You know that part of the Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade where young Indy insists over and over again that a relic belongs in a museum? Or the part where old Indy insists that an artifact belongs in a museum? Or the way people, including museums, have basically claimed this over and over in real life? Well, do they though? There’s an open question as to whether or not museums actually should have carte blanche to own their artifacts; especially since many museums only have those artifacts through theft through colonialism, war, trauma, and sometimes just straight up grave robbery. Maybe Killmonger was right!
On this week’s episode we want to talk about that. Monica, Hannah and Mav welcome returning guest Nathan Koob to talk about the ideas of museums and repatriation of artifacts and artwork, scrutinize the problematic history of museums acquiring and displaying culturally significant pieces. Together, they navigate the complexities of artifact repatriation, institutional hegemony, and potential solutions for righting historical wrongs, pondering whether meaningful change can emerge within established structures. Listen as we discuss the ramifications and the ethics of whether things belong in museums or whether they should be returned to their homelands and then let us know your thoughts in the comments.
Citations and Links:
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