Hidden-away museum treasures topic of talk

Hidden treasures stashed away in museum storage rooms will be the topic of May’s “First Thursday” presentation at the Clark County Historical Museum.

Harriet Baskas will discuss “Hidden Treasures in Washington’s Museums” at 7 p.m. Thursday at the museum, 1511 Main St.

The program will be in conjunction with a current museum exhibit, “Curiosity: Clark County Real and Imagined.”

According to Baskas, museums can only display about 10 percent of their holdings because of space limitations. But there also are philosophical, political, artistic and historic reasons why some items never go on display.

Baskas is the author of “Hidden Treasures: What Museums Can’t or Won’t Show You.” The Seattle resident also has produced a radio series on the topic that aired on National Public Radio, with Smithsonian-based historians as her advisers.

Historical Society members and active-duty military families with ID get in free; for others, admission fees apply: $4 adults, $3 seniors/students, $2 children, $10 families.