Museums told how to ‘decolonise’ their exhibits
Arts Council to issue guidance on repatriation of valuables brought to Britain in age of Empire
MUSEUMS will be asked to assess their collections with a new “decolonising” checklist to ease the repatriation of cultural treasures, and could face financial repercussions if they fail to do so.
Arts Council England has called on experts to draw up guidelines to address significant objects such as the Elgin Marbles and the Rosetta Stone, which have long provoked pleas for repatriation from aggrieved nations after being seized in the age of empire.
The Government-backed body already requires its organisations to follow protocols on diversity in order to receive funding, so could demand institutions adhere to its planned credo on colonialism.
It is hoped the checklist would be followed by all museums and fill a gap in guidance. The Arts
Council will urge institutions to be “proactive” about repatriation and navigate public opinion surrounding contested collections.
Following the example of France, where repatriation of colonial spoils has been accelerated by the promises of Emmanuel Macron, experts will be contracted to help British museums deal with media attention, government policy and the long-term future of priceless artefacts.
A spokesman for the Arts Council said: “The aim of the guidance is to encourage a more proactive and coordinated approach in the UK museum sector by providing museums with a practical resource to support them in engaging with and responding to all aspects of restitution and repatriation. At this point we’re focused on developing and providing the guidance.”
She added it was “too soon” to comment on any financial impact, or groups being required to follow guidance in order to receive funding, in the same way diversity practices
must be demonstrated by the 828 organisations within its portfolio.
An Easter Island Moai in the British Museum, an Aboriginal shield and Ethiopian sacred tablets are among the many artefacts acquired during the expansion of the British Empire, which have been demanded back by their ancestral owners.
Last year Jesus College, University of Cambridge, said it would hand back a Benin bronze cockerel to Nigeria following student pressure to repatriate the plundered object, and Manchester Museum returned Aboriginal artefacts. Foreseeing ever-increasing demands for repatriation, the Arts Council has offered a £42,000 contract to experts to draw up guidance on decolonisation.
The contract states: “There is significant government, public and press interest and increasing calls for action by UK museums and sector bodies to address this agenda.”
It is understood that planned guidance will work as a checklist to handle claims, from how to deal with publicity and activist agitation, to possible repatriation. The guidance will urge museums to be proactive in assessing their collections, recognising the potential colonial history of items, and working to educate visitors on both the objects and their provenance. The council is keen to stress the benefits of decolonisation, which may lead to items being removed from collections, but can give curators and the public a greater knowledge and appreciation of the objects themselves.
The organisation is thought to want to avoid moral judgments in the call for guidance, either for or against repatriation, but wishes to provide a uniform template for best practice across the sector.
It is understood future funding may help foreign delegations appraise objects in British museums which could be ripe for repatriation, and the Arts Council said it would welcome a range of opinions on decolonisation provided by staff diversity.
‘There is significant government, public and press interest and increasing calls for UK museums and sector bodies to address this’