28 October 28 2024
Until March 2025, Dyonna Bennet (Zichtbaar Erfgoed) will be working on an inventory of collections from Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao, Saba, Sint Eustatius and Sint Maarten that are currently present in Dutch (museum) collections. This research will be done by the request of the Bureau of the Colonial Collections Consortium. The aim is to gain more insight into the presence of Caribbean heritage in Dutch museums.
The objects in question were made and/or acquired in the colonial period. The assignment concerns the creation of an initial inventory of these objects; it is therefore in this phase not intended to determine involuntary loss of possession within the collections. The aim of this inventory is to gain insight into what and where objects are currently managed by public collection management institutions in the Netherlands.
The Colonial Collections Consortium is a partnership between five organisations in the Netherlands: Museum Bronbeek, NIOD, Cultural Heritage Agency, Rijksmuseum and Wereldmuseum. The consortium supports institutions administering collections in provenance research by sharing knowledge, answering questions and providing stakeholders with a network.
Are there specific sources, publications or information about collections that are relevant in the context of this inventory? Please feel invited to contact the Bureau of the Consortium.
Symposium: Honour & Discomfort, war booty in museum collectionsDate: 12-13 November 2024
Time: 09.30 AM – 5 PM
Location: National Military Museum, Verlengde Paltzerweg 1, 3768 MX, Soest
Organisation: The Royal Defense Museums Foundation (SKD)
Language: English
On 12 & 13 November 2024, at the National Military Museum in Soesterberg, The Royal Defense Museums Foundation (SKD) is organizing the symposium: ‘Honour & Discomfort, war booty in museum collections’. At this symposium, the current state of provenance research and restitution in military museums will be discussed.
Military history cllections are a separate niche
Driven by political activism and an increased sense of historical fairness, there is a renewed interest in war, colonialism and their tangible heritage. Recently, many museum objects have been returned to their original owners, all of which appears to be just the beginning of a new surge of claims and restitutions that is also set to reach military museums. Military history collections are a separate niche that cannot just simply be directly compared to art or anthropology museums.
At the symposium, we will discuss the current state of provenance research and restitution in military museums. We will engage with experts on how to deal with the subject and discuss the notion of ‘fairly conquered in battle’. With the renowned Dutch historian and moderator Hans Goedkoop as the events’ chair, the symposium is set to address the above alongside many other related issues.
A selection of topics:
Military museums
The symposium is being organized by the The Royal Defense Museums Foundation (SKD), with the support of the International Committee for Museums and Collections of Arms and Military History (ICOMAM). Dutch and international experts from museums and the field of looted art, war booty and restitution will be sharing their views and insights. The symposium is aimed at museum professionals, civil servants, legal practitioners, historians, policymakers, reporters and private collectors. The two-day event revolves around lectures covering the legal, social, historical, ethical, moral and practical aspects of the subject, with plenty of room for discussion and exchange of views.
Date: 6 November 2024; 26 November 2024
Time: 10.30 AM – 4 PM
Location: Leiden; Amersfoort
Organisation: ErfgoedAcademie
Audience: collection staff (curators, registrars) of museums and other collection managing institutions, employees of municipal or provincial authorities
Language: Dutch
About the course
Colonial collections differ widely, including how they were obtained. Collaborative research into the history of objects can shed light on their origins. Employees of museums and archives have an important task in conducting provenance research on these collections. This course ‘Provenance Research on Colonial Collections’, developed by the ErfgoedAcademie together with the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands, aims to support them in this task.
Why this course?
The course will be held in Dutch.