Description

Collections are the backbones of museums—invaluable resources for building and sharing human knowledge of the past, present, and future. Over the past five years, a dedicated team has been steadily working on the final challenge of the "new" MIT Museum: relocating more than a million-and-a-half objects to a new off-site collections facility. With this exhibition, we celebrate the completion of this project that is a milestone in the history of the MIT Museum.

The "Move", as it is referred to by museum staff, has been a dauntingly complex project demanding some 50,000 hours of work. It was much more than an exercise of packing and unpacking. This has been a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to make our collections more accessible.

The new facility will allow the Museum to better care for a surprisingly encyclopedic collection that captures remarkable stories about science, technology, art, and society and provides countless new opportunities for learning.

Surrounded by mounds of packing materials and driven by demanding schedules, team members discovered—and rediscovered—unusual and important objects: objects that could be used for research and teaching, for entertainment and entrepreneurial activities, for documentation and inspiration. They also made many personal discoveries: things that were beautiful or humorous or confusing; things that reminded them of important life experiences or proved to be a significant professional challenge. It turns out that the process of physically moving has also been deeply moving for all involved.

Presented here are some of the team's favorites—just a hint of the Museum's riches, now much better cataloged, stored, and presented publicly online.