Data underpinning Mapping Museums Lab report 'Collections From Closed Museums in the UK 2000-25: a summary of the data
Description
The data deposited here was collected as part of the AHRC funded project 'Museum Closure in the UK 2000-25', and underpins our project report Collections From Closed Museums, published in December 2025.
The finalised Museum Closure dataset comprises a list of museums in existence in the UK during 1960-2025 and their characteristics, with detailed information on museum closure from 2000 and after.
Previews
Collection Method
Wherever possible we used Wikidata types to classify the objects itemised in the process of disposal, and drew on the CIDOC Conceptual Reference Model for key distinctions concerning changes in ownership (such as sales and gifts) and custody (such as when an object is loaned or moved). Using established categories links our research to other datasets and facilitates reuse and semantic alignment. As no prior categorisation existed we developed bespoke taxonomies for reasons for closure, closure events, and actors. This process involved compiling the terms and descriptions commonly found in our sources and grouping similar events together. For instance, sources might cite the recession, rising costs of insurance, and funding cuts as reasons for closure, which we grouped as ‘financial’, while sale of premises, lease expired, and redevelopment of site were grouped under loss of premises
Data Objects
Offline / Analogue Data Records
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Metadata
| Dataset Title: | Data underpinning Mapping Museums Lab report 'Collections From Closed Museums in the UK 2000-25: a summary of the data |
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| Creators: | Candlin, Fiona |
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| Dataset Contributors: |
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| School/Department: | Birkbeck Schools and Research Centres > School of Arts > History of Art |
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| Keywords: | museum closure; collections disposal; museum governance; museum size; museum change; scrap; transfer; accreditation |
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| Data collection method: | We collected data on which UK museums had closed since 2000, why, and on what had happened to their collections and other objects. Wherever possible we found out who had acquired the collection, under what circumstances, when, and the objects’ new locations, if relevant.
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| Collection period: |
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| Statement on legal, ethical, and access issues: | Not applicable |
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| Depositing User: | Fiona Candlin | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date Deposited: | 04 Nov 2025 17:44 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last Modified: | 04 Nov 2025 18:18 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Publisher: | Birkbeck College, University of London |
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Impact & Reach
Additional statistics for this dataset are available via IRStats2.