Why museums are returning cultural treasures | Chip Colwell

譯者: Lilian Chiu 審譯者: Yanyan Hong

A confession:

我要懺悔：

I am an archaeologist and a museum curator,

我既是一名考古學家， 又是博物館策展人，

but a paradoxical one.

但是是很矛盾的那種。

For my museum, I collect things,

因為我在為我的博物館收藏東西同時，

but I also return things back to where they came from.

我也會把東西歸還到它們的所屬之地。

I love museums because they're social and educational,

我熱愛博物館，因為它們 具有社會意義和教育意義，

but I'm most drawn to them because of the magic of objects:

但最吸引我的，是藏品本身的魔力：

a one-million-year-old hand axe,

一百萬年歷史的手持式斧頭，

a totem pole, an impressionist painting

圖騰柱、印象派畫作，

all take us beyond our own imaginations.

這些都能帶我們到 我們想像之外的地方。

In museums, we pause to muse, to gaze upon our human empire of things

在博物館，我們會停下來沉思，

凝視著這些代表著人類帝國的物品，

in meditation and wonder.

一邊冥想，一邊感到驚奇。

I understand why US museums alone

我能理解為什麼光是美國的博物館

host more than 850 million visits each year.

每年就能有八億五千萬參訪人次。

Yet, in recent years, museums have become a battleground.

但，近年來，博物館 卻已經變成了戰場。

Communities around the world don't want to see their culture

世界各地的社區 都不想看到他們的文化

in distant institutions which they have no control over.

落入一些遙遠的機構手中， 而他們無法對其進行掌控。

They want to see their cultural treasures

它們希望能看到它們的文化寶藏

repatriated, returned to their places of origin.

能夠送返回國，物歸原主。

Greece seeks the return of the Parthenon Marbles,

希臘希望大英博物館能夠將 額爾金大理石雕塑，

a collection of classical sculptures held by the British Museum.

這一系列的經典雕塑如數歸還。

Egypt demands antiquities from Germany.

埃及要求德國歸還它們的古董文物。

New Zealand's Maori want to see returned

紐西蘭的毛利人希望各地的博物館

ancestral tattooed heads from museums everywhere.

能歸還祖傳的文物： 刺有花紋的人頭。

Yet these claims pale in comparison to those made by Native Americans.

然而，與美國原住民的要求比起來， 這些要求顯得微不足道。

Already, US museums have returned more than one million artifacts

美國博物館已經歸還了 超過一百萬件手工藝品

and 50,000 sets of Native American skeletons.

以及五萬組美國原住民骸骨。

To illustrate what's at stake, let's start with the War Gods.

若要說明到底是什麼如此重要， 咱們先從戰神開始。

This is a wood carving

這是一個木雕，

made by members of the Zuni tribe in New Mexico.

由新墨西哥祖尼部落的成員雕刻而成。

In the 1880s, anthropologists began to collect them

在 1880 年， 人類學家開始收集這些木雕，

as evidence of American Indian religion.

作為美國印第安宗教存在的證據。

They came to be seen as beautiful,

大眾也漸漸認可了 這些木雕的美麗之處，

the precursor to the stark sculptures of Picasso and Paul Klee,

將它們視為畢卡索 和保羅克利雕塑的前身，

helping to usher in the modern art movement.

協助引領現代藝術運動。

From one viewpoint, the museum did exactly as it's supposed to

從一個觀點來看，對於戰神，

博物館盡到了它的本分，

with the War God.

It helped introduce a little-known art form

那就是將這些鮮為人知的藝術形式

for the world to appreciate.

介紹給全世界欣賞。

But from another point of view,

但從另一個觀點來看，

the museum had committed a terrible crime of cultural violence.

博物館犯下了可怕的罪行：文化暴力。

For Zunis, the War God is not a piece of art,

對祖尼人來說， 戰神並不是一件藝術品，

it is not even a thing.

它甚至不是一件物品。

It is a being.

它是一種生命的存在。

For Zunis, every year,

對祖尼人來說，每年，

priests ritually carve new War Gods,

牧師們會根據儀式雕刻新的戰神，

the Ahayu:da,

Ahayu:da，

breathing life into them in a long ceremony.

在漫長的儀式中，賦予它們生命。

They are placed on sacred shrines

它們被供奉在神聖的神壇上，

where they live to protect the Zuni people

就在那兒，守護祖尼人，

and keep the universe in balance.

維持宇宙的平衡。

No one can own or sell a War God.

沒有人能夠擁有或販售戰神。

They belong only to the earth.

它們只屬於地球。

And so Zunis want them back from museums

所以，祖尼人希望博物館 能夠將它們歸還，

so they can go to their shrine homes

這樣它們才能回到它們的家：神壇，

to fulfill their spiritual purpose.

履行它們的神聖使命。

What is a curator to do?

策展人要做什麼？

I believe that the War Gods should be returned.

我相信，戰神應該被歸還。

This might be a startling answer.

這可能是個很驚人的答案。

After all, my conclusion contradicts the refrain

畢竟，我的結論和世界上最著名的

of the world's most famous archaeologist:

考古學家的名言抵觸：

"That belongs in a museum!"

「那是屬於博物館的。」

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

is what Indiana Jones said, not just to drive movie plots,

印第安納瓊斯說的話， 並不只是為了電影情節發展，

but to drive home the unquestionable good of museums for society.

也是明確說明了對於社會， 博物館有著無庸置疑的美善，

I did not come to my view easily.

這種觀點不是輕易就形成的。

I grew up in Tucson, Arizona,

我在亞歷桑納州的土桑市長大，

and fell in love with the Sonoran Desert's past.

並愛上了索諾拉沙漠的過去。

I was amazed that beneath the city's bland strip malls

讓我感到很讚嘆的，是在該城市中 整排枯燥乏味的商店底下，

was 12,000 years of history just waiting to be discovered.

有一萬兩千年的歷史， 等待著被發掘。

When I was 16 years old, I started taking archaeology classes

當我十六歲時， 我開始修考古學的課，

and going out on digs.

到外面去挖掘。

A high school teacher of mine even helped me set up my own laboratory

我的一位高中老師甚至協助我 建立我自己的實驗室，

to study animal bones.

來研究動物骨頭。

But in college,

但在大學，

I came to learn that my future career had a dark history.

我漸漸發現，我的未來職業 有著很黑暗的歷史。

Starting in the 1860s,

從 1860 年開始，

Native American skeletons became a tool for science,

美國原住民骸骨 就變成了科學的工具，

collected in the thousands

數千具骸骨被收集起來，

to prove new theories of social and racial hierarchies.

去證明社會和種族階層的新理論。

Native American human remains were plundered from graves,

美國原住民墳墓中的 人類遺骨被偷取，

even taken fresh from battlefields.

甚至連戰場上的 新鮮屍體都被帶走。

When archaeologists came across white graves,

當考古學家不小心發現 白人的墳墓時，

the skeleton was often quickly reburied,

通常會很快重新埋葬骸骨，

while Native bones were deposited as specimens on museum shelves.

而原住民的骨頭卻會被存起來， 當作博物館架上的樣本。

In the wake of war, stolen land, boarding schools,

在經歷了戰爭、 竊取土地、寄宿學校、

laws banning religion,

法律禁止宗教之後，

anthropologists collected sacred objects

人類學家開始收集聖物，

in the belief that Native peoples were on the cusp of extinction.

因為他們相信原住民 在要絕種的關口上。

You can call it racism or colonialism, but the labels don't matter

你們可以稱之為種族主義或殖民主義， 但這些標籤並不重要，

as much as the fact that over the last century,

重要的是，在過去一個世紀，

Native American rights and culture were taken from them.

美國原住民的權利 和文化都被奪去了。

In 1990, after years of Native protests,

1990 年，在原住民抗議數年後，

the US government, through the US Congress,

美國政府透過美國國會，

finally passed a law that allowed Native Americans to reclaim

終於通過了法律，允許美國原住民

向博物館取回文物、聖物， 以及人類遺骨。

cultural items, sacred objects and human remains from museums.

Many archaeologists were panicked.

許多考古學家驚慌失措。

For scientists,

對科學家來說，很難完全了解，

it can be hard to fully grasp how a piece of wood can be a living god

一塊木頭怎麼可能 會是活生生的神？

or how spirits surround bones.

或者，神靈怎麼可能 會圍繞在骨頭周圍？

And they knew that modern science, especially with DNA,

他們知道現代科學， 特別是 DNA 相關的科學，

can provide luminous insights into the past.

能夠帶來對過去 既清楚又深刻的了解。

As the anthropologist Frank Norwick declared,

如同人類學家 法蘭克‧諾維克所聲稱的：

"We are doing important work that benefits all of mankind.

「我們在做的是重要的工作， 能讓全人類受惠。

We are not returning anything to anyone."

我們不會把任何東西 歸還給任何人。」

As a college student, all of this was an enigma

身為大學生，這一切都是個謎，

that was hard to decipher.

很難解的謎。

Why did Native Americans want their heritage back

為什麼美國原住民會想要把他們遺產

from the very places preserving it?

從保存的地方拿回去？

And how could scientists spend their entire lives

科學家又怎麼能夠花上一生的時間

studying dead Indians

來研究死去的印第安人，

but seem to care so little about living ones?

卻似乎對活著的印第安人 漠不關心呢？

I graduated but wasn't sure what to do next,

我畢業了，但不太確定 接下來要做什麼，

so I traveled.

所以我去旅行。

One day, in South Africa,

有一天，在南非，

I visited Nelson Mandela's former prison cell on Robben Island.

我造訪了位於羅本島上， 曼德拉曾住過的牢房，

I had an epiphany.

我頓悟了。

Here was a man who helped a country bridge vast divides

這裡曾經有個人，協助一個國家 縮小了巨大的鴻溝，

to seek, however imperfectly, reconciliation.

以尋求和解，不論多麼不完美。

I'm no Mandela, but I ask myself:

我不是曼德拉，但我問我自己：

Could I, too, plant seeds of hope in the ruins of the past?

我是否也能在過去的 斷垣殘壁中種下希望的種子？

In 2007, I was hired as a curator

2007 年，我被丹佛 自然科學博物館僱用，

at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science.

擔任策展人。

Our team agreed that unlike many other institutions,

我們的團隊同意，我們要 和其他許多其他機構不一樣，

we needed to proactively confront the legacy of museum collecting.

我們得要主動對抗 博物館收藏遺產的問題。

We started with the skeletons in our closet,

我們先從我們櫥中的骸骨開始，

100 of them.

共有一百具。

After months and then years, we met with dozens of tribes

數個月後，接著數年後， 我們會見了數十個部落，

to figure out how to get these remains home.

想辦法要把這些遺骨送回家。

And this is hard work.

這工作很困難。

It involves negotiating who will receive the remains,

它涉及到要去協商由誰來接收遺骨、

how to respectfully transfer them,

如何用不失敬的方式來運送它們，

where will they go.

以及要把它們送去哪裡。

Native American leaders become undertakers,

美國原住民領導人成了殯儀業者，

planning funerals for dead relatives they had never wanted unearthed.

為了那些他們從來就不想 挖掘出來的已故親戚策劃葬禮。

A decade later, the Denver Museum and our Native partners

十年後，丹佛博物館 和我們的原住民夥伴

have reburied nearly all of the human remains in the collection.

把博物館收藏的幾乎所有 人類遺骨都重新埋葬了。

We have returned hundreds of sacred objects.

我們歸還了數百件聖物。

But I've come to see that these battles are endless.

但我漸漸了解到， 這些戰爭是無休止的。

Repatriation is now a permanent feature of the museum world.

「物歸原主」現在已經是 博物館世界的不變特性了。

Hundreds of tribes are waiting their turn.

數百個部落都在等著輪到它們。

There are always more museums with more stuff.

永遠都會有更多的博物館， 裡面有更多的東西。

Every catalogued War God in an American public museum

美國公立博物館中 所有被編入目錄中的戰神

has now been returned -- 106, so far --

現在都已經被歸還—— 目前有 106 個——

but there are more beyond the reach of US law,

但還有更多是美國法律 無法控管到的，

in private collections and outside our borders.

在私人收藏中， 以及在美國國界之外。

In 2014, I had the chance to travel with a respected religious leader

2014 年，我有機會 和一位很受敬重的宗教領袖同行，

from the Zuni tribe named Octavius Seowtewa

他來自祖尼部落， 名叫奧塔維斯‧西歐特瓦，

to visit five museums in Europe with War Gods.

我們造訪了歐洲五間 有戰神的博物館。

At the Ethnological Museum of Berlin,

在柏林民族學博物館，

we saw a War God with a history of dubious care.

我們看到了一個戰神， 它過去受到的看護備受質疑。

An overly enthusiastic curator had added chicken feathers to it.

一位過度熱心的策展人 在它上面加上了雞毛。

Its necklace had once been stolen.

它的項鍊曾經被偷走。

At the Musée du quai Branly in Paris,

在巴黎的布朗利河岸博物館，

an official told us that the War God there is now state property

一位官員告訴我們， 戰神現在是國有財產，

with no provisions for repatriation.

所以他們無法將其物歸原主。

He insisted that the War God no longer served Zunis

他堅稱戰神的服務對象 已經不再是祖尼人，

but museum visitors.

而是博物館訪客。

He said, "We give all of the objects to the world."

他說：「我們把所有 這些物品給予全世界。」

At the British Museum,

在大英博物館，

we were warned that the Zuni case would establish a dangerous precedent

我們被警告，祖尼一案 可能會開創一個危險的先例，

for bigger disputes,

引起更大的爭端，

such as the Parthenon Marbles, claimed by Greece.

比如希臘索求額爾金大理石雕塑。

After visiting the five museums,

在造訪了五間博物館之後，

Octavius returned home to his people empty-handed.

奧塔維斯空手返回家鄉見他的族人。

He later told me,

他後來告訴我：

"It hurts my heart to see the Ahayu:da so far away.

「我的心很痛，因為看見 戰神在那麼遠的地方。

They all belong together.

它們應該要在一起的。

It's like a family member that's missing from a family dinner.

就像是缺席了家庭晚餐 聚會的家人一樣。

When one is gone, their strength is broken."

只要有一個失散了， 它們的力量就會被破壞了。」

I wish that my colleagues in Europe and beyond

我希望我在歐洲及其他地方的同業們

could see that the War Gods do not represent the end of museums

能夠明白戰神 並不代表博物館的末日到來，

but the chance for a new beginning.

而是一個重新開始的機會。

When you walk the halls of a museum,

當各位逛博物館的展廳時，

you're likely just seeing about one percent

大家很可能只看到

全部館藏的百分之一。

of the total collections.

The rest is in storage.

餘下的都在貯藏庫。

Even after returning 500 cultural items and skeletons,

即使是在歸還了五百件 文化藏品和骸骨之後，

my museum still retains 99.999 percent of its total collections.

我的博物館仍然保有 其總館藏的 99.999%。

Though we no longer have War Gods,

雖然我們不再擁有戰神了，

we have Zuni traditional pottery,

但是我們還有祖尼傳統的陶器、

jewelry, tools, clothing and arts.

珠寶、工具、服飾，和藝術品。

And even more precious than these objects

還有比這些物品更珍貴的，

are the relationships that we formed with Native Americans

就是我們透過將物品 物歸原主的過程，

through the process of repatriation.

和美國原住民所建立的關係。

Now, we can ask Zunis to share their culture with us.

現在，我們可以請祖尼人 與我們分享他們的文化。

Not long ago, I had the chance to visit the returned War Gods.

不久前，我有機會 去參觀了已歸還的戰神。

A shrine sits up high atop a mesa overlooking beautiful Zuni homeland.

神壇位於高聳的平頂山上， 俯瞰美麗的祖尼家園。

The shrine is enclosed by a roofless stone building

神壇被露天的石頭建築所包圍，

threaded at the top with barbed wire

露天的部分設置了帶刺的鐵絲網，

to ensure that they're not stolen again.

以確保戰神不會再次被偷竊。

And there they are, inside,

它們就在那兒，在裡面，

the Ahayu:da,

戰神，

106 War Gods amid offerings of turquoise, cornmeal, shell,

106 個戰神，包圍在祭品中： 綠松石、玉米粉、貝殼，

even T-shirts ...

甚至還有 T 恤……

a modern gift to ancient beings.

給予古老生命存在的現代禮物。

And standing there,

站在那裡，

I got a glimpse at the War Gods' true purpose in the world.

我得以瞥見戰神 在這個世界上真正存在的目的。

And it occurred to me then

接著，我想到，

that we do not get to choose the histories that we inherit.

我們無法選擇我們繼承的歷史。

Museum curators today did not pillage ancient graves

現今的博物館策展人 並沒有去掠奪古墓

or steal spiritual objects,

或是偷竊聖物，

but we can accept responsibility for correcting past mistakes.

但我們可以承擔起 修正過去錯誤的責任。

We can help restore dignity,

我們能夠協助恢復美國原住民的

hope and humanity to Native Americans,

尊嚴、希望，和人道，

the very people who were once the voiceless objects of our curiosity.

在過去，在我們的好奇心之下， 它們只是無法發聲的物品。

And this doesn't even require us to fully understand others' beliefs,

我們甚至不需要 完全了解他人的信仰，

only that we respect them.

我們只要尊重他們的信仰即可。

Museums are temples to things past.

博物館存放歷史文物的神殿。

Now they must also become places for living cultures.

現在，它們也必須要 變成現存文化之地。

As I turned to walk away from the shrine,

當我轉身，走離神壇時，

I drank in the warm summer air,

我陶醉在温暖夏日的氣氛中，

and I watched an eagle turn lazy circles high above.

看著高空中一隻老鷹 懶洋洋地盤旋。

I thought of the Zunis,

我想起祖尼人，

whose offerings ensure that their culture is not dead and gone

他們對戰神的供奉確保了 他們的文化不會消亡，

but alive and well,

而會燃起新生且被好好保存，

and I could think of no better place for the War Gods to be.

對戰神來說， 還有什麼地方比那兒更好呢？

Thank you.

謝謝。

(Applause)

（掌聲）