Loans of items from the collections of the Jewish Museum in Prague

Dear colleagues,

This section contains information on how to expedite and simplify the process of loaning collection items from the Jewish Museum in Prague (JMP):

1/ Official loan applications should be made in writing and sent to the JMP’s head office or to its documentation department - [email] Magda Veselská).

2/ Please take note of the JMP loan terms before completing the form Description of Exhibition Space and its Facilities and attaching it to your application.

3/ It should be anticipated that it will take at least 6 months, usually longer, to make all the preparations for a loan (including the selection and restoration of items from the collections, etc.) and to deal with all the necessary formalities.

4/ Your loan application will be decided by the JMP’s Exhibition Board after reviewing all the material you have sent. Please take into consideration that the JMP’s Exhibition Board meets only four times a year and that your application may be submitted only upon receipt of all the necessary information from you. Loan applications for the next calendar year must be received by September of the current year.

5/ Items from the JMP’s collections are loaned for a maximum period of between 1 month and three years, depending on the age, value and condition of the items in question. The selection of items and the duration of the loan is determined by the curator of the relevant collection.

6/ The loan of items from the JMP’s collections for exhibition purposes is free of charge. The JMP does not provide exhibition equipment or copies of items from its collections or other materials for the purpose of any specific exhibition. Requests for financial support in dealing with these problems may be referred to the Jewish Museum in Prague’s Foundation.

Thank you for your understanding. We look forward to collaborating with you.

Documentation Department of the Jewish Museum in Prague

CONDITIONS FOR LOANED ITEMS FROM THE HOLDINGS OF THE JEWISH MUSEUM IN PRAGUE FOR PURPOSES OF EXHIBITION

Request for the lending of items

1. The applicant of the loan (hereafter referred to as the “borrower”) is obligated to deliver an official loan request to the Jewish Museum in Prague (hereafter referred to as the “lender”) adequately in advance of the exhibition’s opening, during which the time required for preparing the loan is designated by the lender, depending on the nature and scope of the loan.

2. The selection of items for loan is subject to agreement between the lender and borrower, whereby the lender retains the exclusive right to amend the selection of items with respect to their condition, transportation and exhibition conditions, and so forth.

3. Regarding loans for abroad, any changes suggested by the borrower in the selection - if need be, additional items - of the items will be given consideration only up until one month prior to the set deadline for the handing over of the loan by the lender to transport to the borrower. This restriction is due to the time required for arranging the formalities associated with the transit abroad of the loaned items.

4. In the case that a catalogue (or any other special publications, posters, invitations, etc.) is to be published in conjunction with the exhibition, it is mandatory that the borrower informs the lender of any requests no later than 90 days prior to the receiving of the requested photographic and text materials, unless stated otherwise by the lender. If this concerns a more extensive publication, agreement on the preparation have photographic and text materials must be subject to further negotiations between the borrower and the lender.

5. The borrower is obligated to fill out a questionnaire regarding the exhibition space and its equipment. On the basis of the information provided by the borrower in this questionnaire the lender will evaluate the suitability and conditions of the loan.

6. The borrower is obligated to provide the lender in advance the following data:

a) the purpose of the loan;

b) the complete official name of the borrower, i.e., the name under which the borrower is registered (in the original wording);

c) the exact and complete address of the borrower (the official registered address);

d) the name of the persons that will represent the borrower when receiving and handing over the loan (name, passport no./business identity no.), (the statutory representative / courier granted full authorisation by the borrower);

e) the providing of the exact address of the location where the items will be exhibited;

f) the loan period from the borrower’s reception of the loan from the lender to the loan’s return by the borrower to the lender.

II.

Concluding a loan agreement

1. The borrowing of items by the borrower can only take place on the basis of a valid “Loan Agreement,” which in principle is drafted by the lender. Regarding loans for abroad, we draw the applicant’s attention to the necessity of delivering the signed “Loan Agreement” no later than 30 days prior to the agreed to beginning of the loan period.

III.

The loan period

1. The lender reserves the sole right to fix the loan period, and this in respect to the conditions of the items and the data provided by the borrower.

2. The loan period is stated in the relevant paragraph of the “Loan Agreement.”

3. It is possible to extend the loan period stated in the agreement only on the basis of a written agreement between the borrower and lender, and this in the form of an amendment to the relevant “Loan Agreement”.

IV.

Insuring the loan items

1. The borrower is obligated to insure the items on loan “from nail to nail” at his own expense: that is, in transporting the items from the lender to the borrower; the time the items are at the borrower’s; in transporting the items from the borrower back to the lender. This pertains to all hazards, including natural catastrophes and climatic influences. Exclusively the lender determines the insurance value of each individual item. The lender specifies the insurance company and the duration of the insurance. If need be the borrower alone may specify the insurance company, but only after prior agreement with the lender.

2. The insurance policy as written evidence that insurance has been taken out must be sent by the borrower so that the lender receives it no later than 10 days before the agreed to beginning of the loan period, if this concerns domestic loans.

3. Concerning loans designated for abroad, we point out to the applicant the necessity of returning the signed documents on insurance of the loaned items, as well as the signed “Loan Agreement,” no later than 30 days before the agreed to beginning of the loan period.

4. The lender reserves the right to revise the insurance values in conjunction with changes in the international market for art objects. The borrower will be informed in writing of any revisions to the insurance values, which for him are binding.

5. If the borrower and lender should agree on an extension of the loan period (vide sect. III., pt. 3) and if this extension of the loan period should exceed the initially set insurance period, the borrower is obligated to arrange for a corresponding extension of the insurance period.

Packing, transport, courier service

1. The lender designates the method of packing and transport.

2. The items on loan must be accompanied during transit to the borrower and back to the lender by a courier, an employee of the lender, who is present when unpacking the items, inspecting their condition and installation, and is present before return transit at the items’ de-installation, inspecting their condition and packing again.

3. The length of the courier’s stay is designated by the lender taking into consideration the number and nature of the loaned items and the location to where the items are loaned.

4. If the loan is of a smaller extent and/or of lesser significance the lender may waive the right to have a courier present. The transfer of items in such cases will be conducted on the following basis:

a) the borrower assigns its own courier to accompany the loaned items during transport from the lender and back.

b) in the event that the borrower does not arrange for a courier, the transportation of the items shall take place without escort, however, the borrower shall bear all risks (the transit firm does not guarantee the contents of the shipment).

VI.

Customs clearance

1. Customs clearance must take place exclusively on the premises of the lender and the borrower, never at the customs office.

2. We remind foreign parties that customs declarations, and thus the permission to export, have a limited time of validity. The lender must be consulted in the eventuality that there will be a delay in the term for accepting the loaned items, and this no later than one month prior to the originally agreed to term for accepting the loaned items by the borrower at the time of transport.

VII.

The handling of the loaned items

1. The borrower is obligated to preserve the loaned items for the entire time of the loan giving them the maximum care and taking all precautions to prevent any sort of damage or destruction to or loss of the items.

2. All spaces where the items will be located must be duly safeguarded (see point 3, sect. I of the questionnaire concerning the exhibition space). The exhibition space must be cleaned and readied before the items are unpacked so that they may be installed at once in their designated locations. In exceptional cases, when there are good reasons why this condition cannot be met, the borrower must have a secure and suitable depository for the temporary storage of the items.

3. All spaces must be furnished with stable climatic conditions: between 18 and 20^o C and 50-60% relative humidity, and a maximum 50% relative humidity for textile and metal items. The level of lighting in the exhibition space is not to exceed 150 luxes, whereby those items of paper or other sensitive organic materials are not to be displayed in natural sunlight. The level of artificial lighting on these items is generally set at a range of 50-100 luxes, which depends, however, on the nature and sensitivity of the particular item.

4. All loaned items (unless agreed to otherwise) must be located in the showcases; in addition, items of very small dimensions and items of fragile or sensitive materials must be situated in lockable showcases on non-vibrating bases. If any of the items requires it, due to its particular characteristics, there must be special showcases provided with their own separate climate control system and gauge with a device for recording the measured levels.

5. If it will be necessary to adhere to a specific regime in handling a particular item, the lender will designate it.

6. The lender reserves the right to inspect the stipulated conditions.

7. In handling the items, the borrower is obligated to respect the conditions that have been stipulated on the basis of an item’s condition report, which is prepared by the lender. Upon the exhibition’s closing the borrower is obligated to inspect the items and update the condition reports, recording in the reports any alterations to the item. If the borrower should at any time during the time of the loan note any alterations in the condition of the loaned items — both during the items’ transport and while being exhibited, or, if need be, while being stored in a depository — he will without delay send the lender a detailed and written report on this, with photographic documentation if possible. If a courier is to accompany the transport of the loaned items, the condition report is to be filled out in his/her presence. Under no circumstances is the borrower authorised to remove the items from their adjustment or undertake any other operation on them without the prior written consent of the lender.

8. No modifications or restoration work on the items are permitted without the written consent of the lender.

9. In the case that there is a change in the condition of an item, or the item is damaged, destroyed, or lost, the borrower is obligated to inform the lender at once in writing. If damage to the item or changes in its condition should occur, the lender will stipulate, also in writing, what further action is to be taken, which is binding for the borrower.

10. The calculation of the damage depends on its nature and the expenses incurred by restoration. In the case an item is destroyed or lost, the stipulated insurance value applies.

VIII.

Abiding by the stipulated purpose of the loan and respecting copyrights

1. The borrower may use the loaned items solely for the purpose stated in the Loan Agreement. We point out that all loaned items from the holdings of the Jewish Museum in Prague are subject to copyright, the owner of which is the Jewish Museum in Prague or the living author or his/her heirs. All reproductions produced and made public for whatever purpose — e.g., publication in book form or various incidental printed materials; publication in CD form; publication in newspapers and magazines; publication on the INTERNET or any other networks, film or videotape; use in theatrical, musical, and other performances — are subject to copyright laws, and the borrower is obligated to conclude with the lender, or with the owner of the copyright, a special agreement on the right to reproduction.

2. Photographs and transparencies (digital data as the case may be) for the exhibition’s catalogue and other publications for the exhibition will be provided the borrower by the lender against reimbursement, if not otherwise stipulated in a written agreement between the lender and the borrower.

3. With the exception of photographing the exhibition as a whole, the borrower is not authorised to photograph the loaned items or allow any other person to photograph them.

4. The text of the exhibition’s catalogue, as well as descriptions and texts of additional occasional publications, are of necessity subject to the lender’s approval, and the borrower is not authorised to make them public without the prior written consent of the lender.

5. The borrower is obligated to specify in the catalogue and all additional publications connected with the exhibition, on the exhibition signboards and all additional forms of pertinent information, as well as in any form of published reproductions of the loaned items, which is permitted on the basis of the necessary prior agreement with the lender in writing, that the objects come from the collection of the lender: i.e., the Jewish Museum in Prague.

6. If not otherwise stipulated by the lender, the borrower will provide the lender with two complimentary copies of all publications published for the exhibition. The lender reserves the right to request a larger number of complimentary copies with respect to the number and character of the objects on loan.

IX.

Payment of costs

1. All essential costs associated with the loan of items from the lender’s collections shall be paid by the borrower, unless specified otherwise in another written agreement between the borrower and the lender. These costs are as follows:

a) a one-off administrative fee for processing the loan as based on the lender’s valid pricelist. This fee includes the cost of processing the loan agreement, securing an export permit for loans abroad, carrying out a basic search in the registration records and depository, selecting the exhibits, determining the condition and cost of restoring the exhibits, providing a description and detailed specification of the exhibits (beyond the scope of first-level registration) and preparing a condition report. The amount of this fee shall depend on the number of items loaned;

b) other costs associated with the preparation of an exhibition exceeding the scope of sub-section (a) – i.e., preparation of exhibition concept, production of photographic materials, models, texts, etc., as well as essential restoration and conservation work. All costs shall be based on the lender’s valid pricelist;

c) all costs associated with exhibition shipping arrangements (see Section V, 1-3);

d) all costs associated with the exhibiting or temporary storage of loaned items while meeting all the conditions set out by the lender (see Section VII, 1-9);

e) insurance of loaned items (see Section IV);

f) courier services (travel, accommodation and travelling expenses of the courier that are connected with the installation and de-installation of the loaned items and all other courier trips during the exhibition which shall be agreed upon by the lender and the borrower; see Section V, 2-3);

g) costs associated with the carrying out of checks to see that the conditions for the handling of loaned items have been met (see Section VII, 6);

h) all costs associated with the payment of copyright fees (see Section VIII).