Safe Handling for People and Objects in Collections-Based Research

​Why do we wear gloves when working with objects and why are some gloves better than others? When should we wear a mask or labcoat? This 3 hour session will meet at the Centre for Material Culture, MAA's off-site storage facility near Brooklands Ave to discuss hazardous materials found in collections and what you can do to protect yourself while doing collections-based research.

​Including a short tour of the storage, we will discuss hazards and risks due to historic museum practice - such as pesticide use - as well as hazards related to specific materials or collections - such as heavy metals or biological poisons - as well as some of the more unexpected but common dangers like dry mould and dust. Finally, this session will introduce practices and guidelines for keeping yourself as safe as possible in any collection through the use of PPE, handling strategies, and useful questions to ask in advance of visiting a collection or working with objects.

​This session will be led by Dr Ayesha Fuentes, Research Associate in Conservation at Cambridge University Library and Research Affiliate at the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, and where she recently finished a three-year postdoc on safe access to global heritage collections.