Interning with Object Collections: Researching Model Houses and the Cultures Behind Them, Then and Today

As an intern in Object Collections (see my introductory blog post), something I’ve been researching is model houses from Asia. These objects are being redisplayed and when this happens research needs to be done. While the descriptions on the object database, which can be searched online, gives some information about these collections, like the materials they are made of and some background information, it can often be sparse or outdated.  The case text from the pre-existing display gave additional detail but was centred around a theme that enabled the objects to be compared. For example, several of the model houses I’ve been researching were grouped together under a common theme of thatched roofs.

Toda model house, PRM 1900.78.2 © Pitt Rivers Museum

I started my research by having a look at the model houses and the current information the museum has on them. Several were from the Toda people (a small indigenous group in the Nilgiri Hills in India); many brass models were from Sumatra in Indonesia (at least some being from the Minangkabau people); a few models were from the Ainu people in Hokkaido, Japan; and finally one model – which reminded me of a North American tipi in appearance – was from the Khanty people (who are also referred to by several other names in texts about them), living in Siberia.

As not all of the database entries for the models had reference photographs, I also got to experience how these were taken – the objects were carefully positioned against a plain light-grey background with a scale in centimetres placed in front of them to indicate how large the objects are. Taking the photographs, I had to aim to not distort this scale with the angle of the camera. Once these photographs are linked to the appropriate record, you will be able to see what the models look like, as well as read about them, using the online database.

Khanty model house photographed with scale bar,
PRM 1915.50.73 © Pitt Rivers Museum

Looking for books on houses from around the world, myself and my supervisor, Zena, had a browse of the Pitt Rivers’ Balfour Library, and with the help of the librarian tracked down a couple of books. These only had small sections of relevant information, however, so I used the internet (particularly JSTOR and Google Scholar) to find academic journal articles on the groups the model houses were from. I also browsed Google Images and Wikipedia to find recent photographs of the homes to see if the styles still existed unchanged today or had changed or disappeared over time (all of the models were donated between 1900-1924, so were all at least 93 years old, some at least 117).

I found myself drawn to aspects of the research which discussed the impact of tourism and interactions with other groups – for the Ainu, Japanese tourism had greatly impacted their lifestyle, with tourist villages being a primary source of income for some Ainu people and even – some felt – a way to maintain traditional aspects of their culture, but reductive portrayals in some of these villages and in mainstream Japanese media have had a large effect on how the Ainu are perceived. According to these articles, many Japanese citizens view the Ainu as ‘primitive’ and at one with nature, living exactly the same as they did centuries ago, rather than using modern transport vehicles, for example, among other things.

Ainu model house, PRM 1900.78.2 © Pitt Rivers Museum

I think there is a tendency to view indigenous peoples as wholly separated from other societies, living uninterrupted by country’s governments. Or, alternatively, gone – semi-mythical people of the past who are no longer in existence today. Researching these groups in the present day and in relation to others in their countries helps to disperse these distorted views and myths, and shed light particularly on how energy consumption often has a disproportionate impact on indigenous groups despite these groups gaining the least from this consumption.

For example, in one of the articles I read there was a recent photograph of a traditional Toda temple, which included a sign in English ‘NO ADMISSION (TEMPLE)’. This suggests regular interaction with English-speaking tourists. Government policy can also have a dramatic impact on the lives of indigenous minorities. For example, the lives of Khanty people has been greatly impacted by Soviet policy. There have been various projects to try and assimilate the Khanty into mainstream Soviet culture and most of their land from the 1960s onwards seized for a petroleum deposit.

Minangkabau model house, PRM 1960.5.22 .1 © Pitt Rivers Museum

In other areas of my research I read about construction and materials used, and the significance of certain elements of the dwellings and their locations, usually having both practical and religious reasons. For example, traditionally Ainu houses have only one window which is used for sacred purposes only – weapons are passed through it to be blessed for a hunt, and food caught during this hunt is then passed back through the window. The window is always positioned facing upstream as this is believed to be where the Gods reside. For the Khanty, river systems also have religious importance, believed to be created by divine ancestors who protect family hunting areas.

I would like to see the model houses placed alongside contemporary photos if the Museum is able to secure the copyright for these images (or find photographs without copyright).

Miranda Reilly
Museum Intern

References

Lisa Hiwasaki, ‘Ethnic Tourism in Hokkaido and the Shaping of Ainu Identity’ in Pacific Affairs, 2000 (on JSTOR)

Peter Jordan, Material Culture and Sacred Landscape: The Anthropology of the Siberian Khanty

Contemporary photographs of the Khanty (more can be found by searching ‘Khanty’ or ‘chum’ – the Russian name for the Khanty tent – on Google Images): Click this link and this one for two examples.

George Lugosi, ‘Mathematical Tourism in Siberia’ in The Mathematical Tourist, ed. Dirk Huylebrouck

Marjorie Mandelstam Balzer, ‘Ethnicity without Power: The Siberian Khanty in Soviet Society,’ in Slavic Review, 1983 (on JSTOR)

William A. Noble, ‘Toda Dwellings and Temples’ in Anthropos, 1966 (on JSTOR)

Visit to South Africa the Art of a Nation at the British Museum

On Thursday 8^th December, I visited the exhibition South Africa the Art of a Nation at the British Museum with members of the Museum Ethnographers Group. It is always interesting to get out of the office and visit other museums and exhibitions and I was particularly excited about seeing this exhibition given South Africa’s remarkable history. We were lucky enough to be given an insight into the curatorial process of creating the exhibition with one of its curator’s Chris Spring, curator of contemporary, sastern and southern Africa at the British Museum. The exhibition was very much a collaborative venture working closely with museums, art galleries and heritage centres in South Africa itself and contemporary South African artists.

The earliest item in the exhibition is a pebble found at Makapansgat with three circular indentations. The pebble did not originate in this location, with water-worn indentations suggesting that it was carried from water to Makapansgat by early humans. It has been suggested that the pebble is the first appreciation of art in that these early humans recognised a face in the weathered pebble and so showed an aesthetic appreciation of the pebble by collecting it. In contrast is the last room of the exhibition which display’s contemporary art pieces by the likes of Willie Bester and Lionel Davis acknowledging that South Africa’s history is not resolved by the end of apartheid but complexities still exist in the ‘New South Africa’ best demonstrated by white South African Candice Breitz video installation where she inserts herself as a passive presence in the Black South African soap opera Generations questioning her role in South African society as a white person. Most striking is the installation by Mary Sibande where the representation of her mother, her grandmother and her great grandmother through a mannequin dressed in Victorian costume alluding to the roles they had as maids in white South African households stands in juxtaposition to a second figure dressed in purple representing Sibande herself. The use of the colour purple is significant and refers to the purple dye used in the police water cannons during the anti-apartheid Purple Rain protests of 1989. In this installation Sibande is saying goodbye to her past and embracing or confronting her present and future. Overall the exhibition successfully displays the art of South Africa old and new in an interesting way, comparing and contrasting past and present and acknowledging the colourful and turbulent history of a nation.

Mary Sibande's installation, A Reversed Retrogress, Scene 1

Faye Belsey 

Assistant Curator

Museum Redisplay: Working on Watercraft

I am currently part of a team working on a new display of model boats. I feel privileged to be part of this creative process and thought you'd enjoy an insight into the display taking shape.

Conservators, Andrew and Jem, have examined each of the models, carrying out any necessary treatments before the boats go on display. Thanks to their patience and skill, I've often seen a dramatic transformation in the appearance of the models.

Below you can see two of the models Jem has recently researched so he could accurately position the sails.

Model reed boat, or balsa, like ones used on Lake Titicaca in Bolivia and Peru
PRM 1891.2.1 © Pitt Rivers Museum

Model skin-covered boat, or umiak, like ones used by Inuit people in Greenland
PRM 1884.81.40 © Pitt Rivers Museum

Keep an eye on this blog page and I will continue to share the display process with you.

When it is finished you will be able to see this display in the Court Gallery, on the ground floor of the Museum. The boat models will be housed in a brand new case, which has been possible thanks to the DCMS/ Wolfson Foundation's Museum and Galleries Improvement Fund.

Zena McGreevy
Senior Assistant Curator

Re-Modelling the Displays

Thanks to an award of nearly £40,000 from the DCMS/ Wolfson Foundation's Museum and Galleries Improvement Fund we are in the process of improving the Museum's displays of Air and Transport Models.

Steve Grafton Joinery are in the process of making new cases that are in keeping with the period style of the Museum, plus will enable visitors to clearly see all of the models on display. When finished these high quality cases will be in the Court Gallery on the ground floor and will be positioned to allow space for staff and volunteer guides to give introductory talks about the collections to visitors.

In the old model displays not all of the objects have a label. The new cases will include these to ensure visitors can easily find out information about everything on display.

I am currently  cataloguing, photographing, and researching the collection to ensure the information on the labels is up-to-date. At the same time, I am adding information and images to the relevant object records. This means, even if you cannot visit the Museum in person, you will still be able to see the models and access all the information about them via the online database.

The photos you can see below are some of the interesting models I am currently working with. On the  left is a wooden replica model of a troll cart from Great Yarmouth in England, in the middle a wooden model of a Chinese wheelbarrow used to transport people and goods, and on the right a Saami passenger reindeer sled.

Left to right: model troll cart PRM 1892.12.1, model wheelbarrow  PRM 1897.59.6, model reindeer sled PRM 1884.1.5 

© Pitt Rivers Museum

These three models entered the Museum collection at the end of the nineteenth century so all are definitely more than a hundred years old. During this time there have been many changes to transportation so even though I am English I had never heard of a Yarmouth troll cart. I was interested to discover this type of cart was specifically designed to fit through the narrow medieval streets, known as the Rows, of Great Yarmouth. Contained within the medieval walls of the city were 145 of these narrow Rows, many of which were destroyed when the city was bombed during World War Two. Most of the rows were only 90 to 150 centimetres wide so even the doors were made to open inwards so they didn't knock passers by and as you can imagine this space was too small for a regular horse and cart. The Yarmouth troll cart was twelve feet long and a maximum width of three feet six inches. With a short low back axle and wheels that ran under the body of the carriage they could be tipped on one end when not being used, consequently taking up very little space to store.

The earliest known wheelbarrows date back to Ancient China where they were used for carrying passengers as well as heavy loads. The wheel, as is the case in the model you can see above, was characteristically placed in the centre of the barrow. This design means the barrow takes the full weight of the load, the driver simply having to guide the vehicle. Whereas the European wheelbarrow with the wheel at the front splits the weight of the load between the vehicle and the driver. Consequently the Chinese wheelbarrow can carry a much heavier load, this successful design remained widely in use in China for short haul work well into the nineteen sixties.

The Saami people are indigenous to the Arctic regions incorporating parts of Finland, Norway, Sweden, and the Kola Peninsula of Russia. This style of sled is often called a ahkio or pulka and the shape of the design makes it both easy to pull and prevents it sinking in soft snow.  This remains a successful design that is often used by mountain rescue teams, although now more commonly a human or snowmobile towed sled than pulled by reindeer. The model shows the traditional reindeer harness, as well as the style of sled.

Keep an eye on this blog and I will let you know when these new displays are complete.

Zena McGreevy
Senior Assistant Curator

Temporary Exhibition: 'Preserving What is Valued'

Three arm ornaments from Africa with different methods of original repair
 © Pitt Rivers Museum

The Conservation Team are currently preparing a small temporary exhibition for a display case in the Museum's Lower Gallery showing objects that have been repaired by their original owners.

Given the nature of our work we study objects in great detail and part of our role is often to determine at what stage a repair to an object has been made. Has the repair been made while the object was still in use in the originating community, or by the original collector, or has it been repaired in the Museum?

When we find examples of repairs from originating communities we feel it gives the object a deeper resonance and is something we strive to preserve. Why was this object repaired by its original owners rather than replaced? Is it a fine example of craftsmanship or is it a sacred object? Were the materials it is made from scarce or expensive? These are just some of the questions we aim to explore in the exhibition.

We decided on the idea last summer when two of us attended the opening of an exhibition at the Japanese Embassy in London called 'Gold: All that Glisters - Japanese Gold Decoration.' One aspect of this exhibition focused on kintsugi, the Japanese method of repairing damaged or broken ceramics using urushi lacquer and, most commonly, gold powder. From early times, imperfection has been the subject of aesthetic appreciation in Japan, particularly with regard to the repair of valued items that have suffered in the course of their daily use. This idea of celebrating imperfection chimed with our attitude in Conservation and the repairs we had seen on objects from all parts of the world. We also felt that the theme of the exhibition fitted in well with the current Need, Make, Use Project, which has a focus on crafts skills and technology.

It isn't every day that Conservators have the opportunity to curate an exhibition based on their own idea and we started out by submitting an exhibition proposal to various museum committees for approval. We borrowed the working title 'Preserving What is Valued' from a book published by Canadian conservator Miriam Clavir (with her permission) and it seems to have stuck.

Having received the thumbs up, we then had to work around the schedule for the display case in the Lower Gallery used for temporary exhibitions. A gap was found for late June 2015 until January 2016, which we snapped up. At this point we also started to progress plans in collaboration with the Need, Make, Use Team for some tie-in events over the period of the exhibition. In the autumn we sent an email to all Collections staff to keep a look out for suitable objects.

We are fortunate that the Museum object database contains a search term 'repaired (local)', which refers to a repair made to the object by the originating community.

Database page showing the search term 'repaired (local)'

The term is either added to the record when the object is catalogued by the Collections Team or by Conservators when they work on the object.

Searching by this term initially produced approximately 500 records. We decided to only select object that were in storage, with the aim of producing a Museum Trail to guide visitors around some of the repaired objects on permanent display.

At this stage we were able to export the database information into a spread sheet.

Part of the working spread sheet

This enabled us to work through the list, physically finding and examining the objects to narrow the selection down further. It also made it easier to see if we had a good geographic spread.

We were down to 35 objects when we prepared a test layout. In the Conservation Lab we marked up a group of tables to the dimension of the display case and experimented with groupings. When working on the layout we considered how objects would need to be mounted in the display and how time-consuming it could be. As we work closely with the Museum Display Technicians, we are fully aware of their busy schedule and needed to make the display as uncomplicated as possible.

Test layout for the display in the Conservation Lab

Following the layout we are now down to 31 objects and have discussed the mounting requirements with Chris and Alan, who  will be working on the display. As we do not currently have any examples of kintsugi ceramics in the collection we have arranged to borrow one or two examples from a local private collector.

The selected Museum objects are now in the Conservation Lab being assessed, photographed, some mounts made and the text prepared. This stage will be completed by the end of May ready for the objects to be passed on to Chris and Alan to begin work on a mock-up of the display from the 1st June. All being well the exhibition 'Preserving What is Valued' will be installed by the 29th June. Please look out for the exhibition and the range of tie-in events we hope to have over autumn 2015.

Heather Richardson
Head of Conservation

Forthcoming New Displays: Woodwork

Pair of Egyptian shoes inlaid with mother-of-pearl, made by 1918;
PRM 1918.49.1 © Pitt Rivers Museum

Work is underway for a forthcoming display highlighting woodwork from around the world. This will include various decorative techniques. Here you can see some of the inlaid objects being considered for this display.

Hurdy gurdy PRM 1938.34.653 © Pitt Rivers Museum

The Egyptian shoes you can see above were made by 1918 and are inlaid with mother-of-pearl. On the left is a nineteenth century French hurdy-gurdy inlaid with ivory.

The table you can see below is from Papua New Guinea. The stand, in the shape of a marsupial, is decoratively carved with incisions inlaid with white mineral lime to emphasis the details.

Table PRM 1992.15.2
© Pitt Rivers Museum

Box lid, inlaid with wood veneers PRM 1989.44.157
© Pitt Rivers Museum

On the left you can see the lid from a Japanese box, where thin pieces of wood, or veneers, have been used to create a decorative pattern. This technique of applying pieces of veneer to create a pattern is known as marquetry.

I can't promise all these objects will be in the actual display.  There are so many interesting objects in the Museum collection that there is never room for everything. The VERVE team, who are working on this display, are busy deciding the final selection.

I do know team member Sian has spent time looking for plenty of woodworking examples from the reserve collections. This means this new display will provide you with the opportunity to see objects currently not on public view.

I am looking forward to seeing the results of their hard work in this interesting forthcoming display.

Zena McGreevy
Senior Assistant Curator

New Displays: Maori Wood Carving

New to display this
canoe baler
© Pitt Rivers Museum

I have been busy working on a new Museum display highlighting the art of Maori wood carving. I am pleased to let you know this display is now complete thanks to the effective teamwork of staff from the Collections, Conservation, and Technical Services Departments.

Most of the carvings, which are  are a selection of architectural carvings, canoe parts, paddles and treasure boxes, are from the reserve collections (26 of the 36 objects in the case).  So, if you can visit, this really is an opportunity to see objects new to display.

In Maori mythology the knowledge of wood carving was obtained from Tangaroa the god of the sea. Carving is a prestigious activity and the carvings regarded as prized possessions or taonga. If you do visit I encourage you to spend time looking at these cultural treasures.

New to display this
model sternpost
© Pitt Rivers Museum

This new display can be found on the ground floor of the Museum in the Court Gallery in case C.13.A.

If you are not able to visit in person you can still see the Maori carvings on the website using the online object database. To search for all the Maori wood carvings in the Museum just select 'Maori' for cultural group, 'carved' for process, and 'wood plant' for material.

Enjoy exploring this amazing collection!

Zena McGreevy
Senior Assistant Curator

New to display this paddle © Pitt Rivers Museum

The new display of Maori Wood Carving © Pitt Rivers Museum

New Displays: Forthcoming Maori Carving Case

Before conservation treatment showing
the old mount (left) and after treatment
(right), canoe ornament PRM 1902.80.2
© Pitt Rivers Museum

Members of staff from the Collections, Conservation, and Technical Services Departments are continuing to work together preparing a new display dedicated to the art of Maori wood carving. 

Work is progressing well. 

Conservation have finished checking over all of the carvings selected for display. This necessary and important work has involved stabilising any damage on the carvings, cleaning where required, and if necessary removing old mounts. 

Technicians are currently busy creating a mock-up of the display to finalise the design and make all the necessary display mounts.

The case mock-up in the design area © Pitt Rivers Museum

The designated display case has been emptied and is now ready for Technicians to panel out and paint. After painting the case will need to be left for about three weeks. This will allow any volatile organic compounds in the paint to off-gas so no harm is caused to the objects going on display.

I have been busy finding out about Maori wood carving and researching the objects. I am currently drafting the introductory text and individual object labels. I intend to circulate these to members of the Maori community, as well as subject specialists, to ensure the text in the display is accurate and informative. 

Heather, Head of Conservation
emptying the case ready for the
new display © Pitt Rivers Museum

Keep an eye on this blog site and I will let you know when the display is finished.
I am making sure any new information about the carvings is added to the appropriate records. Plus we are taking, and adding, up-to-date images of these carvings.

This will ensure, even if it is difficult to visit, you will still be able to see and read all about these carvings on the Museum website using the online object database.

Zena McGreevy

Senior Assistant Curator

Nigerian Masquerade Costume On Display

PRM 1914.26.8 © Pitt Rivers Museum

On display in the Museum is this impressive full length masquerade costume from the Cross River region of Nigeria. Percy Amaury Talbot collected this while working as a colonial district commissioner in southern Nigeria. The photograph you can see below, taken by Talbot circa 1912, shows a member of the Akpambe cult almost certainly wearing the same costume.

Talbot's photo, 1998.177.5.1 © Pitt Rivers Museum

Akpambe, now mainly known as Obasinjom, is still practised in parts of Nigeria and Cameroon. Similar costumes are still worn for masquerades performed to detect witchcraft, which is often thought to be the cause of misfortune. The wearer becomes possessed by the Obasinjom spirit and moves around in a gliding fashion searching out witches in the local community.

The carved wooden mask worn on top of the head represents a crocodile. This is an animal that, like a witch, is dangerous on land and water. Mirrors have been used to create the eyes and signify the divinatory power of the masquerader. The feathers you can see on the headdress are said to be significant because they enable Obasinjom to pursue witches in flight.

I think this is probably the earliest intact costume of this type and encourage you to see it for yourself. Find this on the ground floor of the Museum in a new display exploring the fascinating subject of Nigerian Masks and Masquerade.

Zena McGreevy
Senior Assistant Curator

To read more about this masquerade see:

Koloss, Hans-Joachim, 1985, 'Obasinjom among the Ejagham' in African Arts Volume 18, Number 2 (February), pages 63-65 & 98-101 & 103.

Roschenthaler, Ute, 2004, 'Transacting Obasinjom: The Dissemination of a Cult Agency in the Cross River Area' in Africa: Journal of the International African Institute Volume 74, Number 2, pages 241-276.

Talbot, Percy Amaury, 1912, In the Shadow of the Bush. London: W. Heinemann.