Egypt Past and Present: A Community Workshop Series at National Museums Scotland
Resource type
Conference paper (unpublished)
Abstract
Unequal power dynamics between UK museums and Egyptian communities are rooted in colonial histories that enabled foreign collectors and institutions to acquire, interpret, and display Egyptian heritage with little to no Egyptian input. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, museums collected ancient Egyptian objects that appealed to European audiences, disconnecting ‘ancient Egypt’ from the rest of Egyptian history. These collections do not accurately reflect the relationship between Egypt past and present. As part of wider efforts to address these legacies, National Museums Scotland is organising a series of workshops fostering dialogue and collaboration with the Egyptian community in Scotland, with support from Glasgow Archaeological Society. This project aims to ensure that Egyptian voices and perspectives are represented in the museum’s understanding of Egyptian heritage and the ways in which it presents its collections.
The first workshop, held at the National Museum of Scotland, was designed as an open and welcoming environment for participants and served as an introduction to the series. It gave participants an opportunity to respond to the museum’s Ancient Egypt Rediscovered gallery and to directly engage with ancient and contemporary objects outside the constraints of the displays. A found writing activity led by Edinburgh-based Egyptian writer and ceramicist Mohamed Tonsy invited creative responses to these objects and their colonial histories. The second workshop was held at the National Museums Collection Centre, providing an opportunity for participants to interact with Egyptian collections in storage, especially post-pharaonic collections and contemporary artworks, and provide feedback on potential future displays and collecting. In the third workshop, Tonsy will lead the participants in making their own zines. He will also collaborate with them to materialise their voices and perspectives on Egyptian heritage in a ceramic commission as a tangible expression of the project. In line with the NMS Approach to Participatory Practice, participants are recognised as experts based on their lived experience and are remunerated for their time.
Event title
Beyond Egyptology: Addressing the Diversity of Egyptian Collections in UK Museums workshop
Rights statement
In Copyright
Keywords