About the Dataset Browser
The data hub for the return of objects collected in the colonial period is a central access point for stakeholders from countries of origin for questions regarding colonial collections and provenance research in the Netherlands.
The application supports the implementation of the Dutch policy on return through the sharing of knowledge and expertise on collections acquired in the colonial context. It helps the diverse caretakers of collections in the Netherlands in the process of provenance research on collections, and facilitates the proper research, documentation and (public) accessibility of these collections.
Context
In her letter to the Cabinet of 15 June 2022, titled Implementatie beleidsvisie collecties uit een koloniale context, State Secretary of Culture Dr. Gunay Uslu, set out the Dutch national framework for dealing with requests for the return of cultural objects collected during the colonial period (colonial collections).
The framework is based on the commissioned report Koloniale collecties en de erkenning van onrecht, and responds to the growing debates nationally and internationally around questions of return of objects in national collections acquired during the European colonial period.
At the core of the Dutch approach to the question of restitution of colonial objects is the question of doing justice in the present for past injustices, and of fashioning more just and equitable futures. Trust, transparency and access are key parts of the restitution process
State Secretary Uslu's letter further sets out how the Dutch government intends to respond to requests for return of objects, and underlines the need to provide a supportive environment for provenance research on these collections. Together, these pillars of the Dutch approach form a complexly entangled infrastructure of repair and relationship building that would provide support for institutions in the Netherlands and, importantly, in countries of origin, to deal with objects collected during the colonial period.
The State Secretary proposes the need for a Consortium of experts that would "maintain an overview of the commitment to provenance research in museums and within academia in the Netherlands and internationally, support the museum field in research, and provide information for questions from countries of origin."
The Ministry of Education, Culture and Science of the Netherlands requested RCE (Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands), Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, NIOD (Institute for War, Holocaust and Genocide Studies) , Bronbeek Museum (Military Museum for Dutch colonial history and the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army), and Nationaal Museum van Wereldculturen (National museum of world cultures) to form the consortium.
Project
The consortium initiated the project 'Against Opacity' in January 2023. The goal of this project is making datasets from archives and museums more transparent. The datasets must contain data that contributes to provenance research of objects collected in the colonial period. Opacity/Transparency is considered as any hindrance that limits users in accessing data.
The project has three work programmes: (1) building trust, (2) from data opacity to data transparency, and (3) co‐creating knowledge of the past for the present and the future. Each work programme is further divided into tasks and activities for which project proposals are submitted to the consortium.
Within the work program 'From data opacity to Data transparency' the main task is the creation of an online research guide and data hub. This is especially important for collections distributed across different institutions. The data hub will facilitate the matching of datasets across institutions based on categories such as people, events, and geography.