The Transatlantic Trade in African Ancestors

Mijikenda Memorial Statues (Vigango) and the Ethics of Collecting and Curating Non-Western Cultural Property

Bibliographic Data

ID2463391
AuthorsMonica L Udvardy, Monica Udvardy (University of Kentucky, corresponding author), Linda L Giles (Film Independent), John B Mitsanze
Year2003
Volume105
Issue3
Pages566-580
Publication date2003-09-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueAmerican Anthropologist (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0002-7294 • E-ISSN: 1548-1433
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1525/aa.2003.105.3.566
OpenAlexW2060384854
LanguageEN
Citations received16
References cited7

This article details obstacles to deterrence of the global trade in non-Western cultural properties and examines the ethics of Western collecting and curating of such property. We focus on the theft and global marketing of memorial statues (vigango) erected by the Mijikenda peoples of East Africa, relating an unusually well-documented case study, tracing two statues from their theft to their appearance in U.S. museums. We describe the large-scale extraction of such statues from Kenya and its impact on the Mijikenda, their quantity and distribution in U.S. museums, and local deterrence efforts. We call for greater activism by Western museum staffs, anthropologists, and other scholars to curb the trade in non-Western cultural properties. We recommend (1) tightening legal loopholes, (2) strengthening observance of international agreements and the U.S. and international museums' codes of ethics, (3) stepping up field efforts to deter theft, and (4) educating the public about this growing trade. [Keywords: East Africa, Mijikenda peoples, international trade in African cultural property, museum ethics

Cultural heritage · Cultural property · Deterrence theory · Intellectual property · Political science · Sociology · Anthropological Studies and Insights · Archaeological Research and Protection · Global Maritime and Colonial Histories · Law

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