Rethinking the Oceanic collections of the Toulouse Museum: between history and new ethics
Type de matériel :
21
The Oceanic collections of the museum of Toulouse were formed in a way similar to those of other French museums of natural history. At the beginning of the 19th century, museums became interested in objects that circumnavigators, like Gaston de Roquemaurel in Toulouse, brought back to their hometown. Then, followed a period of relative indifference, during which the display of such artefacts remained mostly unchanged. In the early 2000s, however, an era of (museum) renovation began. In Toulouse, researchers engaged in documentation and collection studies, thus improving the knowledge about objects and their (historical) trajectories. In spite of this, the museological choices implemented in the renovated gallery did not seem to convey these research results or favored the understanding of Oceanic artefacts. This historical and analytical study aims at the rethinking of museography in Toulouse’s museum. What interpretation of Oceanic collections prevails today and which perspectives emerge from it?
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