Exhibition lighting for natural history collections

We are in the process of having some much-needed renovations made to
our existing exhibit lighting. Current 300 watt incandescents are
(so the proposal goes) to be replaced with acrylic hooded metal
halides and with T8 fluorescents.

My question is: Does anyone have any documented info. on recommended
light and UV levels for 1) bone, 2) feather, 3) the light sensitive
minerals, and 4) fossils, including subfossils. I need numbers,
ranges or anything else as specific as possible or, if none are
know, that information as well.

Any help on this would be appreciated as well as any
comments/info./shared experiences on the proposed light sources in
our scenario as they work (or don't) in natural history museum
exhibit areas.

Linda L. Thomas
Curator
Pratt Museum of Natural History
Amherst College
Amherst, MA  01002
413-542-2326
Fax: 413-542-2713

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                  Conservation DistList Instance 12:73
                  Distributed: Friday, March 12, 1999
                       Message Id: cdl-12-73-011
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