Literature in our Collection
(M-Z)

Simpson, Moira G.: Making Representations. Museums in the Post-Colonial Era, London, New York 2001, ISBN 0415067863

Table of Contents        ¦         Cover Text        ¦         Book Review

Table of Contents

Illustrations -viii-

Acknowledgements -x-

Introduction -1-

Part 1 Cultural reflections -7-

History revisited -15-

The controversy continues -35-

Voices of authorship -51-

Part 2 The 'new' museum paradigm -71-

Remembering the homeland -81-

From treasure house to museum ... and back -107

Native American museums and cultural centres -135-

Part 3 Human remains and cultural property: the politics of control -171-

Bones of contention: human remains in museum collections -173-

Cultural artefacts: a question of ownership -191-

The repatriation debate: an international issue -215-

Conclusion: turning the page -247-

Epilogue -267-

Appendix: interviews -301-

Bibliography -305-

Legislation and treaties -324-

Index -325-

Cover Text

'Making Representation' explores the complex issues of cross-cultural interpretation within the context of museums and the impact of increasing collaboration between museums and communities. First published in 1996, the book has been revised and expanded with a new epilogue which describes the most recent developments in heritage preservation and museum repatriation policy in Australia, the USA and the UK at the birth of the new millennium. Responses to controversial exhibitions in recent years have demonstrated the dissatisfaction felt by many indigenous peoples and ethnis groups at the ways in which the western museum traditionally represented their cultures and excluded them from the process of interpretation and display. Native Americans Aboriginal Australians and other indigenous peoples are now demanding that human remains, sacred objects and other items of cultural property be removed from display and repatriated. Drawing upon the experiences of museum staff and communities across the globe, 'Making Representations' examines the development of new forms of museological practice. The author also examines the growth of museums, cultural centres and Aboriginal Keeping Places being established by indigenous and immigrant communitites as they take control of the interpretive process and challenge the traditional role of the museum. This revised edition analyses the strumbling responses within Australia to calls for Aboriginal reconciliation. State and Federal Government reactions to Aboriginal demands for the protection of sacred sites and the repatriation of human remains. It describes the UK research which analysed museum policies and staff attitudes and which contributed to the publication of repatriation and restitution guidelines. Finally, it summarizes the impact of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act in the USA, ten years after implementation.