Jaillet, Théano

Cannes, from Ginoux de la Coche to 2020. Enhancing an Oceanian collection stuck in time - 2021.


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In the 19th century, Cannes was a cosmopolitan city of the French Riviera, a vacation destination and a transit point for travelers returning from the Orient. By chance, objects from the Pacific can be found in a prestigious collection of Mediterranean and oriental antiquities donated to the city of Cannes in 1877 by the Dutch baron Lycklama. Result of the gatherings of the traveler and journalist Edmond de Ginoux de la Coche, these Oceanic objects formed the core of a collection which has not stopped growing since. This article will retrace the history of the entry of Oceania into Cannes museums and proposes to highlight certain key stages in the enrichment of the collection. Alongside Polynesia, which is particularly honored in the permanent exhibition, islands from all over the Pacific Ocean will be mentioned during this voyage of discovery of the masterpieces kept at the musée des explorations du monde.