Safety and security of museums in France
The Academy Dictionary defines the term "Safety" as "the prevention of natural hazards, technical accidents in a given area, as opposed to Safety, which focuses on the fight against acts of evil, crimes and crimes".
Museums represent a target exposed to the risks of intrusion, degradation and theft, due to the diversity of the collections they house and the ongoing illicit trafficking, despite the measures taken to increase the penalties imposed on traffickers of stolen art.
The safety of museums is based on a careful and combined implementation of technical and human resources adapted to the context of each institution.
The introduction of technical equipment, even the most sophisticated, the presence of professionals in charge of the reception of the public and the security of goods and collections whose staff must be determined according to the size of the institutions, the importance of the collections presented, exposure modes as well as registered attendance.
The development of museum security is also based on an indispensable knowledge of the works to be protected and on actions to raise awareness and train staff in the prevention of theft and malicious acts.
Museum Safety and Security Resources
The Mission Security Safety and Audit (MISSA) of the Delegation for Inspection, Research and Innovation, initiated in 2021-2022, in collaboration with the various departments of the Directorate-General for Heritage and Architecture and the Regional Directorate for Cultural Affairs of the Normandy region, Work to develop and update factsheets on fire safety and the safety of cultural establishments and places.
These pragmatic documents are intended to support heads of institutions, as well as those responsible for security and safety, in the day-to-day management of risks.
Divided into three main areas, they can be downloaded from the links below.
NB: the form "Theft, loss, destruction of cultural property of museums in France" will soon be updated and posted in the domain Safety sheets and guides - theft - maliciousness.
