From October 20, 2023 to March 3, 2024, an expanded and adapted version of an exhibition presented in Paris will be relocated to the McCord-Stewart Museum in Montreal after a stay at the Senaca Art & Culture Center in Victor, New State. York.
There are mainly, but not exclusively, about half a dozen wampums that have spent the last few centuries in collections in Chartres, Lille and Paris. These were brought together a few years ago in an exhibition at the Musée du Quai Branly-Jacques Chirac in Paris.
Here are some examples of objects that are part of this exhibition.
1/ of 4
Wampum chain beads were white or purple and made from sea shells Photo: Musée du Quai Branly-Jacques Chirac / Pauline Guyon
Show previous image
See next picture
Several experts analyzed and researched these objects during the exhibition’s production, including Jonathan Lainey, curator of the Aboriginal cultures component at the McCord Museum in Montreal.
The man, who has been a favorite subject of wampums for 20 years, explains that while it is extremely difficult to precisely date the moment these objects left North America for France, certain elements allow their origin to be traced to between the 17th and 18th centuries .century to locate. making them very old objects.
Objects of art, diplomacy and memory
Woven from white and purple sea shells from America’s east coast, wampums were used by several indigenous nations to seal alliances or characterize their relationships. Many examples still bear the memory of Canada’s early history.
The arrival of Europeans marks the peak of wampum use, and newcomers had to learn how to get them to attend specific wedding ceremonies. Such was the case with the French, who for more than a century maintained an extensive diplomatic network with the First Nations, motivated in particular by the development of the fur trade.
According to my research, wampums were primarily used by peoples of Iroquoian cultures such as the Mohawks and Huron-Wendat simply because they were sedentary and therefore better at holding objects that were as bulky as they were fragile, explains Jonathan Lainey.
Although in most cases the sources are silent about the exact origin of the wampums, it is still possible to decipher certain symbols depicted there.
For example, some depict human silhouettes or geometric shapes between which a white band connects them. This band can represent both peace and the alliance between nations, explains the expert.
Purchased by David Swan in the Toronto area and sold to David Ross McCord in 1914, this wampum represents a peaceful alliance between three nations or three villages.
Photo: Courtesy / McCord Museum
Some instead show symbols associated with war, like an axe, and may have sometimes been painted red, signifying warlike intentions, he adds.
The white and purple shells used to design the wampums came specifically from the Rhode Island region of the United States and therefore sometimes traversed more than 1000 kilometers to spread all the way to the Great Lakes.
The complexity of getting the right shells for the wampum design made them extremely valuable. And because the shells used are mostly white with some areas of purple, the purple beads were worth about twice as much, Lainey says.
An extended exhibition
In preparation for the objects’ arrival in Montreal, the McCord Museum sent inquiries to several surrounding institutions with the aim of bringing together as many wampums as possible and adding even more interest to an already exceptional exhibit. Jonathan Lainey therefore expects to add about thirty wampums to the ones coming from Paris.
The wampums were of great importance to the first peoples for centuries before they were somewhat neglected. This disinterest in the 19th century is part of their history and is not addressed in the exhibition in France. The McCord Museum will therefore be adding an entire section dedicated to this special moment in wampum history, Mr. Lainey announced.
Today, wampums are in common use, and several new specimens are made every year. So how do you explain that these very important objects ceased to be by the 19th century, and how could wampums, sometimes kept for centuries in their communities of origin, suddenly be sold to collectors?
We will look into this and are also in contact with four or five Aboriginal artists who can present wampum-inspired work because they have this extraordinary ability to express in their creations things that cannot be explained in scientific treatises.” says Jonathan Lainey.
“Artists know how to bring ideas together and can illustrate emotions and feelings related to wampum. »
— A quote from Jonathan Lainey, Curator of Indigenous Cultures at the McCord-Stewart Museum
Claimed Articles?
As with all colonial-era objects displayed in museums, the question arises as to whether they should be returned to the indigenous people from which they came.
Many searches have been carried out in the present case, but nothing makes it possible to pinpoint exactly where the objects came from and no nation is currently claiming them.
Enlarge picture (New window)Possibly sent in 1913 by David Swan from the Bala region of Ontario, this wampun most likely represents an alliance between the Seven Nations of Canada, a confederation of native peoples including the Huron-Wendat, Haudenosaunee, Abenaki, and Anishnabeg.
Photo: Courtesy / McCord Museum
Mr. Lainey, himself a Huron-Wendat, for example, points out that although the wampum is associated with his nation’s Latin words Don des Hurons à la Vierge Marie, it would be strange to demand back an item which we have given .
In his opinion, the lack of available information on the objects and the fact that they could well have been acquired as part of barter deals or alliances mean that the debate over the repatriation of stolen or removed objects does not apply to this French exhibition.