How to accession museum objects, step by step

Accessioning in seven steps

Work through these in order for every acquisition, whether it is one postcard or a room of furniture.

1. Write an incoming receipt. On the day something arrives, record who left it, why, what it is, how many pieces and when they will hear back, and give the depositor a signed copy.
2. Decide. Take the offer to whoever your collections policy names, usually a collections committee or the board, and record the decision and its date.
3. Get title in writing. Have the owner sign a transfer of title, such as a deed of gift your board or attorney has approved, and file it with the accession papers.
4. Enter the register line. Give the accession the next number for the year and write its line in the accession register: number, date received, source, method and a short description.
5. Number each object. Number the objects in the accession from 1, with letters for pieces of one object, and check the numbers are not already in use.
6. Catalogue and photograph. Describe each object: name, description, maker, date, materials, dimensions, condition, location, provenance and any restrictions, with a photograph.
7. Mark and store. Mark the number on each object by a reversible method suited to its material, or tie on a tag, record where it is stored, and save the catalogue.

Custody is not ownership

The Collections Trust's object entry procedure separates the arrival of an object from its acquisition: when something is left with the museum, record why it was left and who owns it, and give the owner a receipt they sign. Ownership passes only when the owner transfers title in writing, and its acquisition procedure asks for written evidence of that transfer for every object.

Curatorbook keeps the receipt, the accession and the object records, but it has no deed of gift form. A deed transfers ownership and is a legal document; its wording should come from your board or an attorney who knows your state or country. File the signed deed with the accession papers and note in the accession where it is kept.

What the accession record holds

• The accession number and the date the things were received.
• The source: donor, vendor, estate or institution, with a way to reach them.
• The method: gift, purchase, bequest, found in collection or transfer.
• A short description for the register and the credit line for labels.
• Where the papers are: receipt, decision, deed or bill of sale.

Each object then gets its own catalogue record under the accession. Collections Trust cataloguing guidance asks for records tied to objects by their unique numbers, consistent names, dates and places, and regular backups; in Curatorbook the backup is the catalogue file.

Worked example: a butter churn left at the front desk

In the demo catalogue, Tom Lund left these on 2 September 2026 as an offered gift: Wooden butter churn with dasher (1), Butter mould, thistle pattern (2). The receipt was numbered TR2026.3 and asks for a decision by 1 December 2026.

If the committee accepts and the deed is signed, pressing Accession on the receipt makes accession 2026.2, the next free number in 2026, with the depositor as source and the receipt linked. The churn with its dasher becomes 2026.2.1. The two butter moulds are separate pieces of a set, so they are 2026.2.2 and 2026.2.3, not letters.

Common mistakes

• Accepting things at the door without a receipt, then not knowing months later who left them or why.
• Numbering objects before the decision to accept them; use the receipt number until then.
• Treating a thank you letter as a transfer of title.
• Cataloguing without a photograph, so the record cannot tell two similar objects apart.
• Leaving the records only in one browser or one old computer; save the catalogue file after every session.

Do it in the catalogue

Open the catalogue to number an accession and its objects, add photos and locations, and print the register, labels and receipts. Everything stays in this browser; nothing is uploaded and there is no account. Save the catalogue file after every session.

Sources

Last reviewed 28 September 2026 against:

• Object entry, the Spectrum standard, Collections Trust, read 28 September 2026. Used for: Recording why something was left and who owns it, giving the depositor a receipt and getting their signature to the terms, and keeping ownership separate from custody.
• Acquisition and accessioning, the Spectrum standard, Collections Trust, read 28 September 2026. Used for: A unique number for each object, the register as a permanent record that is hard to tamper with, written evidence that the owner transferred title, keeping acquisition papers, and backup copies of the records.
• Cataloguing, the Spectrum standard, Collections Trust, read 28 September 2026. Used for: Catalogue records linked to objects by their unique numbers, consistent names, dates and places, and regular backups.

This guide is our own summary, not a rule book. Rules are paraphrased, never quoted at length, and if this page disagrees with the current published rules, the rules win. Curatorbook is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to any museum, association, standards body or software vendor, including the Collections Trust (Spectrum), the American Alliance of Museums, the American Association for State and Local History, the National Park Service, PastPerfect, CatalogIt, MUSARCH, CollectiveAccess and Omeka.