For a project I am looking for a Museum collection, that is both well tidied, has high standards concerning preservation and organisation of specimens. It should be open (publicly available search books) and welcoming to visiting researchers. A digital database with preferably openly available pictures should exist. I am looking for a collection state to strive for so to say.
California Academy has yielded good results for peers in the past, as well as the Smithsonian.
There is neither a definition nor an international standard of best practice for digitising collections. Each museum does it as best it can and according to available resources (money, labour and equipment).
A problem is that (1) maintaining a large collection and (2) digitizing and creating a database with digitized specimens and (3) making data and specimens freely available to visiting researchers are somewhat excluding aims for a museum with many other tasks, but also for an institute collection. Usually, if there is enough staff to do (1) and (2) properly, then this work is done for a reason - i.e. for in-house research - and only secondarily to serve others (3).
I am no paleontologist but know your collection quite well. Therefore as first and easy choice I would suggest the Natural History Museum in Vienna (M. Harzhauser). Of course the Senckenberg Museum in Frankfurt is always worth studying and I remember that colleagues were very helpful with such questions.
Kind regards Gerhard Aubrecht
Thank you for your answers. Senckenberg and Smithsonian were on my list too. I have to admit Oertijdmuseum was not, because I shamefully have to admit, didn't know it. But I am going to look into it right away! Thanks again!
The Paleontological Research Institution in Ithaca, NY, USA maintains the Digital Atlas of Ancient Life https://www.digitalatlasofancientlife.org/ . The website includes four digital field guides (Neogene Atlas, Cretaceous Atlas, Pennsylvanian Atlas, and Ordovician Atlas). On top of that, PRI has uploaded over 100 highly detailed, interactive 3D models that are completely free to download and share. Check them out!
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