Minutes of the 81st meeting of the Museum Council – special meetings
May 13, 2009, 3:00 PM – 5:00 PM, Setberg, National Museum of Iceland
Present: Margrét Hallgrímsdóttir, chairman, Halldór Björn Runólfsson, Helgi Torfason, Eiríkur Páll Jörundsson and Rakel Halldórsdóttir.
1. Altarpiece of Möðruvallar Church in the Eyjafjörður region. The Museum Council has received a letter from Gunnar Sólnes, a lawyer, who, on behalf of his client, Jósef Guðbjart Kristjánsson, the owner of Möðruvallar Church in Eyjafjörður, is requesting permission to export the church's altarpiece with the aim of selling it at auction at Christie's. The Museum Council sought comments from the National Museum of Iceland, the Art Museum of Iceland, the Icelandic Archaeological Conservation Agency and the Bishop of Iceland. The Icelandic Archaeological Conservation Agency, in consultation with the Icelandic Archaeological Conservation Agency, has notified the owner of the church that work on the protection of the church's church artifacts has begun. In light of the comments received (oral at this stage) and the planned protection, the Museum Council agreed to temporarily suspend the export of the altarpiece with reference to Article 4 of Act No. 105/2001 and to request the Ministry of Education's position on the matter.
2. Issues of the Local History Museum in Göðar. The Museum Council received a letter from the acting mayor of Akranes, announcing a planned change in the operation of the museum by outsourcing its operations and activities. Comments are also requested on the museum's draft rules of procedure for lending artifacts and a revised collection policy. According to the decision of the last meeting, the aforementioned drafts were referred to the directors of the main museums for further examination. The Museum Council then pointed out, according to the decision of the last meeting, to the mayor of Akranes that it would be natural to seek the opinion of the Museum Council and the Ministry of Education on the content of the draft agreements. The Museum Council received a letter from Akranes, dated 29 April 2009, requesting the Council's opinion on the draft agreement. The Museum Council agreed at a meeting on 30 April to seek opinions on the draft agreement from professional institutions and associations. Comments were sought from the main museums (National Museum of Iceland, Art Museum of Iceland and Natural History Museum of Iceland, the Association of Icelandic Museums and Collectors, the Association of Icelandic Museum Experts, the Icelandic Section of the International Council of Museums (ICOM), the Icelandic Archaeological Conservation Agency and the Icelandic House Preservation Committee. The comment was accepted – the completed comment will be sent to Akranes Municipality on May 18th.
3. Next meeting and other matters. The next meeting is scheduled according to the 2009 meeting schedule, on Wednesday, May 20th.
There was no further discussion and the meeting adjourned at 17:00/RH