Colonial Collections Consortium

Save the Date | Towards Transparency: Access to Collections from Colonial Contexts

The Colonial Collections Consortium is pleased to announce that from 19-23 November, we will be organizing the international event Towards Transparency: Access to Collections from Colonial Contexts. Transparency for collections from colonial contexts has been central to the work of the Consortium in redressing historical injustice. This event will launch two instruments which the Consortium has developed to increase transparency around these collections: the Colonial Collections Datahub and the Research Aids. In addition, it offers space to exchange ideas and perspectives on the meaning of transparency in this context.

The program combines online stories, conversations and demonstrations accessible internationally with an in-person gathering at Wereldmuseum Leiden on 23 November. We invite heritage professionals, researchers, people from communities of origin, other stakeholders and anyone else interested for this multi-day event exploring transparency, access and provenance research for collections from colonial contexts. Together, we will explore not only how information can be made accessible, but also whose knowledge is represented, what remains missing, and how we can work together to increase transparency.

Full program and registration details will be coming soon. Do you want to stay up to date on this event? Sign up for the Towards Transparency mailing list below.

Towards Transparency: Access to Collections from Colonial Contexts | In-person

Date: 23 November
Location: Wereldmuseum Leiden (Steenstraat 1B, 2312 BS Leiden)
Organisation: Colonial Collections Consortium
Language: English

From 19-23 November, the Colonial Collections Consortium is organizing the international event Towards Transparency: Access to Collections from Colonial Contexts. Transparency for collections from colonial contexts has been central to the work of the Consortium in redressing historical injustice. This event will launch two instruments which the Consortium developed or this: the Colonial Collections Datahub and the Research Aids. In addition, the event provides space to exchange ideas and perspectives on the meaning of transparency in this context. The in-person event on 23 November is preceded by two days of online exchange on 19 and 20 November.

On Monday 23 November, we will continue the conversations held during the online program days on Thursday 19 and Friday 20 November. Rather than focusing primarily on introducing tools and resources, the program of the in-person event creates space for deeper dialogue, critical reflection and exchange around the questions that transparency raises: Whose knowledge is represented? What remains missing? What are the responsibilities of institutions? And how can different forms of knowledge contribute to more transparent practices?

During the in-person event, participants will learn more about the development of the Datahub and the Research Aids, engage in discussions around the importance of transparency for collections from colonial context, and look ahead to see in what other way we can work together to increase transparency around these collections.

More information about the program and registration details will be coming soon. Do you want to stay up to date about this event? You can sign up for our Towards Transparency mailing list below.

Towards Transparency: Access to Collections from Colonial Contexts | Online

Date: 19 and 20 November
Location: Online
Organisation: Colonial Collections Consortium
Language: English

From 19-23 November, the Colonial Collections Consortium is organizing the international event Towards Transparency: Access to Collections from Colonial Contexts. Transparency for collections from colonial contexts has been central to the work of the Consortium in redressing historical injustice. This event will launch two instruments which the Consortium developed or this: the Colonial Collections Datahub and the Research Aids. In addition, the event provides space to exchange ideas and perspectives on the meaning of transparency in this context. The in-person event on 23 November is preceded by two days of online exchange on 19 and 20 November.

The online program on Thursday 19 and Friday 20 November opens the conversation to an international audience through stories, research cases and conversations and with demonstrations of the Datahub and the Research Aids. Participants can discover how information about collections is being made accessible, hear different perspectives on transparency and provenance research, and explore the possibilities and challenges of working with digital collection information.

The in-person event on 23 November takes these conversations further. More information about the in-person event can be found here.

Full program and registration details will be coming soon. If you wish to stay informed about this event, you can sign up for our Towards Transparency mailing list below.

Who defines history? Sound & Vision is conducting provenance research into the Sticusa film collection

The projects awarded funding in the second round of the Colonial Collections Provenance Research Scheme are still in full swing. The Dutch Institute for Sound & Vision is conducting provenance research into three audiovisual works in its collection. The works were commissioned by the Foundation for Cultural Cooperation (Sticusa), an organisation that played a central role in cultural exchange between the Netherlands and Suriname, Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao, Saba, Sint Maarten and Sint Eustatius between 1955 and 1991.

This provenance research focuses on three specific productions: Lanta Para Watapana (1974) and Mosaiko Kultural (1979) by Wilbert Tecla, and Buskando (1973) by René van Nie. The Dutch Institute for Sound & Vision manages this Sticusa film collection following a merger with, amongst others, the film archive of the Netherlands Government Information Service (RVD).

Provenance research with a colonial context

With financial support from the Colonial Collections Consortium, the Dutch Institute for Sound & Vision is investigating the provenance of three audiovisual works in its archive. The following questions are central to this research:

• How did the works actually come to be?
• In what socio-political context were the films made and watched?
• How have power dynamics, funding structures and editorial interference shaped the representation of Caribbean history?
• Who were involved in the commissions? And what was the role of the population in the Caribbean countries?
• In what ways is the colonial context reflected in the content of the films?

The urgency of provenance research

Heritage expert Dyonna Bennett conducted the research by combining various methods to paint a multi-layered and (theoretically) balanced picture, drawing on sources such as archival documents, film analysis and oral history. One of the aims was to uncover the complex and often contentious dynamics between the Dutch institutional frameworks and the emerging Caribbean audiovisual autonomy of the 1970s.

The urgency of this provenance research stems from the need for critical reflection on how power relations shape history. At a time when archives are striving for pluralism and inclusivity, it is essential to investigate who was involved in the commissions, what role the inhabitants of the Caribbean countries played, and how the colonial context is reflected in the content of the works. Many of the filmmakers and experts involved from that period are now elderly or, sadly, no longer with us, which makes it crucial to consult the key figures who are still with us. The Colonial Collections Consortium works with museums, research institutions and archives to gain new insights into this intertwined colonial history. We share expertise and research methods, and make funding available, so that collection-managing institutions – such as the Dutch Institute for Sound and Vision – can carry out in-depth research into the colonial connections within their collections.

Would you like to find out more about the role of archives in managing objects from a colonial context? The NIOD has developed digital research aids on this subject for the Colonial Collections Consortium. These research aids provide tools for researchers and members of the public who wish to gain a better understanding of colonial objects and their stories.

A Chinese ‘honorary tapestry’ in the Limburg Mission Museum in Steyl

Over the past year, various institutions have carried out research with support from the Colonial Collections Provenance Research Scheme run by the Colonial Collections Consortium. The Mission Museum Steyl provides a notable example of such research: there, the provenance of a Chinese honorary tapestry – which became part of the collection under circumstances that are not entirely clear – has been investigated.

The tapestry was given to the Chinese general and administrator Tianjue Zhou in the mid-nineteenth century. In 1901, it came into the possession of the missionary Anton Volpert of the SVD congregation in Steyl – a period coinciding with the aftermath of the Boxer Rebellion (1899–1901), when widespread looting took place in China. It is therefore suspected that this object was taken by force or through looting.

Research into meaning and context

With financial support from the Colonial Collections Consortium, the museum investigated step by step how this textile came to be in Steyl. The research focused on questions such as:

• How did the SVD come to be in possession of the tapestry?
• What was the function and symbolic meaning of the object within its original Chinese context?
• And how did the missionaries subsequently give it a new, religious or museum-related role in Steyl?

The research was carried out in collaboration with PhD student Yang Hu from Leiden University. Her knowledge of the Chinese language and culture proved to be of great value: on closer examination of the tapestry, faded characters were discovered in the margin, which became visible again when illuminated with raking light. Yang translated and interpreted these characters, which may offer insight into the object’s original status and meaning.

Little-known colonial links

What makes this research special is that it sheds light on a relatively unknown period of German colonialism in China, during which the SVD was active. At the time, the missionary congregation played a role in fuelling the Boxer Rebellion. At the same time, the research helps to explain why such objects were collected by missionaries and subsequently exhibited in Steyl. For today’s visitors, this provides new context and critical insight into the colonial history of the collection.

The added value of collaboration

The project illustrates the importance of collaboration in ensuring the careful handling of collections from a colonial context. The Colonial Collections Consortium works with museums, research institutions and archives to gain new insights into the provenance of colonial artefacts. We share expertise and research methods, and make funding available, so that even smaller institutions – such as Mission Museum Steyl – can carry out in-depth research into the colonial connections within their collections.

Would you like to find out more about the role of missionaries in colonised territories? The NIOD has developed digital research aids for the Colonial Collections Consortium, which also includes collections such as that of the Mission Museum in Steyl. These research aids provide tools for researchers and members of the public who wish to gain a better understanding of colonial objects and their stories.

Indian chintz in the Zaan region

Following a successful first round of the Colonial Collections Provenance Research Scheme, the second round of research projects has now also been launched. The Zaans Museum is carrying out a unique study of over a hundred items of clothing made from chintz: a cotton calico textile from India, usually hand-painted with floral motifs.

Chintz has been produced in India for centuries. From the 17^th century onwards, the fabric was imported by the Dutch East India Company (VOC), and as its popularity grew, similar chintz textiles were soon being produced in Europe as well. This fabric was also popular in the Zaan region. The Zaans Museum’s extensive fashion collection contains many 18^th-century garments believed to be made of Indian chintz. But a lack of expertise previously made it impossible to distinguish between Indian and European fabrics. 

Research into materials

With financial support from the Colonial Collections Consortium, the museum is now investigating which items of clothing are made from fabrics originating from India. The following questions are central to this research:

• Is the item made from Indian chintz, or is it a European imitation?
• What can be learnt about the material? (Things like where and when the fabric was made, how it was made, and what the motifs signify.)
• What is the provenance of these objects and who did the chintzes belong to?
• How did the chintz pieces become part of the collection?
• How did chintz calico come to be found in the Zaan region, and what was the role of the people living there in the chintz trade?

The Zaan identity and chintz

Until now, chintz garments have generally been regarded as examples of traditional Zaan regional dress and, as such, an expression of Zaan identity. This research, however, focuses specifically on the colonial origins of the material, thereby shedding light on chintz as a product that was traded within colonial trade networks and that reflected unequal power relations, but also as an example of cultural interaction and the blending of cultural identities. By teaming up with experts (craftspeople and historians) from India, knowledge can be exchanged and the garments are examined from various perspectives. 

Gaining knowledge and expertise

Financial support from the Colonial Collections Consortium enables the Zaans Museum to acquire knowledge and expertise regarding the colonial origins of its collection. The Colonial Collections Consortium works with museums, research institutions and archives to gain new insights into the provenance of colonial artefacts. We share expertise and research methods, and make funding available, so that even smaller institutions – such as the Zaans Museum – can carry out in-depth research into the colonial connections within their collections.

Would you like to find out more about the role that trade in colonised territories played in the circulation of these objects in Europe? The NIOD has developed digital research aids on this subject for the Colonial Collections Consortium. These research aids provide tools for researchers and members of the public who wish to gain a better understanding of colonial objects and their stories.

Indonesian objects at the Princessehof National Museum of Ceramics

One year after the first round of the Colonial Collections Provenance Research Scheme, research projects are now in full swing. The Princessehof National Museum of Ceramics is carrying out provenance research into various Indonesian objects in its collection; the museum currently holds over 1,800 such objects. Since 2025, the museum has been re-examining the provenance of the objects, as previous investigations had yielded few results. However, now that the first 100 objects – with potentially problematic provenance – are being examined, the findings are shedding light on the collection as a whole.

Provenance research into Indonesian objects

With financial support from the Colonial Collections Consortium, the Princessehof Museum is investigating the provenance of objects in its collection; the research is conducted on an object-by-object basis. The following questions are central to this research:

• How can provenance data be supplemented? What information can be found in travel diaries, laboratory test results and photo albums?
• Which art dealers and ‘collectors’ were interested in Indonesian artefacts during the colonial period?
• Which objects in the collection have a problematic provenance?
• What cultural or religious significance do the objects have in their country of origin?

Combining areas of expertise for targeted provenance research

In the early 1960s, the museum attempted to make an inventory of the collection of Indonesian objects it had built up to that point. However, as the museum developed into a specialist ceramics museum in the years that followed, research into the Indonesian non-ceramic objects largely came to a standstill. The current research aims to establish or substantiate the provenance of these objects. To this end, the researchers are combining the original object documentation in the Princessehof archive with other archival sources, such as the collectors’ notes and diaries or correspondence from art dealers. The objects themselves are also being examined.

For example, in collaboration with Lab op Pad of the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands, the metal of the talams (large bronze offering trays) in the collection was analysed, which showed that they had almost certainly been buried underground for a long time. In addition, various specialists in the fields of ethnography and Indonesian weapons came to examine the collection. This provided a great deal of additional information about the context in which these objects were collected, even in cases where their exact provenance is unknown.

The Colonial Collections Consortium works with museums, research institutions and archives to gain new insights into the provenance of colonial artefacts. We share expertise and research methods, and make funding available, so that even smaller institutions – such as the Princessehof Museum – can carry out in-depth research into the colonial connections within their collections.

Would you like to find out more about the role that trade in colonised territories played in the circulation of these objects in Europe? The NIOD has developed digital research aids on this subject for the Colonial Collections Consortium. These research aids provide tools for researchers and members of the public who wish to gain a better understanding of colonial objects and their stories.

Museum Prinsenhof Delft examines sub-collection with Indonesian objects

One year after the first application round for the Colonial Collections Provenance Research Scheme closed, the first ten research projects have largely been concluded. Museum Prinsenhof Delft conducted research into twelve objects from the Nusantara sub-collection, which originally came from Indonesia and, via the collections of various institutions, eventually came into the museum’s care.

The Indische Instelling in Delft was founded in 1864 as a training institute for Dutch colonial officials who were posted to what is now Indonesia. The objects collected by the institution were used for educational purposes. Following the closure of the Indische Instelling in 1901, an ethnographic museum was established in 1911 to preserve the collection. This eventually became the Museum Nusantara.

Museum Nusantara closed its doors in 2013, after which the collection was deaccessioned and reallocated to various museums in the Netherlands and abroad. A small part of the collection remained in Delft and came under the management of Museum Prinsenhof. The Nusantara sub-collection comprises around 460 objects, ranging from clothing and religious artefacts to dolls, furniture, (miniature) weapons and jewellery.

The Nusantara sub-collection

With financial support from the Colonial Collections Consortium, the museum is investigating the provenance history of twelve objects from the sub-collection. The following questions are central to this research:

• What meaning do these objects hold for the communities from which they originate?

• How did colonial artefacts from Indonesia end up in Delft?

• Where do they come from, how were they collected, and why did they become part of the ethnographic collection of the Indische Instelling or Museum Nusantara?

• What can these objects tell us about the relationship between Delft and Indonesia?

Colonial ties between Delft and Indonesia

Following its refurbishment, the Prinsenhof Museum in Delft plans to present the story of Delft’s colonial history to its visitors in a transparent and more comprehensive manner. That includes sharing the provenance research of these objects. The results of the research will therefore be incorporated into the museum’s new permanent exhibition. As part of the city programme Delftse Blik, the museum will also be inviting visitors and residents of Delft to join in the conversation about this collection. By widely sharing the stories behind the collection, the museum will present a new perspective on the colonial relationship between Delft and Indonesia when it reopens.

The added value of provenance research

Although the research focused on twelve specific objects, the provenance research has also brought to light information about other objects and important aspects of the intertwined colonial history. Indeed, the research has revealed just how closely the Indische Instelling was intertwined with the colonial system – and, by extension, the museum’s sub-collection.

The Colonial Collections Consortium supports collaboration and research amongst museums, research institutions and archives in order to gain new insights into this intertwined colonial history. We share expertise and research methods, and provide funding, enabling institutions that manage collections – such as Museum Prinsenhof Delft – to carry out valuable research into the colonial origins of their collections.

Would you like to find out more about the role civil servants played in collecting objects from a colonial context? The NIOD has developed digital search tools on this subject for the Colonial Collections Consortium, in which Museum Nusantara is also included as a key institution. These search tools provide guidance for researchers and members of the public who wish to gain a better understanding of colonial objects and their stories.

Four museums receive grant for provenance research into colonial collections

Four museums receive a grant from the Colonial Collections Consortium for provenance research, contributed through the Provenance Research Scheme. With this grant, they will investigate the provenance histories of a (sub)collection or a specific object for which there are indications that it was acquired in a colonial context.

Awarded projects

Read more about the awarded projects below.

Chabot Museum (€25.570)

Chabot Museum will research the provenance of approximately 22 etnographic objects from West-Africa, from the collection-Schortenmeijer. The project focuses on transparency about the provenance, acquisition and colonial context, and aims to provide a more careful and honest presentation of the collection. Focus is given to, among other things, archives, art trade networks and posisble countries of origin, such as Ivory Coast.

Museum Gouda (€17.400)

Museum Gouda, founded in 1874 and grown into a collection of more than 40.000 objects, researches two specific objects with unknown provenance. The research concerns a unique ivory pipe case from Sri Lanka and a porselain spittoon from Curaçao, gifted in 1967. Through archival research, object analysis and literature, the provenance histories of these objects will be reconstructed.

Westfries Museum (€30.000)

As part of a broader renewal of its museum presentation, the Westfries Museum will examine its collection within a global, inclusive context. Within a revaluation process of in total 36.000 objects, the colonial provenance of a selection of 30 objects from the Carbasius-collection (1650-1750) will be studied. The focus is on archival sources, objects analysis, and possible connections with the VOC and colonial trade networks. Aim is to make this context more visible and to integrate it into a renewed presentation.

Provenance research blog #6 is out now!

In this blog series, the Colonial Collections Consortium presents a historical object or collection from a colonial context or situation, currently (or until recently) stored in a museum in the Netherlands that has been the focus of provenance research. Our latest blog focuses on a toad and a photograph from Suriname.

The toad specimen is kept at Naturalis Biodiversity Center and the historical photograph is stored at the Wereldmuseum. The two items, housed in different museums, have been part of a research project on the role of Indigenous and Maroon individuals in Suriname in the creation of natural and ethnographic collections currently housed in the Netherlands.

Both the toad and the photograph were taken from/in Suriname on the same day – 12 september 1904 – in the context of a series of expeditions commissioned by the Royal Dutch Geographical Society (Koninklijk Nederlands Aardrijkskundig Genootschap or KNAG). While knowledge developed during these expeditions is largely attributed to the Dutch individuals involved, provenance research has shown that the knowledge of involved Indigenous and Maroon individuals was crucial to the expeditions and the development of knowledge and the collection of natural specimens and artefacts now housed in Dutch museums.

In this blog you will read about how provenance research can help rectify biases and challenge dominant narratives of scientific exploration in Suriname. By examining a toad and a photograph taken on the same day yet kept in different kinds of institutions can also contribute to better understanding colonial (collection) histories, as well as the histories of institutions that house them today.