Untold Histories Museum Tours

16/12/2019

The Untold Histories Museum Tours have now ended. We would like to thank all those who have supported us, and the hundreds of people who attended one of our tours since October 2018!

We will be continuing the work of engaging with and questioning museums through other projects. If you would like to contact us, please do so via email. Please note this page will no longer be monitored regularly.

08/11/2019

Our last tour is now sold out! Thank you everyone who bought tickets - we'll see you tomorrow morning at the Museum of Archaeology & Anthropology!

05/11/2019

📢 There's only one ticket remaining for our last tour this Saturday! 🌟 🎟🌟

https://www.cambridgelive.org.uk/tickets/events/untold-histories-museum-tours-final-tour

Saturday 9 November 2019 Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology . Buy Tickets Saturday 9 November 2019 11:00Book tickets The Untold Histories Museum Tours cover lesser-known histories behind objects and their collectors at the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology in Cambridge. After a sold out lau...

04/11/2019

All good things must come to an end! We're sad to announce the final Untold Histories tour, this Saturday at the Museum of Archaeology & Anthropology. TIckets available through the link 👇🏾👇🏾👇🏾

https://www.cambridgelive.org.uk/tickets/events/untold-histories-museum-tours-final-tour

Thank you for all the support over the last year. The three of us have other commitments right now like PhDs and postdocs, but keep your eyes open for individual future projects from 2020!

Saturday 9 November 2019 Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology . Buy Tickets Saturday 9 November 2019 11:00Book tickets The Untold Histories Museum Tours cover lesser-known histories behind objects and their collectors at the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology in Cambridge. After a sold out lau...

29/10/2019

The German Historical Institute London - Deutsches Historisches Institut London has a series of podcasts of lectures and events, and a theme this year has been 'Contested Histories'. The most recent podcast 'From Collected to Contested: The Future of Museums after the Repatriation Debate' might be of interest to our followers. It is a round-table panel discussion featuring Subhadra Das, Clémentine Deliss, Tristram Hunt, and Alice Procter The Exhibitionist, and is chaired by Mirjam Brusius.

https://www.ghil.ac.uk/podcast.html

The German Historical Institute London (GHIL) is an independent academic institution. It promotes research on modern history, in particular on the comparative history of Germany and Great Britain, on the British Empire/Commonwealth and on Anglo-German relations within the context of the internationa...

25/10/2019

"My experience with the Asian Art Museum was an exercise in watching white people work out their identity on the back of mine. The platform they seemed to give me, it turned out, wasn’t actually for me—it was for them, a way to fashion my Brownness into something they could wear. White supremacy works that way, for all “minorities”; it censors any critique contained in nonwhite expression and commodifies and tokenizes whatever’s left, forcing people like me into the posture of the model minority."

https://www.motherjones.com/media/2019/10/white-people-yoga-sf-asian-art-museum/

My artwork was about appropriation. San Francisco's Asian Art Museum tried to appropriate it.

23/10/2019

Another disturbing development in our understanding of how the Museum of the Bible sourced artefacts, after the 2017 revelations that it had purchased thousands of smuggled objects.

Dr Obbink of the University of Oxford is under investigation for selling ancient Bible fragments from the Egypt Exploration Society collections.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-oxfordshire-50069365

It is alleged 11 items from a collection held at Oxford University were sold by Prof Dirk Obbink.

21/10/2019

We welcome the news that approximately 600 illegally removed Native American human remains and artefacts will be returned by the Kansallismuseo - The National Museum of Finland. Above all we applaud the work of Leigh Kuwanwisiwma and the Hopi, Zuni, Acoma and Zia tribes (representing the pueblos and Native peoples affected) in accomplishing this.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1377453/ancestral-native-remains-coming-home-from-finland.html

Mesa Verde looted of cultural property in the late 19th century

17/10/2019

Just over halfway through Black History Month, and there are still loads of fantastic events happening in Cambridge, including the Black History Month Comedy Show, Black History Month Panel Discussion, and a MARSHA P. JOHNSON ON FILM night! You can find a list of events through the link

https://www.cam.ac.uk/news/events-taking-place-across-the-university-and-colleges-during-black-history-month-2019

Lectures, films, discussion panels and exhibitions are being held across departments and colleges during Black History Month 2019. From slavery and empire through to the experiences of black people today, the story of identity will be traced through a series of events, including:

16/10/2019

Toward An Antiracist Archaeology: What does an antiracist archaeology look like and how can it be accomplished in a profession that remains predominantly white and continues to privilege whiteness?

https://activisthistory.com/2019/09/27/toward-an-antiracist-archeology/

What does an antiracist archaeology look like and how can it be accomplished in a profession that remains predominantly white and continues to privilege whiteness?

14/10/2019

The New Yorker's review of Hazel Carby's 'Imperial Intimacies' is an excellent read about a book that deals with the histories of colonialism, empire, and family. Carby is Professor of African American Studies and American Studies at Yale University.

https://www.newyorker.com/books/under-review/an-intimate-history-of-the-british-empire

In “Imperial Intimacies,” Hazel Carby weaves together the story of colonialism and the story of her family.

09/10/2019

Amsterdam Museum has announced that it will drop the term 'Golden Age' to describe the period between approximately 1609 and 1713 when the Dutch Republic became one of the most influential European states. The term ignores " the role that international slavery, indentured labour, the violence of the emerging Dutch empire, poverty and war played in shaping the century and the country’s identity."

https://www.museumsassociation.org/museums-journal/news-analysis/18092019-Amsterdam-museum-drops-term-golden-age

'All that glitters...' Is the Amsterdam Museum right to ditch the term 'Golden Age' to describe the Netherlands' colonial past?

08/10/2019

We have three places left on a tour tomorrow at 14.30! Let us know if you're interested at [email protected]. As we're only taking group bookings for the rest of this term, this may be your last chance to catch the tour before 2020 😉

07/10/2019

Brilliant news: Manchester Museum at The University of Manchester and AIATSIS have announced the unconditional repatriation of 43 secret sacred and ceremonial objects to the Aranda people of Central Australia, Gangalidda Garawa peoples’ of northwest Queensland, Nyamal people of the Pilbara and Yawuru people of Broome.

https://www.museum.manchester.ac.uk/about/repatriation/

Repatriation Manchester Museum Returns Ceremonial and Sscret Sacred Material Back to Traditional Custodians HomeAbout Repatriation About Home About thechatshow History Get Involved Contact us Blogs hello future Digital Touch Replicas News Press Reports and Policies Research Services Staff Support us...

05/10/2019

We really enjoyed our tour for new students at Girton College yesterday! Welcome to Cambridge and all the best as you begin your new degree courses. Thank you Girton MCR BME Officer Benjamin Utting for organising this. Tag yourselves in the photos and enjoy the rest of Freshers' Week!

If you would like to book a group tour at the Museum of Archaeology & Anthropology, email us at [email protected]

04/10/2019

Time to get HYPED because we have just dropped our fireeee Michaelmas 2019 term card! 🔥🔥🔥 As promised we have packed your term with what is set to be the littest and most seasoned events in all of Cambridge, so make sure you clear your diaries because you do NOT want to miss any of this.

Text-only version: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1JfhUcvIZxpxrAOMUUGoakv9hIXBaVDxSo8hFbRzNxkY/edit?usp=sharing

02/10/2019

If you missed the Black Cantabs: History Makers exhibition last year at the Cambridge University Library, you can see it this October at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge.

The exhibition features portraits that celebrate 260 years of Cambridge education for black Cambridge students and graduates, from the 1700s to the 21st century.

9.00-17.00, weekdays through October

https://www.cam.ac.uk/BlackCantabs

"The indelible mark black alumni have left on Cambridge, and the world" is the focus of a stunning photography exhibition of fifteen portraits, opening free to the public, from October 1, at Cambridge University Library

01/10/2019

We were excited to have new students from Darwin College Cambridge on our group tour today! Welcome to Cambridge, and thanks for being a friendly and curious audience.Tag yourselves and enjoy the rest of Freshers' Week!

If you're looking to make a group booking for one of our tours at the Museum of Archaeology & Anthropology, email us at [email protected]

18/09/2019

02/09/2019

It’s hard to believe September is here already and the new academic year is around the corner! For those preparing for Freshers’ Fortnight, we’re currently taking group tour bookings from colleges and societies. We have dates open between October 1st-13th, but hurry as BME Officers and Social Secs are booking them up fast!

Contact us on [email protected] to book one of our award-winning tours at the Museum of Archaeology & Anthropology for your new students

27/08/2019

The Decolonial Dictionary can be a helpful resource. We've highlighted its entry on 'decoloniality' here but do give the rest of it a browse!

https://decolonialdictionary.wordpress.com/2019/06/28/decoloniality/

First discussed by the Argentinian scholar Walter Mignolo, this term refers to the idea that the formation of what we consider knowledge itself is colonial in its foundations. Epistemology, then, m…

20/08/2019

'Biculturalism in our national museum can’t be a one-way conversation' - Puawai Cairns of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa writes on institutional biculturalism and the burden of representation

https://thespinoff.co.nz/atea/19-12-2018/biculturalism-in-our-national-museum-cant-be-a-one-way-conversation/

Puawai Cairns, head of mātauranga Māori for Te Papa museum, writes about what biculturalism can and should mean in an institution like a museum. “Institutional biculturalism is often applied like makeup: it can create the appearance desired by both the wearer and the viewer, while beneath the su

12/08/2019

A thought-provoking post on the neutrality of museums and other memory institutions, written from a First Nations perspective by Nathan 'Mudyi' Sentance. Nathan is an Aboriginal Australian Wiradjuri man from the Mowgee clan.

https://archivaldecolonist.com/2018/01/18/your-neutral-is-not-our-neutral/

“If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will …

05/08/2019

We like the point made by this review of the new 'What Remains' exhibition at the Imperial War Museum London. Many of us are familiar with the cultural destruction wrought by the N***s, the Taliban, and Isis. But what about that carried out by European imperial ambition, modern armies of the West, and even institutions like museums?

"Look without looting"- words to live by.

https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2019/jul/03/imperial-war-museum-what-remains-exhibition-war-cultural-destruction

From burning books to bombed Buddhas, a new exhibition looks at the cultural destruction of war – and the controversial reconstruction efforts that follow

27/07/2019

We did our last tour of the summer today! Thank you everyone who came out, and to the 200-odd people who have attended our tours since we started them.

If you’re still interested in attending a tour, please let us know! We also offer private tours for groups of 10-15 people, so get in touch if you are interested. In the meantime, we’re working on a few other things so watch this space...

26/07/2019

The heat wave is supposed to break tomorrow, and we can't think of a better place to spend a rainy day than a thoughtful day in museum! Our last Museum of Archaeology & Anthropology tour of the summer is tomorrow and we have a few tickets available. Book through the link! 👇👇👇

https://www.cambridgelive.org.uk/tickets/events/untold-histories-museum-tours

Wednesday 27 March 2019 to Saturday 27 July 2019 Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology The Untold Histories Museum Tours will cover lesser-known histories behind objects and their collectors at the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology in Cambridge. Buy Tickets Saturday 27 July 2019 14:00Book tick...

23/07/2019

We are delighted to hear we are the recipients of a university-wide 2019 Outstanding Student Contribution to Education Award! Thank you, Cambridge Centre for Teaching and Learning. We're happy to have our work on inclusive practices in access and outreach recognised. Team Untold Histories Museum Tours is Akshyeta Suryanarayan, Danika Parikh and Ananya Mishra. Thank you to our nominator and everyone who has supported the tours!

The OSCEAs recognise and celebrate the efforts made by our students in enhancing the excellence of Cambridge education. You can read more about them here:
https://www.cctl.cam.ac.uk/oscea/untold-histories

Our last tour of the summer is this Saturday! Book tickets for this award-winning experience here 👇😉
https://www.cambridgelive.org.uk/tickets/events/untold-histories-museum-tours

22/07/2019

“Corrective Art History”: the first exhibition of Native American women artists opened at the Minneapolis Institute of Art in June. 'Hearts of Our People' sounds like a tremendous achievement that provides a long overdue spotlight and platform.

https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2019/jun/13/native-american-female-artists-minneapolis-institute-of-art

Tickets can be purchased through the link: https://ticket.artsmia.org/products/hearts-of-our-people

In a groundbreaking new exhibition, the often unseen or uncredited works of Native American women are being celebrated

19/07/2019

Ahdaf Soueif wrote in the London Review of Books this week about why she resigned from the British Museum's Board of Trustees. It's a timely message about the need for museums to make ethical choices and respond to voices calling for reform.

The British Museum is one of the world’s few encyclopaedic museums: it tells the story of how civilisation was built;...

18/07/2019

Have you heard about Black History Walks? Based in London, they offer walks, talks and movie screenings on the African History of London. Tickets can be booked for their many exciting events - including Black History River Cruises! - through the link:

http://www.blackhistorywalks.co.uk