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https://theconversation.com/what-manchester-museums-return-of-174-indigenous-artefacts-tells-us-about-the-future-of-museums-213147>
"Manchester Museum has formally handed over 174 cultural heritage items to a
delegation of women from the Anindilyakwa community of Groote Eylandt, an
island in the Northern Territory.
Last week’s event was the result of three years of collaboration between the
museum, the Anindilyakwa Land Council and the Australian Institute of
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS).
The returned items included arm bands, turtle shell maps, baskets, a model
canoe, spears, spear throwers and 70 Dadikwakwa-kwa (shell dolls).
The director of the Manchester Museum, Esme Ward, emphasised repatriation is:
a gain, not a loss. Once you understand that it is about building
relationships, it changes everything.
Since her appointment in 2018, Ward has championed these approaches, seeing
museums not just as places to care for objects and collections, but as “empathy
machines” that generate ideas and foster relationships.
This focus on relationships is relatively new in museums, and remains far from
universal. But if museums are to remain relevant, trusted institutions they
need to move beyond traditional models of authority.
The museums of the future must become socially engaged platforms where diverse
voices and perspectives come together in productive new ways."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
