The museum’s collections were part of a collections project. They were inventoried, dusted, tagged, photographed and, for some of them, restored before being packed for transport. The packing materials were chosen for their neutrality, to prevent any alterations. Each object was bar-coded and traced in a software programme dedicated to the movement of collections. They were also packed individually, crated and palletized, depending on which of the 17 reserves throughout Marseille was to become their new home.

This simplified the unpacking, because each object was previously identified as going to a specific reserve at the MuCEM’s Centre for Conservation and Resources. The convoys transferring the collections from Paris to Marseille moved the pieces from September 2012 to July 2013. At each truck’s departure and arrival, a registrar used the traceability tool to verify its loading and unloading. In total, 160 articulated lorries were used to complete the operation. Some cases even required the use of a crane to load and unload the largest pieces.

By Marie-Charlotte Calafat, Assistant in the collections and document resource department at the Mucems Centre for conservation and resources