Over the past decade, sociopolitical movements like Black Lives Matter have gained international recognition, bringing systemic racism fostered through colonialism and imperialism to the forefront....Show moreOver the past decade, sociopolitical movements like Black Lives Matter have gained international recognition, bringing systemic racism fostered through colonialism and imperialism to the forefront. These discussions have prompted national discourse in many Western countries, leading to a critical reevaluation of historical narratives and the representation of colonial legacies in various cultural institutions, including museums. Although the decolonization process within museums is still in its early stages, countries such as Portugal and Spain have been criticized for being particularly uncooperative. This thesis scrutinized the current state of several museums in Portugal, including the Navy Museum and the Museum of the Orient in Lisbon, the World of Discoveries digital exhibit in Porto, and the Slave Market Museum in Lagos. These institutions represent the maritime heritage of the Age of Exploration, an integral aspect of Portugal’s collective memory and national identity. The analysis was informed by a literature review of the formation of the Portuguese overseas empire, postcolonial theory, and decolonization practices within museology. Additionally, museum visits provided significant first-hand observations, and extensive engagement with museum archival data through their respective websites offered further insights. The findings revealed that the predominant narrative of these museums centered around the glorification of the Portuguese maritime legacy, portraying it more as an adventure and less as a history of exploitation and oppression. Furthermore, this study compared Portuguese museums to those in other European nations with colonial empires, highlighting differences in how colonial histories are presented. This comparison underscores the need for a more nuanced and inclusive representation of maritime heritage in Portugal, contributing to a broader understanding of the impact of decolonial perspectives and practices on contemporary society.Show less
This thesis aims to research the transition of footwear types in the Early Modern period (1500-1800) found in shipwrecks in the former Zuiderzee and the Waddenzee. The beginning of the Early Modern...Show moreThis thesis aims to research the transition of footwear types in the Early Modern period (1500-1800) found in shipwrecks in the former Zuiderzee and the Waddenzee. The beginning of the Early Modern period saw many technological and typological changes compared to the end of the Late Medieval times (1300-1500). Despite this, little research has been conducted on the footwear of this period, meaning the extent and longevity of these changes are not clearly understood. To get a better insight into these changes, the footwear collection of five shipwrecks (SO1, OB71, NE81, OM65 and OL79) has been researched. These shipwrecks have a known wreck date, providing the footwear with a precise date concerning the use of the footwear. The footwear fragments of the collection are documented based on several characteristics such as the decoration, height and composition of the heel, construction and shape of the soles, and user traces. Additionally, the footwear is classified according to the typology proposed in Goubitz et al. (2001), and a spatial relationship between the footwear fragments and the find location on the shipwrecks is made, if possible. The researched collections display a wide variety of characteristics, confirming the notion that this period saw many technological and typological changes. These changes revolve around four categories: the construction of the soles, the appearance and increasing length of the heel, the decoration motifs and frequency and the change in footwear types related to a specific timeframe. The observed changes provide valuable new information regarding the composition of the five footwear collections and the Early Modern footwear in general. Furthermore, this study demonstrates a correlation between the location of the shipwrecks and the use of footwear based on the visible user traces on the fragments. Though this thesis provides new insights into the technological and typological changes of the Early Modern period, further research should be conducted to see whether the researched collections are representative of this period or are exceptions.Show less
The purpose of my thesis is to research how individuals from the lower class with severe and visible disabilities were cared for during the Early modern period in the Dutch city of Arnhem. To be...Show moreThe purpose of my thesis is to research how individuals from the lower class with severe and visible disabilities were cared for during the Early modern period in the Dutch city of Arnhem. To be able to say something about care for these individuals I use historic literature, which functions as a historical framework, and I apply a bioarchaeological method known as the Index of Care, in which pathology found on skeletal remains form an important source of information. I will use pathology found on three skeletal individuals, from Arnhem, to say something about the living conditions of these people and what their quality of life might have looked like considering their disability. Based on the historic literature I provide the reader with an image of what care might have looked like for these individuals. And I research what this says about Arnhem’s population of the time and what their perspective was on their disabled and sick community. Arnhem would have different facilities in which people could be provided with care. Guesthouses played a major role in the caring for the city’s poor, sick and disabled community. In these guesthouses people could stay for a certain period of time up until a lifetime, depending on the guesthouses’ regulations. The church offered food, prayers and housing (also through guesthouses) to those in need as well. Additionally there were physicians and apothecaries that took care of the medical aspects of care for those who could afford it. However we must not forget that most of the disabled and sick individuals were most likely cared for by their relatives. The three individuals I analysed, must all have been cared for, for a longer period of time, most likely till their death. Based on these results and the historic framework, it is known that the lower class of Arnhem that was harshly disabled or sick would have been able to receive care if they needed to, and that this was provided by parties from different angles of society such as the church, the individual’s own social circle and the local guesthouses. This means that the early modern Arnhem cared for their disabled and sick population and that these people were seen as individuals that are entitled to housing, food a normal live and (medical)-care.Show less
