Iowa Administrative Code
Agency 223 - Historical Division
Chapter 13 - Collections Policies
Rule 223-13.8 - Lending

a. The society encourages maximum public access to its collections by making loans which are consistent with the long-term conservation and preservation of the collections and with the needs of the society for exhibit and research purposes.

b. Loans from the collections shall be made for educational and scholarly purposes consistent with the mission of the society.

c. Collections shall not be loaned to individuals except for natural history specimens lacking provenance which may be loaned to individuals for educational purposes with the approval of the curator of natural history and the bureau chief of the museum. All applications for use of natural history specimens may be directed to the Curator of Natural History, State Historical Society of Iowa, Capitol Complex, Des Moines, Iowa 50319, (515)281-5627.

d. All loans shall be for a specified period of time and shall be documented and monitored by the appropriate staff person approving the loan.

a. Interlibrary loans shall provide access to the collections through cooperating libraries.

b. Requests for interlibrary loan shall be submitted on the standard American Library Association Interlibrary Loan Form and in accordance with the American Library Association's Interlibrary Loan Code. The requests shall be honored unless the loan is inappropriate due to legal or curatorial considerations or the materials can be readily obtained elsewhere. Requests for interlibrary loan shall be directed to the Reference Librarian, State Historical Society of Iowa, Centennial Building, 402 Iowa Avenue, Iowa City, Iowa 52240, (319)335-3916 or Reference Librarian, Library and Archives, State Historical Society of Iowa, Capitol Complex, Des Moines, Iowa 50319, (515)281-6200.

c. Original manuscripts, maps, photographs, state archives records and rare books shall not be loaned for research purposes.

d. The society shall make every effort consistent with professional standards and ethics and within their financial resources to provide a microform or other copy of rare, unique, and heavily used library and archives materials for loan purposes.

e. The loan of artifacts from the museum collections shall be approved and managed by the museum. All applications shall be in writing and include a current facilities report from the borrowing institution. Applications for loan and questions may be directed to the Chief Curator, State Historical Society of Iowa, Capitol Complex, Des Moines, Iowa 50319, (515)281-5111.

f. Only those artifacts in stable, presentable condition shall be considered for loan unless conservation treatment for the object is a condition of the loan agreement.

g. All artifact loans shall be approved by the appropriate curator, chief curator, conservator, and the bureau chief

h. The loan of artifacts to the society shall be accepted and managed by the museum. All questions related to loans may be directed to the Chief Curator, State Historical Society of Iowa, Capitol Complex, Des Moines, Iowa 50319, (515)281-5111.

i. Loans shall be accepted only to meet the society's objectives for exhibition or research. The society shall not provide free storage, conservation treatment, or validate private collections.

j. All loans to the society shall receive the highest standard of professional care.

k. Unclaimed loans left in the care of the society shall be handled in accordance with Iowa Code chapter 305B.