Restitution as Reactivation? Sound, Memory, and Diasporic Dialogues in the Jean Jenkins Collection

Revitalization, rematriation, re-entanglement, and resocialization, are just a few of a growing number of concepts that scholars have adopted to rethink contemporary research practices and restitution processes related to archives and museum collections worldwide. While these concepts may offer different perspectives on questions of restitution, representation, and research ethics, they all testify to the need for a shift in methodological and theoretical approaches toward more equitable, community-centered frameworks that seamlessly integrate documentary, collaborative, and creative endeavors.

During my time at IASH, I have sought to reflect on these issues by focusing on the Jean Jenkins’ sound collection from Eritrea and Ethiopia. Housed at the National Museum of Scotland, this collection comprises an extensive set of musical recordings made by American curator and broadcaster Jean Jenkins in Eritrea and Ethiopia—then part of the Ethiopian Empire—between 1962 and 1969. While this collection represents an important source for reconstructing the memory, (dis)continuities, and transformations of the musical heritage of Eritrea and Ethiopia at a specific historical moment, during my time at IASH it has also emerged as a powerful platform for engaging Eritrean and Ethiopian communities in Scotland—allowing new dialogues across different actors, generations, time, and space to surface.

In my talk, I will illustrate this process and discuss the challenges that have emerged along the way. I will contextualize the project within my broader research trajectory and explore the notion of reactivation as a potential alternative form of restitution—not understood as physical return, but as an ethical and community-centered engagement with sound archives today, particularly within a diasporic context.