Tessera

@hebaabdelgawad.bsky.social

Ben Miller @extinctmonsters.bsky.social · 9mo ago

Genuinely impressed by how the small Hunterian and Horniman museums have managed to position themselves as agents for positive social change while owning up to their monstrous origins.

Display of contemporary Egyptian women’s garments under the title All Eyes On Her.

Unwrapping
Colonial Violence
During Britain's occupation of Egypt (1886-1956), foreign archaeologists and collectors such as Frederick Horniman treated mummified ancient Egyptians like objects.
Divine mummified Egyptians were taken, and used in medicine and brown pigment for paintings. They were publicly unwrapped, ignoring the religious beliefs of the dead.
Their skulls were also measured to justify the racist idea that superior ancient Egyptians are not related to less civilized' modern Egyptians.
The Horniman partnered with Egypt's Dispersed Heritage project, centring Egyptian views and voices through comics and work with community schools. Researcher Heba Abd el Garad and Egyptian artist Nasser Junior created these comic strips, inspired by an 1897
'unwrapping lecture' held by Frederick, and the coffin displayed here.
This comic challenges the disrespectful

The invasion of Benin City In 1897, British soldiers violently attacked the Kingdom and its people, set the royal palace on fire and stole thousands of priceless and sacred artefacts. These were purchased by European museums, some directly from officers who stole them.
Between 1897 and 1899, the Horniman bought 72 items including bronzes, ivory and textiles. Most pieces in this display were looted.
For decades, Nigeria has called for their return. In November 2022, the Horniman transferred their ownership to Nigeria's National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM). Some have been repatriated (physically returned) to Nigeria, whilst others are here on loan.
After the invasion, Benin City was rebuilt, and its cultural traditions continue.

The Hunterian Museum traces developments in surgery from ancient times to the present day. It takes its name from the anatomist and surgeon, John Hunter (1728-1793).
Hunter's collection of specimens was bought by the British government in 1799 and transferred to the care of the Company of Surgeons, overseen by an independent board of trustees. It formed the foundation of the Museum which grew to be one of the world's most important collections of anatomy and natural history.
The Museum contains thousands of specimens of human remains, gathered before modern standards of consent were established.
We recognise the debt owed to those people - named and unnamed - who in life and death have helped to advance medical knowledge.

Dr. Melissa Funke @melissakafunke.bsky.social · 9mo ago

Our friends from Egypt's Dispersed Heritage, along with Millennial 3al A5er and and the Horniman Museum and Gardens have written a 🔥 post on the treatment of mummified remains for @peoplingthepast.bsky.social . Find it here (including the Arabic version): peoplingthepast.com/2025/10/31/b...

Blog #112: “What Should You Do When You Encounter One of Our Egyptian Mummified Ancestors?” A 12-Point Manifesto on How to Deal with Egyptian Mummified Ancestral Remains with Egypt’s Dispersed Heritag...

In this week’s blog post, we feature the work of our Egyptian colleagues from the Egypt’s Dispersed Heritage project. Here, they offer us a 12-point manifesto which highlights the ways …

peoplingthepast.com

Sabrina Higgins @sabrinahiggins.bsky.social · 9mo ago

Honoured that @peoplingthepast.bsky.social gets to host this absolute 🔥🔥🔥 manifesto on the treatment of Egyptian mummified ancestral remains written by our colleagues at Egypt’s Dispersed Heritage Project. This is a must read! peoplingthepast.com/2025/10/31/b...

In this week’s blog post, we feature the work of our Egyptian colleagues from the Egypt’s Dispersed Heritage project. Here, they offer us a 12-point manifesto which highlights the ways …

peoplingthepast.com

Peopling The Past @peoplingthepast.bsky.social · 9mo ago

In this week’s #PeoplingBlog post, our Egyptian colleagues from the Egypt’s Dispersed Heritage project offer us a 12-point manifesto which highlights the ways in which the public can treat Egyptian mummified ancestral remains with dignity and respect peoplingthepast.com/2025/10/31/b... 🧵 /1

Peopling The Past @peoplingthepast.bsky.social · 9mo ago

This manifesto is a collective Egyptian attempt to tell the world how to treat our Egyptian mummified ancestral remains with respect; not as museum pieces or tourist curiosities, but as human bodies that once belonged to real people, all of whom have contemporary Egyptian descendant grandchildren /2

Members of the writing team pose for a selfie