In the 1940's the Archive evolved from the need to
document the objects held by the South Australian
Museum's department of Anthropology, their contextual
history and to provide information for exhibitions
and displays. Today the Archive has extended its boundaries
to incorporate the entire Museum's science and public
program interests.
With the collection growing exponentially, Norman B.
Tindale, the curator of Anthropology, recognised the
need to manage the records and aid their retrieval.
In 1966 Tindale's successor Graeme Pretty used his
experiences as a librarian to add a classification
system linking the objects to the archives. In 1980
the registration system was superseded by the record
group system where the collections are accessioned,
by collector or donor. This system continues to be
used today.
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