Ennigaldi, a black, African princess, is credited with collecting and curating Mesopotamian artefacts with origins spanning 1,500 years. She was a high priestess in the Neo-Babylonian Empire in the 6th century BCE, and she probably had little idea of the controversy that setting up the first museum would cause.
Decolonising museums starts with a nuts-and-bolts examination of exactly what museums are for. The UK group Museum Detox has led the way in proving that colonialism and the very existence of museums are invidiously intertwined. However, the absences, racist stereotypes and particularly ...
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