Thank you for your interest in MOR's collections of material culture and natural history. Our collections total nearly 700,000 artifacts and specimens. These collections are used in a number of ways.

Natural history specimens, including geological, astronomical, and paleontological materials, are primarily used in scientific research. Through our loan and visiting researcher programs, these specimens are shared around the world, and we have access to specimens from other museums. This research is highlighted in our galleries and in exhibits developed for other museums.

Our photograph and film archives, with over 90,000 images, document the history of our region from the advent of photography to the present. These images are actively used in our exhibits, loaned to other museums, and are available for personal or professional research or for purchase by commercial users.

Historic and archaeological artifacts cover a broad range of disciplines. These artifacts represent the great variety of human activity in our region over the past 11,000 years and into the 21st century. This material is intended for long-term preservation and is used primarily for exhibit, educational purposes, and research. Our small fine art collection is supportive of the historical and archaeological collections.

Teaching and Living History collections are actively used by interpreters and visitors. Teaching collections support educational activities associated with our exhibits and other programs. Living History collections are those things used by interpreters at the Tinsley Historic House and farm. The Living History program interprets life in rural Montana between 1890 and 1910.

Museum of the Rockies takes the care and preservation of the objects within the collections with great responsibility. 

• Environmental Controls
  The CCH (Curatorial Center for the Humanities) is the newest building addition to MOR and was completed in 2017. This state-of-the-art building includes environmental controls that help maintain consistent temperatures and relative humidity best suited for the objects.
• IPM
  MOR runs a strict Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program that helps staff identify insects potentially harmful to the collections.
• Trained Staff
  The team consists of professional staff as well as trained interns and volunteers. We stay up to date on the most current procedures for object care.
• Archival Storage
  All cultural history objects are housed in long term storage consisting of archival materials that help promote preservation.
• Cultural Incorporation 
  MOR acknowledges that our staff do not have all the knowledge and tools to care for every object within the collection. To help alleviate this, staff incorporate the cultural learning and teachings from our tribal partners into our object care procedures and policies. See below to learn more about how MOR cares for sensitive and potentially sensitive items. 

The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) is a federal law that was passed in 1990 that helps protect and return Native American human remains, funerary objects, sacred objects, and objects of cultural patrimony. Click on this link to read more on NAGPRA.

Museum of the Rockies supports and complies with NAGPRA regulations. MOR has been working with our tribal partners and incorporating tribal protocols into our Collections Management Policies including how materials and handled, best methods for housing, and access restrictions. 

• Click here to request an image from MOR's collections for the following uses:
  • For-Profit Publication Use: Images may be used for for-profit publication use.
  • Non-Profit Research and Education Use: Images may be used for non-profit research, education, publication, and other non-profit uses.
  • Non-Profit Personal Use: Images may be used for non-profit personal use.
  • Other Uses: Requests for any for-profit uses other than publication, contact MOR's Cultural History Registrar and Collections Manager.

If you are interested in visiting Museum of the Rockies to research any of our collections, please get in touch with Cultural History Registrar and Collections Manager via email or 406.994.2242. Research requests must be submitted with a minimum of four weeks' notice.

The museum and museum staff are prohibited from offering valuations, appraisals or authentications for artifacts or specimens. Appraisals and authentication should be carried out by a certified appraiser or reputable auction house. Museum of the Rockies neither endorses nor recommends any particular appraiser. The information below is for your information only.

Appraisers are trained specialists who work for a fee. They evaluate your artifact and provide you with a written statement of its value. The following organizations publish a directory of their members. Always seek an appraiser with an expertise in the type of object you own. Appraisers listed in these directories can be found by state and city. You may also find appraisers listed in local business directories.

• American Society of Appraisers
• Appraisers Association
• International Society of Appraisers

Donating your object to the museum involves several steps. We are currently seeking donations in the following categories: 

• Black Stories of the Northern Rockies
  • Hats, chaps, boots, spurs, Buffalo Soldier ephemera and uniforms, club records, performance ephemera, mining tools, firearms, photographs, letters. 
• Chinese Stories of the Northern Rockies
  • Clothing, business records and ephemera from restaurants and laundries, signage, pottery, household goods, photographs, letters.
• Contemporary Indigenous Art
  • Tattoo, sculpture, poetry, beadwork, contemporary clothing, digital or mixed media artwork.
•  Outdoor Recreation
  •  Skis, snowboards, climbing gear, ski resort infrastructure, horse tack, rodeo gear, tourism materials, recreational equipment.

To begin the process, please download this form and email it to the Registrar and Collections Manager at annya.jacobs@montana.edu. Please note, that you must attach photos of your potential donation to the email for the form to be submitted and considered.

The Registrar and Collections Manager and the Curator of Cultural History will review your proposal and contact you within three weeks of submitting the proposed donation form. They may decide to present the donation to our Collections Committee or decide that it is inappropriate for the collection. All donations to the permanent collection require committee approval; this committee meets every three months.

Upon committee acceptance, the Registrar and Collections Manager will send you a Deed of Gift, which is the document that transfers legal ownership of the object from you to MOR. Once we receive the signed Deed of Gift, your object becomes part of the collection, to be incorporated into our programs and activities accordingly.

Credit Line and Restrictions
You may specify a "credit line" that will become part of the exhibit label should your donation be exhibited. Please talk with us if you are interested in this, or if your gift is in memory of someone. If not otherwise specified, the credit line for your donation will read "Gift of [your name]." You may also request that your gift be anonymous; if so, you will not be identified to the public, but for your gift to be legal, we must have on file a signed gift document with your contact information.

The museum prefers that object gifts be unrestricted, meaning that once the object is legally ours, we control its use. Any limitations or restrictions to this policy must be discussed and agreed to by both parties prior to signing the gift document. You and your family may "visit" your donation during normal business hours; please contact us a few days ahead of time to schedule a visit so that we can have your donation ready for you. Please note that:

Restrictions may not be placed by donors or their heirs subsequent to signing a Gift Agreement or other legal gift document.

Restrictions cannot be placed on donations to the Teaching or Living History collections. We cannot guarantee that any object or group of objects will be exhibited or actively researched, cannot place any object on permanent exhibit, and cannot loan objects back to donors or their families.

What We Can & Can not Accept
Museum of the Rockies is pleased to consider any offered artifact or specimen. However, our storage space is limited, and there are legal and ethical considerations associated with each donation. These considerations vary somewhat depending on the type of artifact or specimen in question, but in general, we collect objects that relate to or are descriptive of the human and natural history of the region. Please contact the Registrar for more detail, but here are a few important points:

• Object donations must meet the established criteria for the collection to which it is to be donated. For example, donations to the Living History collections must be appropriate to the interpreted period. We will be happy to provide and explain these criteria to you.
• The object's legal owner must make object donations. For objects collected from the ground, the donor must be the landowner of the place of collection.
• For archaeological artifacts and natural history specimens (including dinosaur bones) to be accepted to our permanent collections, we must have the geographic coordinates and other discovery details. Specimens without this data are occasionally accepted to our teaching collection, but cannot be accepted into our permanent collections.
• Historical artifacts with documented histories, including who used it and where & when it was used, are preferred over those with an unknown background. In general, the more information you have about your object, the better!
• We prefer that objects be whole, clean, and in generally stable condition at the time of donation. However, exceptions can sometimes be made for a potentially fragile object, so please talk with us before undertaking a major cleaning project.
• The museum does not collect taxidermy.

The museum respects the protection and preservation of natural and cultural resources; to this end, we cannot accept:

• Human remains, funerary objects, or culturally sacred objects
• objects that have illegally changed hands
• objects of cultural patrimony that cannot be shown to have clear legal provenance and/or that are subject to repatriation
• specimens from protected species without associated permits or legal clearance
• specimens or artifacts collected without written permission from public lands
• items collected under circumstances that encourage damage or destruction of biota, established collecting sites, cultural monuments, or human burial places.

Once again, thank you for your interest in Museum of the Rockies' collections. As extensive as our collections are, they were built primarily through donations such as yours. We greatly appreciate your contribution to the history and understanding of our region.