passed.
  
  

Loan Defined

• According to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, a museum loan is defined as "a deposit of property with a museum for a specified period of time, that is not accompanied by a transfer of title to the property or other evidence of donative intent; but does not include a consignment of property for sale."
  
  

Loan Agreement

• Incoming museum loans require a loan agreement--a contract between the borrowing institution and the lender. This contract outlines the conditions of the loan and the responsibilities of both parties. Massachusetts loan agreements are the same as most other states.
  
  A loan agreement should contain the following information: lender's name and address, description of material included in the loan, title of the exhibit or the purpose of the loan, length of the loan period, location of the exhibit with dates, name of borrowing institution and address, and any general care, photography, packing, transportation and insurance outlines.
  
  

Old Loans

• Old loans are expired loans or unclaimed material left in the museum. This issue can be complicated because the museum has no legal right to exhibit, conserve, dispose of, or add the material to the collection.
  
  In 2010, Massachusetts passed a bill that addresses the disposition of museum property. This is the first time the state has passed any legislation regarding loan material in a museum.
  
  The act states that a museum must make a concerted effort to contact the lender and should send a certified letter stating that the loan has expired and action needs to be taken.
  
  If the museum cannot reach the lender or does not know who the lender is, the museum should post a notice in the local newspaper for three successive weeks.
  
  If the lender does not respond within one year of the notice or letter, the museum can acquire title to the material.
  
  If the identity of the lender cannot be found, the museum can take possession of the material in the collection seven years after it was documented to be in the museum collection.