Open AccessTo sider av same slag. Utstillingsanalyse av musea på Ncome Blood River Battle Site
Author(s) -
Line Grønstad
Publication year - 1970
Publication title -
nordisk museologi
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2002-0503
pISSN - 1103-8152
DOI - 10.5617/nm.3118
Subject(s) - battle , exhibition , victory , zulu , history , art , art history , ancient history , law , political science , philosophy , linguistics , politics
In 1838, Afrikaners won a battle against a Zulu army far superior in numbers. In the 1990s, two museums were set up at the site of this battle. The Blood River Museum celebrates the Afrikaners’ victory, while Ncome Museum marks the heroism of the Zulus. The article deals with how these museums are using the same historical event in two different ways. After 1994, the anniversary of the battle (16 December) was designated Day of Reconciliation. Yet there is little reconciliation visible in the exhibitions. Zulus and Afrikaners are portrayed as diametrical opposites, while the internal conflicts among the Zulu and among the Afrikaners are ignored. Dichotomisation and exclusion thus occupy a clearer place in these exhibitions than any message of reconciliation.