While visiting the AfricaMuseum, would you like to learn more about the museum's renovation? Or are you curious about the origins of the museum pieces? If so, the AfricaMuseum offers you three tours at ErfgoedApp that will allow you to discover the museum in a new way.
Experts speaking
In this tour, you will be guided by the experts who collaborated on the museum's renovation. The museum director, a historian, an archaeologist and a biologist will introduce you to their vision and guide you through the various museum rooms, while artists Aimé Mpane and Jean-Pierre Müller will tell you how their artworks confront the colonial sculptures in the museum.
Origins trail
In the Provenance Trail, you will search for the origins of various objects on display in the AfricaMuseum by scanning them with the ErfgoedApp. The tour ties in perfectly with the current discussion about the restitution or return of objects that were unlawfully removed from their country of origin during the colonial period. An investigation is currently underway to determine the origin of collection pieces so that illegally obtained objects can be returned to the Congolese people.
"The time has come for the return of the objects unlawfully removed from Congo, because they belong to the Congolese people" - Secretary of State for Science Policy Thomas Dermine
One of the objects you can scan with the app is this mask. It was donated to the museum in 1913 by the Compagnie du Kasai. This company, originally engaged in rubber extraction, later turned to palm oil and mining. To extract these raw materials, it waged a veritable reign of terror in the Congolese region of Kasai. Through exhibitions and donations of objects such as this mask, the Compagnie du Kasai tried to polish its image. Like the many other objects on this tour, the mask gives a good idea of the sometimes complex provenance history of the museum's collection.
Peerless Art
In a separate museum room, discover the artistic production of masks, statues, ivory carvings as well as utensils. Scan the object with the ErfgoedApp and learn more about the origin and function of these collection pieces.
Interested in exploring the AfricaMuseum with the ErfgoedApp ? Then book your tickets through the museum's website and download the ErfgoedApp in the App Store or via Google Play. More information can be found via these links:
