Limiting number of visitors

The Viking Ship Museum in Oslo is one of the most visited museums in
Norway receiving about 400,000 visitors per year.  The museum is not
climate controlled, however it has massive walls which manage to
buffer climate changes very well, except during the summer months:
the high-season.  From May to September we usually register over
300,000 visitors.  Most visitors come as a part of guided tour
groups (run by private guide companies).

We are very aware of the problems high visitor numbers are capable
of causing, especially to the ships which are displayed in the open.
We would like to know if anyone on the list has any experience in
the design of visitor control strategies for museums.  We are also
considering the installation of a climate control system, and would
also like to hear about the experiences with the effectiveness of
these systems for such large groups of visitors.

Susan Braovac
Archaeological Conservator
University Museum of Cultural Heritage
Oslo, Norway


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 15:29
                  Distributed: Monday, October 8, 2001
                       Message Id: cdl-15-29-006
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