First Nations, Museums, Narrations

Alison K. Brown

ISBN 10: 0774827262 / ISBN 13: 9780774827263

Published by University of British Columbia Press, CA, 2015

About this Item

When the Franklin Motor Expedition set out across the Canadian Prairies to collect First Nations artifacts, brutal assimilation policies threatened to decimate these cultures and extensive programs of ethnographic salvage were in place. Despite having only three members, the expedition amassed the largest single collection of Prairie heritage items currently held in a British museum.In this book, Alison K. Brown draws together the multiple narratives that make up this encounter, consulting descendants of the collectors and members of the affected First Nations and reviewing both expedition images and the artifacts themselves. In doing so, she explores the context within which the collection was made as well as the complex relationships between museums, anthropologists, and First Nations.Accessibly written and vigorously researched, First Nations, Museums, Narrations raises timely questions about the role of collections in the twenty-first century and considers the way forward for indigenous peoples and the museums that house their cultural treasures.

Seller Inventory # LU-9780774827263

Bibliographic Details

• Title: First Nations, Museums, Narrations
• Publisher: University of British Columbia Press, CA
• Publication Date: 2015
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0774827262
• ISBN 13: 9780774827263
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: New
• Weight: 480 grams

About this title

Synopsis

When the Franklin Motor Expedition set out across the Canadian Prairies to collect First Nations artifacts, brutal assimilation policies threatened to decimate these cultures and extensive programs of ethnographic salvage were in place. Despite having only three members, the expedition amassed the largest single collection of Prairie heritage items currently housed in a British museum. Through the voices of descendants of the collectors and members of the affected First Nations, this book looks at the relationships between indigenous peoples and the museums that display their cultural artifacts, raising timely and essential questions about the role of collections in the twenty-first century.

About the Author

Alison K. Brown is a lecturer in anthropology at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland.