Repatriation of museum objects from national collections to local communities in Norway

Authors

  • Nanna Løkka Telemarksforskning

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5617/nm.6344

Keywords:

cultural heritage, heritage management, heritage politics, repatriation, regionalization

Abstract

In this article, I examine ongoing debates in Norway on repatriation
of cultural heritage in the form of antiquities. The focus is however not on
international debates regarding colonial looting or indigenous’ rights to manage
their own heritage as is usually the case within this topic, but rather on local claims
for the return of cultural treasures from national museums. In cases such as those
examined here, local institutions (museums and churches) have requested central
museums to return cultural antiquities to the local community claiming that this is
where they originally were in use and therefore belong. In this article I take a closer
look at the arguments given by the local and the central stakeholders in heritage
management. The arguments and practice reveal ideologies and ethical principles
at work within the sector, but also show how these are constantly shifting. Further
on, I discuss this practice in relation to Norwegian heritage politics.

Author Biography

Nanna Løkka, Telemarksforskning

Ph.D. Senior Researcher

Issue

Section

Articles