THE ARCHIVES SECTION 

Introduction 

The memorandum on thepolicy of the National Museum of Kenya on collections and maintenance ofarchives was initiated in 1967 and a full Archives programme of established in1980. The principle objectives were to rationalize the institutional records,acquire and preserve private records of individual scientist and organizations,with direct bearing on the functions and activities of the NMK. The Sectionactivities fall in various areas: Records management, Archives management,preservation and conservation, and research and dissemination.

Collections

The Archive section hasitems collected since 1850 to date. These relate to natural history (Flora andFauna) prehistory, culture, biodiversity, public administration etc. Thecollections are in form of slides, photographs, films, tapes and textliterature. They are therefore of immense interest to Historians, Educationist,cultural researchers and public in general.

Records Management

The section ensures a NMK systematic and consistentrecords management from creation to disposition in the archives throughstandardized filing systems, retention and disposal schedules. This activityhelps documentation of day-to-day NMK external and internal activities andtransaction records and smooth transfer to archives records center. Afterprocessing records are mainly used by administration for reference.

Archives Management

The records that are deemed archival due totheir historical, scientific and unique value are properly, cataloged andpreserved under standard conditions in the NMK archive. They comprise bothinstitutional and private collections and are used by both Museum scientistsand the public for research. The collection holdings amounts to 5, 000photographs (historical, scientific and ethnographical nature) and 300 linearmeters of archival materials.   Others include 100 microfilms, 800 paintingsand 100 audio tapes.

Particular collection of interest include:-

1. Beacher collection (historical and photographic materials) 1850- 70's.
2. Cloude Hollis collection (Coastal heritage photographic collection) 1895- 1929.
3. Joy Adamson Ethnographic and Botanical paintings
4. A.K. Binks Collection
5. W. brook collection
6. G. Erskine collection
7. East African herbarium collection
8. Pre History of Research collection (L.S.B Leaky, Mary Leakey and Richard Leakey) 
9. The  National Museums of Kenya history.