Unfinished past: return, keep, or...?

Increasingly, the question is being asked whether museums should return collections to their countries of origin. Politicians, activists and communities from former European colonies advocate returning objects to their countries of origin. Museums themselves are also asking critical questions: how did these objects end up in their collections? And who do they actually belong to?

On display from 9 May

Debate on restitution

In this new exhibition, you step into the middle of this current debate on restitution. Discover the different perspectives, dilemmas and stories behind the objects. Dive into provenance studies and investigate for yourself how complex the questions around ownership and value can be. What future do you see for World Museum collections? Return, keep, or...?

Besides historical objects, contemporary art plays an important role in the exhibition. Artists and collectives Pansee Atta, Daniel Aguilar Ruvalcaba, Aram Lee, Zara Julius & Zoé Samudzi, Hande Sever & Gelare Khoshgozaran and Lifepatch give their critical, creative and emotional vision of the future of this cultural heritage.

Let yourself be taken into an exhibition that not only asks questions, but also invites you to help think about the answers. Visit Unfinished Pasts from 9 May 2025.

Image: Ivory statue of standing man with state sword (royal scepter) from collection NMVW. Culture: Woyo. Origin: Central-Africa / Angola / Cabinda (province)

Debate on looted art and restitution

The question of how certain objects ended up in museum collections and who these objects actually belong to is very much a live issue. Questions such as: is this looted art? And should it be returned? And to whom? Are increasingly being asked. During the time of colonialism, many works of art and objects ended up at various museums, including in Wereldmuseum's collection. The provenance of objects cannot always be determined with certainty and, moreover, it depends on how you define certain terms. Do we only call something looted art if it was actually confiscated, or also when it was sold under pressure? And what exactly do we mean by ‘coercion’? A lot of research is being done to answer these questions. One such study is the Joint provenance study colonial collections (Dutch). An investigation into the provenance of colonial objects from the collections of various museums.

Pressing Matter

Pressing Matter is a four-year international research programme on colonial heritage, funded by the National Science Agenda (NWA) and coordinated from VU University Amsterdam. The programme investigates how collections acquired during the colonial period help us better understand the past, but also the many ways in which this past lives on in the present. It focuses on questions around the ownership and value of these collections. But also the potential they have for contemporary society here in the Netherlands as well as in the countries of origin.

Unfinished past: return, keep, or...?