Macmillan Brown Lectures: Museums in the Colonies

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When:

Thu 18 Nov ’10, 7:00pm–8:00pm

Where: Christchurch Art Gallery - Te Puna o Waiwhetu, Cnr Worcester Boulevard and Montreal St, Christchurch City Show map

Restrictions: All Ages

Ticket Information:

Admission: Free

Website:

Macmillan Brown Lectures info

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2010 Macmillan Brown Lectures: The World Under One Roof – who owns the past?

Lecture 2: Museums in the Colonies - by Associate Professor Roger Fyfe (Canterbury Museum)

It is frequently pointed out by historians that the great natural history and encyclopaedic museums of Europe arose in tandem with the establishment of colonial empires. When viewed in this light, efforts to organise, classify and display the material culture of distant peoples apparently conforms to global colonialist ideologies!

So what happened when newly arrived colonial communities in the so called ‘source countries’ (e.g. North America, Australia, New Zealand) set about establishing their own museums? Were the inspired ideals of European museums diluted or compromised? A look at the foundation years of Canterbury Museum might help give some answers.