Manchester Museum seeks help to uncover hidden histories of African collection | Manchester
It’s rare for a museum to talk about something it doesn’t know. But unanswered questions and archival silences are at the heart of the new Africa Center at Manchester Museum in north-west England, which invites people from around the world to fill in the gaps.
The museum houses more than 40,000 items from across Africa, many of which were traded, collected, looted or preserved during the British Empire.
As a result, the names of the makers, the cultural significance of the objects and the individuals to whom they once belonged are largely unknown to curators in Manchester; In most cases only the name of the donor or the name of the collection from which an item comes is recorded.
The museum says the new Africa Center will display “beautifully crafted” items that have been in storage for years.
It invites visitors to the collections on Oxford Road in the city’s university district, as well as those who discovered the collections online. share stories about the origin of objects.
Curators say this could lead to the return of items as well as new partnerships within the African diaspora. And community collaboration has already begun. The exhibition at the heart of the Africa Hub draws on the knowledge of Manchester’s Igbo community, one of the oldest Nigerian diaspora communities in the UK.
Lucy Edematie, curator of African collections from colonial contexts at Manchester Museum, worked with the organization Igbo Community Greater Manchester (ICM) to research the objects and celebrate Igbo heritage.
Sylvia Mgbeahurike, vice president of ICM Women, said: “Some of these objects were given away, some were stolen, some were taken by force. It’s important that we start putting them back together. It shows inclusivity. It shows that there is power in diversity. It shows that we are one people, regardless of our color or where we come from.”
Edematie said: “Unlike most galleries or exhibitions, which represent the culmination of years of research and collaboration, the Africa Hub is a beginning. It builds on the work the museum is already doing to engage with both diasporic and communities in Africa, but offers the opportunity to expand this further.”
“It’s a chance to do our thinking publicly with honesty and transparency and to engage people in the process from the very beginning.”
The museum says the Africa Center “will be a thriving space for reflection, dialogue and shared learning, and its future direction will be shaped by public input.”
A spokesman added: “We need to know everything there is to know about the collections we care about, ready to convey the wisdom of the world through a series of carefully written object labels.
“Well, sometimes the truth is a little different. And in this case, we need your help as visitors and communities to uncover the stories that museum records fail to tell or hide.
“Mostly, Africa Center It means being honest about what we don’t know. Manchester Museum houses more than 40,000 objects, cultural heritage items, plants, animals and minerals from across Africa… many of whose stories remain untold.
“We expose our knowledge gap and invite you to come examine these collections in person or online and share your own knowledge, experience, and perspectives to create richer narratives.”
