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American Museums and Colonial-Era Provenance: A Proposal

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 May 2023

Victoria S. Reed Open the ORCID record for Victoria S. Reed [Opens in a new window]
Victoria S. Reed*
Affiliation:
Sadler Senior Curator for Provenance, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA, United States
*
Email: vreed@mfa.org
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Abstract

As European nations address their legacy of colonialism, many museums in France, Germany, Great Britain, and elsewhere in Western Europe are examining the provenance of objects in their collections that were removed during periods of colonial occupation and, in some cases, have developed plans for their restitution. As of 2022, few museums in the United States have announced similar objectives. This article offers specific suggestions for American art museums to proceed proactively and transparently with colonial-era provenance research projects. I propose that museums identify objects in their collections that were displaced in one of two ways: either looted during a post-Napoleonic military conflict or stolen or traded by force under a period of colonial occupation. These works of art should be prioritized for provenance research and listed or otherwise made discoverable online. By listing these objects on their websites, museums will acknowledge the contentious histories of works of art in their collections and signal an openness to engaging with source communities, whether about the return of an object, loans, storage, display, educational initiatives, or other matters of care.

Keywords

Provenance researchRestitutionColonial-era provenanceMuseumsRepatriation
Type
Article
Information
International Journal of Cultural Property , Volume 30 , Issue 1 , February 2023 , pp. 1 - 21
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Copyright
© The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the International Cultural Property Society

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