Collecting and Empire Object Trail Leaflet British Museum

Collecting and empire

Follow the trail Exploring Collecting and empire

The British Museum was founded in 1753 and its history and collection are intimately linked to that of the British Empire. From around 1500 to the mid- 20th century, a number of European countries established and maintained overseas empires – Britain’s was the largest. A substantial part of the wealth of the British Empire came from the transatlantic slave trade and the colonial exploitation of people and resources.

This trail highlights objects predominantly acquired during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It shows the different, complex and sometimes controversial journeys of objects to the Museum. Often, objects were collected frst by individuals or organisations, sometimes passing through several owners before coming to the Museum.

This trail takes in several galleries, most of which are on the Ground foor. Viewing all the objects, in the order listed, will take around 60–70 minutes. When you visit each object you’ll fnd more information there about how the Museum acquired it.

Previous page: A sculpture from the Nereid Monument, Turkey, about 380 BC.

Dance costume (Bwaii ni Mwaie), Kiribati, various dates 1982–2017. 1 2

Lion statues of The Exekias Amphora Amenhotep III Room 13 Room 4 This amphora by the ancient In 1829 Lord Prudhoe, the Athenian potter and painter Duke of Northumberland, Exekias came to the Museum arranged the shipment of in 1836. It was purchased these lions to England from in Paris at the posthumous Jebel Barkal, Sudan. He sale of works belonging donated them to the British to the collector and diplomat Museum in 1835. Edmé-Antoine Durand (1768–1835).

3 4

The Nereid Monument Statue of Ankhrenepnefer Room 17 Room 4 The Ottoman Sultanate in This temple statue was Constantinople (Istanbul) excavated by the Egypt authorised Charles Fellows’ Exploration Fund in 1883 excavations at Xanthos and and presented to the British his subsequent removal of Museum. It was a diplomatic parts of the Nereid monument, gift from the Egyptian ruler, a fourth-century BC tomb. Khedive Mohamed Tawfq Pasha (1852–92). 5 6

Ancestral screen Palace door and lintel from Nigeria from Nigeria Room 25 Room 25 This is one of 11 ancestral This door, carved for the screens entrusted by palace at Ikere in Nigeria, was Kalabari chiefs to a British displayed in 1924 at the British administrative offcer between Empire Exhibition, Wembley. It 1914 and 1916, to save was presented to the Museum them from destruction by the Ogoga (king) of Ikere by a local fundamentalist who was given a European-style Christian movement. throne made in Britain in return.

7 8

Military tunic from Sudan Potlatch Kwakwaka’wakw Room 25 mask from Canada This offcer’s tunic was taken Room 26 from the battle of Atbara as Seized by the Canadian spoils of war in 1898, following authorities during a potlatch the defeat of Sudanese ceremony in 1921, then illegal nationalist forces by an Anglo- under Canadian law, this mask Egyptian army. The widow of was sold to a private collector the commander of the British who eventually donated it to Brigade at Atbara subsequently the British Museum. presented it to the Museum. 9 10

West African drum, Puppets and masks collected in Virginia from Java Room 26 Room 1 This drum, made by the Sir Stamford Raffes, who Akan people, Ghana, was established Singapore as a taken to Virginia during the British port, collected large period of the slave trade and numbers of objects, including came to the British Museum those on display here, while as part of its founding serving as Lieutenant- collection, bequeathed by Governor of Java in the 1810s. Sir Hans Sloane.

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Soup plate from China Shield from New South Room 1 Wales, Australia Commodore Lord Anson of Room 1 the British East India Company The details of the acquisition circumnavigated the world of this shield are not known in 1743. He commissioned but it is likely that it was a porcelain dinner service, collected in the early days of including this plate, on a visit the British colony at Sydney to Canton in 1747. from 1788 and received at the Museum by 1817. 13 14

Figure from Polynesia Pukara, a painting from Room 2 Western Australia This sculpture was acquired Room 24 by the London Missionary Pukara, featuring ancestral Society when they converted Dreaming sites, was painted the people of Mangareva, for sale in 2013 by senior French Polynesia, Aboriginal men of the Pila to Christianity in the Nguru (Spinifex people) mid-19th century. of the desert region of Western Australia.

15 16

Dance costume Milk vessel from Somalia, from Kiribati Room 24 Room 24 Diana Powell-Cotton, an Members of the Kiribati ethnographic collector and community in Britain donated photographer, purchased this items to enable the Museum vessel along with other items to display a complete dance during a feldtrip to Italian costume as part of a Somaliland in 1934–35. co-curated project. She subsequently donated it to the Museum. Ground foor

Level 1 33a 33 33

North Level 1 33a 33 33 stairs Montague North Place entrance stairs Level -1 Montague 33b Place entrance North Level stairs -1 & 0 33b Level 0 North stairs 30 15 16 14 30 West 24 26 27 stairs 8 9 East 24 26 27 29a 29b Down West to 25 stairs stairs 20

Level 0 29a 29b East 10 stairs 21 20 18 19 4 11 21 49 Level 0 Level 0 1 12 18 19 22 49 Level 0 1 18b 3

22 18 17 23 48 1 18b 18a 18 17 23 48 1 16

18a 10 7 4 1 16 18 15 Great Court 10 7 4 1 1 18 15 Great Court 14

2 13 6 South 2 13 14 stairs

South 12 6 3 13 6 stairs 2 2a 12 6 3 55

2a 55 Level 0 Main entrance Great Russell Street

Main entrance Great Russell Street

1 Room numbers Stairs This map shows the locations of the objects in this trail. 1 Trail stop number Lift Lower foor

Level -1 Up to 21 Level -2

Up to 24 78 West 25 6 Level -2 stairs 5 7 77 25 25 80 79 Level -1 Level -2 Level -2

Level -1Level -1 Level -1

Collecting and empire

Follow the trail Look out for this graphic to help you fnd the objects. Short of time?

If you only have half an hour, focus on these three objects:

1 Lion statues of Amenhotep III Room 4 In 1829 Lord Prudhoe, the Duke of Northumberland, arranged the shipment of these lions to England from Jebel Barkal, Sudan. He donated them to the British Museum in 1835.

9 West African drum, collected in Virginia Room 26 This drum, made by the Akan people, Ghana, was taken to Virginia during the period of the slave trade and came to the British Museum as part of its founding collection, bequeathed by Sir Hans Sloane.

15 Dance costume from Kiribati Room 24 Members of the Kiribati community in Britain donated items to enable the Museum to display a complete dance costume as part of a co-curated project.

The Museum regularly lends objects to other institutions around the world. This means that from time to time, some of the featured objects may be temporarily removed from display. Further objects will be added to this selection in the future as the result of ongoing research and collaborative work.

Ancestral screen from Nigeria, 19th century.

01/2021