Dear colleagues! Could you name any books on the establishment and evolution of the leading world museums of Oriental culture? I mean the Eastern collections of the British Museum and the Victoria and Albert in London, the Durham University Oriental Museum, Guimet and Chernuschi in Paris, the Russian Museum of Oriental Art in Moscow etc.? I would be much obliged. :)
Hi Kirill
It's not a book, but maybe will be useful:
J. Kamocki 1998; Z dziejów Działu Etnografii Pozaeuropejskiej Muzeum Etnograficznego w Krakowie, "Kwartalnik Historii Nauki i Techniki", 43(3-4): 87-110.
http://bazhum.muzhp.pl/media//files/Kwartalnik_Historii_Nauki_i_Techniki/Kwartalnik_Historii_Nauki_i_Techniki-r1998-t43-n3_4/Kwartalnik_Historii_Nauki_i_Techniki-r1998-t43-n3_4-s87-110/Kwartalnik_Historii_Nauki_i_Techniki-r1998-t43-n3_4-s87-110.pdf
Best Regards
Maciej Wawrzczak
Hi, Maciej, thank you for the hyperlink! The only problem is that the article is in Polish. I read a number of European languages, but no Polish... :)
Hi Kirill
The author of this article wrote about a history of a collection of non-european "artfacts", which are in the Etnographic Museum in Cracow. He described this history from 19th century to 80s of last century. He describes a political background in Poland and a perturbations of this collections (trouble with showing up, problems with place, problems with authorities).
Best Regards
Maciej Wawrzczak
Hi, Kat, thank you indeed for the articles! They are quite a propos, I think.
Dear Kirill,
You might find this link useful:
http://www.matk.gr/en/
It is a small Oriental museum in Corfu. They list their publications and you might find something there.
Dear Fotini, thank you indeed! :) You mean the museum situated in the Palace of St Michael and St George in Kerkyra! The former palace of British High Commissioners. I visited it a year ago and was impressed. It is not that small, mind you. :)
HI Kirill,
This may not be as specific as you were looking for, yet could lead you a bit in the right direction with regards to the origins of the British Museum and the increase of its contents:
Anumber of old publications listing the contents of the British Museum are available online via Biodiversity Heritage Library, archive.org or Google Books. Some go over the rooms one by one, and others focus on the Zoological part only. I also traced back Sloane's will - in which the basis of the BM is laid out - online.
As my research is focussed on marine mollusca I can't really speak for the eastern collections, yet you may find a thing or two here and there which could provide added value.
An account of the history of the British Museum - from Sloane up to the split in the 1880's (and further on focussed on the Natural History museum only) can be found in Stearn, W. T. (1998) The Natural History Museum at South Kensington (ISBN 13: 978-0-565-09030-2). This book - which I highly recommend in order to understand the time context and history of the original "British Museum" - is available from the shop at the Nat. His. Museum (NHMUK) on the right hand side from the main entrance.
A few references I have on harddrive and which I could provide should you be interested:
[Sloane, H.] (1753) The Will of Sir Hans Sloane, Bar. Deceased. London (Virtuoso). pp. 48.
Dodsley, R. (1762) The general contents of the British museum, with remarks, serving as a directory in viewing that noble cabinet. The 2d ed., with additions and improvements, and a complete index. London :Printed for R. and J. Dodsley, in Pall-Mall, MDCCLXII.
[Anonymous] (1814) Synopsis of the contents of the British Museum. Seventh Edition. London (Cox & Bailis). pp. 126.
Gray, J. E. (1840) Synopsis of the contents of the British Museum, ed. 41.
Gray, J. E. (1840) Synopsis of the contents of the British Museum, ed. 42, 2nd printing, pp. 106-156. [Nov. 1840]
Gray, J. E. (1841) Synopsis of the contents of the British Museum, ed. 43. London (Woodall). pp. 78-130, 159-162.
KIndest,
Chris
My pleasure, Kirill.
Allow me to add one more reference, available from the Biodiversity Heritage Library (http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/)
Wilkins, G. L. (1953) A Catalogue and Historical Account of the Sloane Shell Collection. Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History) Historical Series. Vol. 1, No. 1., pp. 1-48, pls. 1-12.
Whilst the shells will be of no interest to you, the historical account contains details on Sloane's network and suppliers, and could provide insight in who and where he (possibly) obtained oriental artifacts from. I had to make a mind map from that article in order to understand it all, but it could be valuable to you as where the origin of the BM (and its contents) is concerned.
Enjoy!
Chris