01 / Receive
Document the source.
Keep donor or lender details, agreements, photographs, and connected artifacts together.
Collection management for museums and historical societies
Care for the collection.
Keep control of it.
MCVM brings accessioning, cataloging, media, locations, research, labels, reports, staff work, backup, and public sharing into one understandable Windows application.
Built for small teams, including staff and volunteers who are not collections-software specialists.
01
Local-firstYour authoritative collection stays on the museum's Windows computer.
02
Perpetual licenseMCVM Care+ is optional after the included first year.
03
Human reviewedAI suggestions never silently become museum facts.
04
Built for continuityVerified backups, recovery, and practical data-exit paths are part of the product.
The work, connected
From arrival to public story.
MCVM follows the way a museum cares for an object: document where it came from, build the record, preserve its context, and share only what the museum approves.
02 / Catalog
Build the museum record.
Bring identity, provenance, condition, media, location, and research into one working record.
03 / Interpret
Create useful output.
Produce labels, reports, inventories, and a Museum Book from museum-approved information.
04 / Share
Publish deliberately.
Choose which records become public while private working data stays private.
One practical system
The essentials are not separate products.
Everyday collection work stays connected, so a small museum does not have to assemble a patchwork of tools.
Accessioning & cataloging
Donations, incoming loans, donor and lender history, artifact identity, provenance, condition, related people and events.
Media, locations & inventory
Photographs and documents, location and custody history, condition work, inventory campaigns, and discrepancy review.
Research & reporting
Private attributed research, sources, corrections, flexible reports, labels, and Museum Book output.
Staff Stations
Let staff and volunteers prepare work under their own names while supervisors retain review authority.
Backup, recovery & migration
Verified complete backups, guarded restore, replacement-computer recovery, and supported migration paths.
Public Collection
Create visitor-facing collection pages from only the records and media the museum approves.
Your collection remains yours
Software should not hold museum history hostage.
MCVM's authoritative collection is local-first. Records use the widely supported SQLite format, and managed photographs, documents, audio, and video remain ordinary files.
How MCVM protects your dataIf MCVM Care+ endsCore MCVM, collection access, backup, restore, and export remain available.
If a computer failsReplacement-computer recovery does not require buying the license again.
If MCVM is unavailableA qualified technician can access the preserved SQLite database and ordinary files with standard tools.
Bring your collection with you
You do not have to start over.
MCVM can import CatalogIt exports, PastPerfect records exports and one bounded PastPerfect photograph path, and guided CSV or spreadsheet files. Each path has limits, which the Moving to MCVM page explains.
Understand migrationCatalogItEntries JSON export, with photographs from CatalogIt's separate media export
PastPerfectObjects and Contacts records exports, plus PastPerfect 5 Objects with Photos; no other PastPerfect media
CSV & spreadsheetsSupported path for existing collection data
MCVM preserves source meaning and uncertainty. It does not silently normalize identifiers, merge people, correct disputed facts, or invent missing history.In real use
Used at a working small museum.
Mercer County Veterans Museum has run earlier MCVM builds and uses MCVM as its operational reference installation.
About MCVMPricing
A one-time perpetual license.
MCVM Collection Manager is planned as a $795 one-time perpetual license per museum, plus applicable tax. The first 12 months of MCVM Care+ (Staff Stations, support, update eligibility, and the planned Managed AI service under the applicable policy) are included. After that, MCVM Care+ is optional and renews at $295 per year, plus applicable tax, until cancelled. Not renewing never disables core MCVM, ends the perpetual license, or blocks collection access.
Launching soon — sales are not yet open.
See full pricing & terms →Pricing is published for transparency. No purchase can be made yet.
Straight answers
Before you trust software with a collection.
These are the questions MCVM believes every museum should be able to answer clearly.
What exactly does the $795 price buy?
A perpetual institutional license for one named museum or collection-holding organization. The first 12 months of MCVM Care+ are included.
What happens after the included first year?
After clear recurring-charge disclosure and affirmative consent at checkout, MCVM Care+ automatically renews at $295 per year until cancelled. If it is not renewed, core MCVM and the museum's collection remain available.
Does MCVM upload our whole collection to a vendor cloud?
No. The authoritative collection is local-first on the museum's Windows computer. Optional connected services are identified separately and do not replace the local core.
Can volunteers help without changing permanent records?
Staff Stations and supervised workflows let people prepare work under their own names while a supervisor reviews protected changes.
Are AI suggestions treated as facts?
No. AI can assist intake and research, but people decide what to retain and what becomes authoritative catalog information.
Preparing for release
Is MCVM a fit for your museum?
Public sales and downloads are not yet open. You can review the product, pricing, and current availability or contact MCVM for evaluation information.