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The Smithsonian Institution announced on Tuesday that it has adopted a policy that will formally authorize its founding museums to return items that have been looted or once unethically obtained from their collections.
The institution’s leaders said the policy enacted Friday represents a departure from the long-held position it and other museums have taken, which view the right to legally own an object as sufficient justification to protect it.
“My goal was very simple: The Smithsonian would be where people pointed to saying, ‘This is how we need to share our collections and think about the ethical implications,'” said Lonnie G. Bunch III, secretary of the Smithsonian Institution. meeting. “The Smithsonian is this incredibly wonderful – this is a gift not just to the country, but to the world. It’s really important that we provide leadership.”
With the increase in the talk about the legacy of racism and colonialism in recent years, discussions on returning the stolen, suppressed or removed art works to their countries have come to the fore. concentrated in cultural centers around the world.
While arguing that museums were not once authorized to return artifacts given by donors, or that the retention of artifacts promotes the widest appreciation of ancient cultures, the pendulum has gravitated towards return and repatriation.
With its new policy, the Smithsonian, which includes 21 museums and the National Zoo, seeks to openly acknowledge that norms and best practices in the collecting world have changed and it’s time for museums to catch up.
Last year, Smithsonian officials returned the golden disc Presents the shield of the city of Cusco to the Ministry of Culture in Peru. Authorities said a collector bought it in 1912 from someone who worked in the country.
In March, the Smithsonian said that He would return most of the 39 Benin Bronzes to Nigeria – More than a century has passed since they were stolen during the British Army’s raid on the ancient Kingdom of Benin in 1897. Museum officials said they saw the return of Bronzes, a name used to cover various artifacts, as a clear example of a situation where return is appropriate. Officials said the Nigerian National Museums and Monuments Commission and the Smithsonian will share exhibits and work together on educational programs as part of a broad agreement that includes repatriation of artworks.
“No one expects everything to be taken away,” Bunch said.
“But I think it’s important to recognize that museums should share power,” he continued. “While returning materials, part of the conversation may be that the best place for materials may be in the museum.”
The policy was born out of discussions last year when a group of Smithsonian curators and collection experts were asked to consider whether the institution should develop a policy like the one it is now adopting.
Officials said the move is subject to broader “collection management” rules that apply to all Smithsonian museums. However, the institution’s collections are so diverse that the implementation of the ethics policy will need to be tailored to each museum.
Officials have made it clear that although they have adopted the policy, they will not undertake a full inventory of the Smithsonian’s 157 million objects.
“As we do exhibitions, bring in new collections, let us look at it through an ethical lens,” Bunch said. “Or of course, if we hear about certain things from nations or communities, it will also trigger the kinds of research that will really allow us to make decisions about where is the best location for these collections.”
There are already some items that have caught the attention of the curators.
In the archives at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, there is a photograph of a black jazz musician that he obtained from a collector. However, the agency’s spokesperson, Linda St. Thomas said source researchers “didn’t like that the history of photography goes back further than this acquisition.”
In another instance, she said, pottery from an exploration site in Turkey came from the ancient city of Troy at the National Museum of Natural History. st. Thomas said Turkey may want to locate items such as pottery and eventually request their return.
In its publicly released Statement of Values and Principles, the Smithsonian said: “We affirm the Smithsonian’s commitment to implement policies that are transparent and timely responsive to returns or co-management requests.”
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