MUSEUM MATTERS 26 · 2017-06-29 · internship on the 13th of October 2014 and her internship will end on the 9th of January 2015. Lavinia is studying towards a Bachelor’s degree

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Museum Matters 26

Making Museums Matter

1

From the Editor

We’ve reached the end of another year and whata busy year it’s been for MAN. We’ve more thandoubled in size in terms of staff and we have alsogrown in membership with the addition of newmember museums and individual members.

MAN has had many achievements this year; fromtaking part in the Namibian Tourism Expo andreceiving a Silver award, to the successful revivalof the School Clubs and Museums ExhibitionCompetition (SCAMX) after four years of it beingdormant to taking part in Heritage Week 2014amongst many others.

We have undertaken new projects such as the“Africa Accessioned” and the “ExhibitionDevelopment for Namibian Museums” projectswhich were made possible through funding byICME and the Finnish Embassy respectively.Twelve MAN members also took part in theCommonwealth Association of Museums (CAM)course called “Introduction to Museum Studies”for the first time.

This edition of Museum Matters covers MAN’sexciting activities for the second half of 2014.Take a look at the bulletin board to meet thepeople who made all of MAN’s projects a realitythis year. Keep an eye out for the MAN Bursaryrecipients who are undertaking very excitingstudy programs in 2015. Wishing you a happyfestive season for you and yours.

ContentBulletin Board

Page 2: Farewell NaitsiPage 3: Meet HilmaPage 3: Meet the InternsFeatures

Page 4: MAN BursariesPage 6: Internships and Staff ExchangePage 8: Taking it to the Streets: CAM ConferencePage 10: Making an Impact: Exhibition DesignPage 11: National Training Workshop: FinancialManagementPage 12: ICOM Zambia WorkshopPage 14: EEASA Conference 2014Page 15: Bank Windhoek Triennial 2014Page 16: Museum Collections Make ConnectionsPage 18: The Revival of Namibian TraditionalInstrumentsPage 20: Holocaust and Genocide Education:Sharing Experience Across BordersPage 22: SCAMX Teachers WorkshopPage 23: SCAMX Winners 2014Page 26: Heritage Week 2014Page 29: Onandjokwe Medicine GardenRegulars

Page 30: Youth Review: TransNamib MuseumPage 32: Curator’s Toolkit: Pest Management

Cover Photograph: Oil Density Measurer, TraceGarren, Townhouse PhotographyLayout and Design: Ndapewoshali NdahafaAshipalaDisclaimer: Museum Matters is published by the MuseumsAssociation of Namibia but is not the voice of the association. Theinformation contained in this newsletter is intended to informmembers (and the general public) about our past and futureactivities. It is also a platform for sharing ideas and experiences.MAN members are encouraged to submit articles and suggestionsto help us improve Museum Matters for you. No person,organisation or party can copy or reproduce the content of thisnewsletter or any part of this publication without a written consentfrom the publisher and the author of the content as applicable.

Museum Matters 26


2

Bulletin Board

Ms Naitsikile Iizyenda has been theOperations Manager at MAN since2009. She also served as the Editor ofMuseum Matters and hasspearheaded many of the projects runand completed by MAN. She left MANat the end of October 2014 and willsurely be missed.

She does however, maintain herposition as ICOM NamibiaChairperson and will continue toencourage and facilitate museumdevelopment and the development ofthe heritage sector in Namibia. Theentire MAN team wishes Naitsisuccess in her new job and in all herfuture endeavours.

Meet Hilma

Mrs Hilma Kapuka has been appointedto the position of Project officer:Exhibition Development. She joinedMAN on the 08th of September 2014.She has currently completed herdissertation for her Masters of Artsdegree in Public and Visual History atthe University of the Western Cape.

Mrs Kapuka currently holds a Bachelorof Arts degree in Education and hasfive years’ experience as a historyteacher and was a previous prize-winner in the SCAMX schoolcompetition. Mrs Kapuka is headingup the “Exhibition Development forNamibian Museums” project which isa two year project funded by theFinnish Embassy.

Farewell Naitsi

Museum Matters 26


3

Meet the InternsLimba Mupetami Loide Shipingana Lavinia Nelulu

Limba is studyingtowards a Bachelor’sdegree in Media(Public Relations) atthe University ofNamibia. She joinedMAN on the 08th ofSeptember 2014and is working ona project called“Africa Accessioned”which aims tocreate partnershipsbetween Africanmuseums and thosein Europe. Theproject will run until2015.

Loide has recentlycompleted herstudies towards a BSc(Honours) inMolecular Biologyand Biochemistry atthe University ofNamibia and iscurrently waiting tograduate. She iscarrying out a threemonth internshipat Outapi WarMuseum andOmbalantu BaobabTree and HeritageSite simultaneously.She started herinternship on the13th of October 2014and her internshipwill end on the 9thof January 2015.

Lavinia is studyingtowards a Bachelor’sdegree in T r a v e land TourismManagement at thePolytechnic ofNamibia. She joinedman on the 08th ofSeptember 2014and is carrying outa 6 monthinternship with MANuntil the 06th ofMarch 2015.

Museum Matters 26


4

MAN BursariesThe Namibia Development Plan II indicatedan expected growth in regional museums,whilst NDP III showed planning for theestablishment of 13 regional culturalvillages. The MDG-F Programme inSustainable Cultural Tourism for Namibia,the MCA Programme, the German `SpecialInitiative’ all include provision for thedevelopment of new museums and culturalheritage attractions.

The Museums Association of Namibia isaware of over 30 community-based, privateor local government initiatives to establishmuseums. However, whilst there are signsof major capital investment in the museumsector, MAN had a major concern that thereis insufficient provision for training of youngNamibians. It was on this basis that MANrecognised the need to invest in both thedevelopment of specialized professionalsand the provision of training on key issues ofconcern to the museum sector.

Provision was therefore made for an annualbursary scheme to enable one or moregraduates or experienced museumprofessionals to attend a Postgraduatecourse that will result in a recognizedqualification. The bursary is advertisedannually on a competitive basis, normally forstudies within Southern Africa. This year,four bursaries were awarded for studentsstarting their studies at the end of 2014 orthe beginning of 2015.

Let’s meet the four 2014 MAN bursaryrecipients…

Agnes Shiningayamwe

I am Agnes Shiningayamwe, 23 years old. Ihave a Bachelor degree (honours) ineducation. I’m currently a History Teacher. InAugust this year, I was very happy to learnabout my selection as one of the bursaryrecipients of the Museum Association ofNamibia.

I am deeply appreciative of this support asthis will allow me to pursue a PostgraduateDiploma in Heritage Management andconservation with the University of Namibiain 2015.

I have decided to embark on this careerbecause I have a passion for heritagemanagement. My dream is to become aHeritage manager and I hope to work withthe conservation of our historical buildings,landscape or heritage sites, including thosewith a world heritage ranking.

Asser Ndeutapo Manya

My name is Asser Ndeutapo Manya and Ihold an honours degree in Tourism andHeritage Studies which I obtained at theUniversity of Namibia (UNAM) in May.

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5

I am currently employed at an NGO calledthe Namibian Association of CBNRM SupportOrganisations, CBNRM stands forCommunity Based Natural ResourceManagement.

As a proud recipient of a M.A.N bursary I amplanning to study a Postgraduate Diploma inHeritage Conservation & Management atUNAM in 2015. With this I wish to influencelocal, national and international leaders tosafeguard our Culture and Natural Heritageand inspire future generations to dolikewise.

Helvi Elago

Helvi Elago is studying towards a Master ofArts in Heritage Management of theUniversity of Kent and the Athens Universityof Economics and Business, for the academicyear 2014-2015.

Albertina Nekongo

I am Albertina Ndapandula Nekongo, afourth year Bachelor of Arts (Honours)student majoring in History and Sociology.

I am definitely interested in making a long-term commitment as a responsibleindividual in the Heritage and Museumsector. In terms of my future career path, Iam confident that I will do my work withexcellence and opportunities will inevitablyopen up for me. Thus, I am planning to do myPostgraduate Diploma in Heritage Studieswith the aim to market, manage andconserve our cultural and natural heritage. Iwould like to study archaeology to be able todocument and understand the historicalcontext of past events and to promoteheritage to the public.

My goals and objectives are to be the best Ican possibly be by tackling every tasksatisfactory. I therefore have an ambition toparticipate and contribute to the economic,tourism, social and cultural development ofour country, extend my knowledge andshare my skills with fellow Namibians.

Museum Matters 26


6

INTERNSHIPS AND STAFF EXCHANGE:

PLANTING A SEED FOR THE

CREATION OF NEW SEEDSFor every employer, experience is a crucial

factor when deciding who gets their foot in

the door. It is therefore strongly advised that

students, graduates and even employees

take the opportunity to complete a period of

work experience to ensure that they have a

competitive advantage over their rivals. All

these are made possible through internships

and staff exchanges.

The Museum Association of Namibia has also

taken up the responsibility of providing work

experience to students and graduates

through internships and would also like to

introduce work experience in the form of

staff exchange.

So, what exactly is an internship and what

is staff exchange?

As publicized by many, an internship is an

educational innovation. I personally believe

internships (or experiential learning, or

apprenticeships, as they once were called)

are supervised pre-work experiences that

merge academic and professional

components as a managed move from just

academic to possible professional careers. It

is basically a way of gaining practical skills

that will help strengthen your CV and make

you more employable. On the other hand,

staff exchange is a platform that enables

employees to see how other businesses are

organized, understand their concepts, and

how their ideas could help optimize their

own activities thus leading to the

optimization of the entire organization.

As a Molecular Biologist, I applied for the

Internship program at the Museum

Association of Namibia because it was

important to me to see how other fields of

studies are organized and explore their

concepts in the sense of their daily activities

whilst learning from the organization. For

the host company, it’s like planting a seed.

Moreover, it turned out that during my stay,

I will be involved in the development of new

museum exhibitions for Outapi War

Museum and the Ombalantu Baobab Tree

Heritage Centre, in addition to the

development of their infrastructures.

Therefore, the internship seemed even more

interesting for me, as it was going to help

develop and increase the number of visitors/

tourists in Outapi, which is also my home

town.

Museum Matters 26


7

Furthermore, one’s career aspirations may

change when faced with the true realities of

a role or work. Therefore I am using

Internships as a ‘try before you buy’ option

or rather a trial and error, before I embark

on a career and to confirm if this is what I

want to do in the long term. One can also use

an internship to gain insight into an

organization or a career path.

I strongly believe that at the end of the internship, I

will have developed a variety of soft skills including

communication skills, personal effectiveness,

presentation skills, creative problem solving and

influencing skills in addition to critical thinking.

Following a successful internship it is not

unusual for employers to make a full-time

job offer to their intern. Many employers use

internships as a trial period and will already

have plans to recruit on a permanent basis.

Therefore, it is important that you make a

good impression; turn up on time, be

enthusiastic and show your flexibility,

adaptability and commitment during your

internship.

On the other hand, a topic that interests me

and I am yet to experience is staff exchange.

Staff exchange is crucial within and in-

between companies/businesses regardless

of whether it is private or public. It

contributes to the overcoming of mutual

prejudices and to the strengthening of

relationships within businesses.

However, this is a two way situation. Not

only does one learn about work away from

your company, but in going to another

working place (host company), you will also

become an ambassador of what your

company stands for and in return your host

company will definitely be eager to learn

about your company.

Finally, there are issues important to

businesses, in terms of providing for

internship and staff exchange experiences

and in terms of designing and evaluating

internships and staff exchange programmes.

Subsequently, there are issues important to

students, in terms of participating in and

learning from internships. All these issues

should be taken into consideration prior to

reaching an agreement when offering or

taking up an internship or staff exchange.

Until next time, I would like to thank MAN

for planting a seed for the creation of new

growth.

Article courtesy of Ms Loide Shipanga,

Intern, Museums Association of Namibia

Museum Matters 26


8

`Taking It to the Streets’:CAM ConferenceThe Commonwealth Association ofMuseums (CAM) Conference for 2014 washeld on 14th-16th May in Glasgow, Scotland.It was organised around the theme `Taking ItTo The Streets’. Presenters gave examplesof ways in which museums from differentparts of the world had been able to involvetheir communities in museum work and thedifferent ways in which museums have beenable to increase their perceived relevance insociety by engaging with contemporaryissues.

The Conference was followed by a smallerworkshop which discussed the advantagesand challenges of involving communities inthe actual management of a museum. DrSilvester was invited to speak at theConference and to make a secondpresentation about the challenges ofcommunity-based management at theworkshop. The Conference had a total of52 participants, whilst a smaller group of 20invited participants took part in theworkshop.

The keynote address was provided by theCo-founder of the `Homeless World Cup’(which Namibia has participated in). Thepresentation illustrated the way in which agoal (pun intended) can be achieved andprovided a good example of the way in whicha particular target audience can bemobilised. The presentation on ÒurMuseum’ argued that museums should

invest time and resources in researching theneeds and aspirations of the communitiesthat they serve so that they can designprogrammes and displays that placecollaboration with the local community atthe core of a museum’s work.

One project that was of particular relevanceto the Àfrica Accessioned’ project was thatdescribed by Ms Haddow and Ms Burns whohad been working on a review of the PacificCollections in Scottish Museums (whichbegan in April, 2013). Dr Seth from theNational Museum in New Delhi, Indiaexplained the way in which they weretraining communities to documentintangible cultural heritage, a process that iscurrently also underway in Namibia. MrMartin, the colleague from the GrenadaNational Museum discussed the way inwhich the museum sought to engage with arecent history of conflict and the eventssurrounding the 1983 invasion of the islandby forces from the United States. Theattempt to sensitively tackle thecontroversies surrounding the events andthe different ways in which they have beeninterpreted parallels the challenges that

Museum Matters 26


9

Namibian museums face in creating displaysabout its liberation struggle, that ended in1989.

Finally, the most inspiring experience of theConference was the visit made to GlasgowMuseums Resource Centre (GMRC). Thecomplex contains 17 purpose-built `pods’that are used to store the 98% of the1,400,000 artifacts belonging to Glasgow’smuseums and galleries that are NOT ondisplay.

The mobile museum system consists of a setof purpose-built boxes contained artifactsfrom GMRC’s educational collection andorganised according to theme. The systemenables the boxes to be loaned to schools,museums, libraries, old age peoples’ homesand other interested institutions. Theconcept of mobile boxes is one that mightwork well in Namibia as a way of increasingthe value of museums as educationalresources for local schools and it is plannedthat this project will feature in MAN’sNational Training Workshop on `MuseumEducation’ due to take place in August, 2015.

Article and photographs courtesy of DrJeremy Silvester, Project Planning andTraining Officer, MA

Museum Matters 26

Making Museums Matter10

Making an Impact:Exhibition

Development

On our way to the Onandjokwe MedicalMuseum, I and my colleague, LaviniaNelulu, requested a taxi driver to drop us atOnandjokwe Hospital at the MedicalMuseum. He replied: “Omuseuma oshike?Oshiima shafa peni? Ohaku pangwaovanhu? Opo sheyamo moshipangelo?”(What is a museum? How does a museumlook like? Do people get treatment in amuseum? Is it a new section of thehospital? The rest of the journey was ofcourse spent answering the driversquestions.

The concept of a museum is still strange tosome Namibians. However the MuseumAssociation of Namibia is working withmuseums curators around the country toensure that Namibian museums are visible,visited and valued.

Museums’ exhibitions are the most crucialtool of communication between a museumand its audience. Museum exhibitions’functions include attracting visitors,connecting a museum with the localcommunity, and providing interpretationsthat add value to the objects in thecollection. Well-designed exhibitions havethe potential to create new and lastingmemories for museum visitors. It istherefore essential that museum curatorshave the skills to enable them to plan anddevelop new exhibitions.

This year, the Museum Association ofNamibia received funding from theEmbassy of Finland, to assist exhibitiondevelopment for Namibian museums. Thetwo year project is envisaged to empower

museum staff with training in exhibitiondevelopment, support the improvement ofexisting displays and facilitate thedevelopment of new exhibitions. The firstphase of the project will include a capacity-building workshop for a maximum oftwenty museum workers. The two-dayexhibition planning and design workshopwill be held in Tsumeb from the 10th

February to 11th February 2015. Theworkshop will be facilitated by MAN inpartnership with District Six Museum.

Participants will learn how to create anexhibition skeleton, write good scripts,create a `shopping list’ for a new displayand learn techniques for integrating,intangible cultural heritage, objects,images and documents as well as guidanceon object handling and display techniques.A practical session in the workshop will befocused on training participants in theevaluation and appraisal of existingexhibitions to identity strengths andweaknesses and possible areas forimprovement.

At the end of the workshop, twoparticipants will be selected to participatein a further, online, exhibition designcourse. A Handbook on Exhibition Planningand Design for Namibian Museums will beproduced by the workshop facilitators anddistributed to all MAN members after theworkshop, so that all members will be ableto benefit from the discussions andknowledge-sharing that take place.

Article courtesy of Ms Hilma Kapuka,Museums Association of Namibia

Museum Matters 26


National TrainingWorkshop on

FinancialManagement and

Income Generation20-21st August 2014, Swakopmund

As part of the mandate of the MuseumsAssociation of Namibia, the associationholds two National Training Workshopsevery year, focusing on a number of topicsof importance to address the needs of ourmembers. Each workshop is usuallylimited to a maximum of 20 participantsfrom regional museums. This year’sworkshop was held with the aim to trainmuseum workers how to manage financesand to generate income for their museumsand involved participants from variousmember museums who were eager to betrained on ways to generate income fortheir museums. The workshop wasfacilitated by Ms. Ndapewoshali Ashipalaand Ms. Bertha Iindongo who are theAdministrative Officer and Finance Officerfor MAN respectively.

Topics such as income generation, pettycash controls, budgeting and basicbookkeeping and a guide to different

accounting terms were explained to theparticipants. Various activities keptparticipants intrigued with variousfinancial terms as well as practical methodsand tips on bookkeeping and budgeting.Participants engaged in discussions on thevarious sessions of the workshop andshared their experiences.

Overall, the workshop was an eye openerfor the participants as many had noprevious financial background and many ofour member museums are communitymuseums making record keeping difficultfor the curators of the museums.

The Financial Management handbook forNamibian Museums will be printed anddistributed to both the participants of theworkshop and all other member museumsin early 2015. The handbook will includeeasy templates that the museums can use.

Article courtesy of Ms. Bertha Iindongo,Finance Officer, Museums Association ofNamibia

Museum Matters 26


ICOM ZAMBIA WorkshopThe International Council of Museums(ICOM) workshop took place in Livingstoneon the 21 and 22nd May 2014 withdelegates invited from Namibia,Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Botswana andMalawi. MAN sent three delegates, thechairperson, Mr Aaron Nambadi, ICOMNamibia President and MANs OperationsManager, Ms Naitsikile Iizyenda and thecurator of the Kavango Museum, Ms HelviMbwalala. Namibia was also representedby Ms Emma Imalwa from the NationalMuseum of Namibia. The meeting was alsoattended by museum and heritageprofessionals from various ZambianMuseums. MANs participation in themeeting was seen as an opportunity todiscuss the potential for further co-operation and support from ICOM and achance to network with colleagues withinSouthern Africa and to discuss thedevelopment of the new regionalorganisation, the SADC HeritageAssociation, which has been established tosupport cross-border partnerships withinthe SADC region.ILLICIT TRAFFICKING OF COLLECTIONSThe workshop highlighted several issuesthat are relevant to the museums andculture sector both regionally andinternationally, issues such as the illicittrafficking of cultural objects. It wasreported that illicit trafficking is a majorproblem, a cause for concern that can onlybe tackled if regional members worktogether and catalogue their collections.The workshop also highlighted the need tohave the necessary legal documents suchas the collection policies and other guidingdocuments that ensure the safeguarding of

museum collections. It was noted thatinternational agreements such as the 1970UNESCO Convention on Illicit Traffickingare an important tool for countries whensafeguarding their collections. Specifically,it was indicated that signing a document,does not mean that that country hasratified that specific convention, it is a legalprocess and there are specific activitiesand steps that need to be taken before acountry ratifies a convention. Illicittrafficking needs robust monitoring,evaluation and strategies to reduce theillegal removal of African collections fromtheir place of origin.

From the right, Mr Manyando Mukela, Mr Flexon Mizinga, MrAaron Nambadi, Chairperson, Museums Association of Namibia,and Prof Hans Martin Hinz (ICOM President)

THE IMPORTANCE OF MUSEUMSThe Workshop also discussed theimportant role that Museums play withinour communities. This includes theprovision of self-assurance, identityrecollection, the creation of dialoguebetween the past, present and the futureand the preservation of Intangible CulturalHeritage. Museums also play a role in areasof reconciliation. The latter wasparticularly emphasised in the speechmade by Hon Nkandu Lou who noted thatthe Liberation struggle connected Zambiawith other SADC countries and that now inindependent Zambia it is museum

Museum Matters 26


collections that are making connections.She emphasised the importance of settingup robust units of marketing andcommunicating to share the knowledge ofmuseum professionals, anthropologists,curators and archaeologists so that we canbenefit not only from internationaldialogue but also from the exchange ofexperts. Museums should walk to thecommunities so that they start valuingtheir cultural treasures and becomerelevant to the communities in which theyare situated.MUSEUMS CHALLENGESIt was not new to hear the challengesfacing Southern African Museums, themost common of which being the lack offinancial and human resources across theregion. The workshop also highlighted thefact that the slow growth and sustainabilityof regional museums was partially due tothe absence of regional cooperationamong heritage institutions in SouthernAfrica. The lack of cooperation wasaggravated by the collapse of SADCAMM.SADC-HA (the South African DevelopmentCommunity Heritage Association) aims tofacilitate cross-border partnerships anddevelop an effective network of heritageprofessionals within the region. Thebiggest challenge facing the association isthe sustainability once it is officiallylaunched. How is SADC-HA going to befunded and by whom?, The issue offunding is particularly pertinent as somemembers raised concern that they arealready struggling to pay National, ICOMand AFRICOM membership fees, how arethey going to fund SADC-HA?

The Namibian delegation. (from left to right) Ms Naitsikile Iizyenda,Operations Manager, M.A.N, Ms Helvi Mbwalala, Curator, KavangoMuseum, Ms Emma Imalwa, Curator of Archaeology, National Museum ofNamibia and Mr Aaron Nambadi, Chairperson, M.A.N

The ICOM sponsored delegates providedan overview on the state of museums andcollections within their respectivecountries. Most of the countries indicatedthat their Associations or institutions wereestablished by Acts of Parliaments, and assuch receive most of their funds from theirgovernments. Zambia used theopportunity to highlight some of itsupcoming projects, Dr Neil Rowleypresented the Kabwe Museum Concept.The project aims to establish a miningmuseum in the northern part of Zambia, inan area that had the largest copper mine inZambia. The mine Museum aims to usesome of the old equipment, steamlocomotives, pumps as part of theexhibition. The Workshop concluded onFriday, 23 May 2014 with a Tour of theLivingstone Museum, a visit to the VictoriaFalls, Mukuni Village, Railways and JewishMuseum and a Game drive to the Mosi-o-Tunya National Park. Participants alsoenjoyed a Cultural dinner and performanceat the Elephant Oasis.Article and Photographs Courtesy of; Ms HelviMbwalala, Curator, Kavango Museum, Mr AaronNambadi, Chairperson, M.A.N and Ms NaitsikileIizyenda, Operations Manager, M.A.N

Museum Matters 26


EEASA Conference 2014I had the honour of being sponsored byMAN to attend the EnvironmentalEducation Association for Southern Africa(EEASA) Conference as a representative forMuseums Association of Namibia and theCheetah Conservation Fund being a fulltime staff for the Cheetah ConservationFund.

The Conference was held at the Universityof Namibia Campus with delegates fromaround Southern Africa who are in the fieldof Environmental Education and Educationfor Sustainable Development. Delegatesarrived from as far away as the Bahamas,Botswana, South Africa, Zimbabwe,Zambia and Iceland.

The theme for the conference wasReflection on Current and ESD issues andpractices informing the post DESDframework emerging

As Environmental Education practitionersin a formal and informal setting manychallenges are being dealt with on a dailybasis this conference gave us a platform toshare and talk about those challenges,which I have noticed have aspects ofPolitical, Social, Technological, Religiousand Cultural. This platform did not onlygive us a chance to discuss our challengesbut also an opportunity to share thesuccesses which have been achieved byEnvironmental Education and Educationfor Sustainable Development programs.

One of the interesting subjects that cameup was the interest some teachers showedwhen visiting an Informal EnvironmentalEducation Center for a weekend with theirlearners. It was a topic that was discussedin-depth. How can we, as E.E practitionersin an informal setting get our teachershooked to the program itself from day oneand not just leave the kids in the hands ofeducation officers of a certain centre andexpect the children to grasp everything wedo. If the teachers where more involved itwill make the child's learning experiencemuch more useful seeing that theirteachers are eager to learn what’s beingoffered.

You may wonder, what have museums gotto do with Environmental Education? Theway I see it Museums could play a criticalrole in the advancement of EnvironmentalEducation and Education for SustainableDevelopment, due to the fact thatthousands of visitors are passing throughmuseums on an annual basis and beingexposed to information of this importancedoes and will have an effect on the visitorsthat visit museums with exhibitionspertaining Environmental Education.

Article courtesy Mr Ignatius Davids,environmental Education Officer, CheetahConservation Fund

Museum Matters 26


Bank WindhoekTriennial 2014The judging process of the Bank WindhoekTriennial entries this year was very strict.This is as it should be. Of the 402 entriessubmitted, the judges rejected 278 worksthat in their opinion did not attain therequired standards of excellence. As partof the team of judges, I was particularlyimpressed with the progress made in thecategories of painting by the youngerartists.

This year three senior artists werehonoured with Lifetime AchievementAwards. These are established andrecognised artists who, in our view, areworthy of being singled out in this way.This will provide a much-needed impetusto emerging artists of talent to aim evenhigher in their bid to gain success.

The works of the invited and selectedartists serve as a guide to theinexperienced. It is fitting that the matureleading artists give direction to others, thusensuring that the correct path to success ischosen. It is vital that a high standard is setand maintained in future.

The Bank Windhoek Triennial exhibitionstimulates new ideas, concepts and meansof expression. Artists are encouraged tosearch for and respond to their changingenvironment. To quote Professor Konaté,the main judge of the Bank WindhoekTriennial 2008:

“…the Bank Windhoek Triennial could become oneof the major appointments on the agenda of

contemporary African art and also, get a visibility onthe international agenda. “ (Ref. BWT 2008catalogue).

Overall best artist and most promising young artist, Findano Shikonda

I would like to conclude by saying thatartists are the conscience and vanguards ofsociety. It is through their eyes that wedefine our past, assess our present andproject our future. It is indeed pleasing tonote that the Bank Windhoek TriennialExhibition is once again a success story. Asthe Chairperson of Bank WindhoekTriennial responsible for coordinating theproject, I felt privileged to be one of theteam of judges for Triennial 2014. It waswell worth the effort, as the BankWindhoek Triennial will generate muchinterest among the many visitors whocome to view the display, and will leave theNational Art Gallery of Namibia with vividand inspired memories of the visual arts ofour country.

Article Courtesy of Luness Mpunwa, FormerSenior Curator of the National Art Gallery ofNamibia

Museum Matters 26


Museum CollectionsMake Connections:Africa AccessionedThe International Committee of Museumsof Ethnography (ICME) Annual Conferencethat took place on 14th – 16th October,2014 in Zagreb, Croatia. Dr Silvester madea presentation on the Àfrica Accessioned’project, having successfully applied for anICME bursary to cover the costs ofattendance. The Conference provided anopportunity to meet with several membersof the Africa Accessioned Working Groupand the presentation provoked a livelydiscussion about the future of Africancollections in European museums.

Dr Silvester serves as the Chairperson ofthe Africa Accessioned Working Group andreported that ICME had entered into apartnership with the SADC HeritageAssociation to implement the project.ICME had obtained a small grant from theICOM Special Projects fund which hadenabled a project laptop to be purchasedand an intern employed in Namibia to helpwith correspondence. The Working Grouphad been successfully established andconsisted of two members from each ofthe eight participating countries(Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe,Finland, Germany, Sweden and the UK) aswell as the Chairpersons of the WorkingGroup and of ICME.

The first phase of the project had involveda survey of African collections in museumsin the four participating Europeanmuseums and relevant collections hadbeen located in eight museums in Finland,26 museums in Germany, seven museumsin Finland and 27 museums in the UK – sofar ! The next stage of the project is toestablish a summary of the items in eachcollection. Ethnographers on the WorkingGroup from each of the four participatingAfrican countries will then appraise thecollections to identify possible links andalso those artefacts that are of greatestsignificance to communities.

The Conference also provided anopportunity to visit a range of Croatianmuseums. The visits included twoècomuseums’. The concept of theecomuseum was developed in France andfeatures museums that are strongly rootedin the community. For example, in Pula,the community of local fishermen, have setup a museum that works to preserve thetraditional fishing and rowing techniques.In another case members of a communityin a small town donated objects to helpestablish a museum in a derelict building.People who donated objects or who

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helped to repair the building or donatedmaterials to the renovations all becamemembers of the museum and met to makedecisions about the development of themuseum. The museum sold crafts andproducts such as olive oil and locally madedrinks on behalf of the community.

A different type of museum that wasvisited was the `Museum of BrokenRelationships’ in Zagreb. The museumrecently won a prize as the most innovativemuseum in Europe. The museum startedas an exhibition and consists of a collectionof objects donated by members of thepublic. The items are not associated withfamous people or events. But each objectis accompanied by a story that explains theway in which that object signifies a lovingrelationship that came to an end. Some ofthe stories are sad, some humorous, whilstothers have used the donation of theobjects (such as a fluffy toy that a formerlover had given them) to mark a break withtheir past and to move on. The museum isa great example of the argument thatobjects are `dead’ without the stories andbiographies that were associated withthem.

The objects are, themselves, characters inindividual dramas and give a unique insightinto people’s lives. What is striking is thatlove and heartbreak are universal and sothe objects displayed in the museum areable to connect with people from manydifferent backgrounds. Perhaps we canarrange for an exhibition from theMuseum of Broken Relationships to travelto Namibia and add a few objects of ourown to this eclectic collection that reflectsthe international phenomena of thebroken heart !

Article courtesy of Dr Jeremy Silvester,Project Planning and training Officer,Museum Association of Namibia

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THE REVIVALOF NAMIBIANTRADITIONALINSTRUMENTSThe Embassy of Finland hosted a workshop onthe “Revival of Namibian Traditional MusicInstruments”, on the 20th October 2014 at theResidence of the Embassy of Finland in KleinWindhoek. Museums Association Membersalso participated.

The workshop was hosted by the SibeliusAcademy in cooperation with the Universityof Namibia. The program consisted ofpresentations by representatives of UNESCO,Ministry of Youth, National Service, Sportsand Culture, as well as the folk music expertsfrom the Sibelius Academy, The College ofThe Arts and the University of Namibia.

The Sibelius Academy is the highest levelmusical education institution in Finland. TheAcademy trains artists skilled in independentartistic work, teachers and other musicprofessionals. The Academy is also

responsible for developing the Finnish musicculture and fostering music tradition. Globalinfluences means that it is important tosafeguard the ability to build and performwith traditional instruments as music is animportant element of our Ìntangible CulturalHeritage’.

Pastor Johannes Tolu, a keen student ofNamibia’s ancient musical traditions, notedthat one of the key elements of the project isto introduce the notion to a youngergeneration that a connection to the past cantell you who you are by identifying where youcome from. “It belongs to you”.

The musical partnership between the FinnishSibelius Academy and the University ofNamibia (UNAM) started in 2007, as part of acultural exchange deal that was launched in2000 between Finland and Namibia. Theultimate goal will be to create a Namibianmuseum to research, document, preserveand revive ancient Namibian folk music,instruments and history.

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The collaboration between UNAM andSibelius Academy is aimed at revivingNamibian traditional music as well as`modernising’ traditional musical instrumentsand reaching out to new, young audiences. AFinnish-Namibian folk music ensembleoffered the audience a unique opportunity towitness, for the first time in Namibia, a publicperformance with Finnish-made, traditionalNamibian musical instruments.

Overall, the event was a success and wellreceived by the participants. Spin-off eventshave already been planned by the keystakeholders in order to continue thevaluable discussions at a more practical level.One outcome of the collaboration has beenthe construction of an Otjihumba.

The Otjihumba has been built by JuhanaNyrhinen, a member of the Sibelius Academydelegation. The Otjihumba master, JosephTjinana from the Kunene region, appraisedthe instrument at the event where otherNamibian traditional instruments were alsoexhibited. The Otjihumba represents theendangered musical traditions of theOvahimba and Ovazemba communities.

Research assistant Vesa Norilo, a Sibeliusresearch assistant, said that their work inNamibia revealed a rich diversity of musicaltraditions and that the project’s goal is tokeep this from “disappearing”. Many of thetraditional instruments are now hard to find,and as part of the recovery of these traditionsit was decided to build instruments such asthe Otjihumba. The true test of Mr Nyrhinen’swork came when Joseph Tjinana was firstshown the instrument earlier this week andfinally, when he played it.

Sakari Löytty, who was born in Namibia as achild of Finnish missionaries, noted that afterNamibia’s independence, the enthusiasm toestablish a modern democracy opened up anopportunity to explore and preserve pasttraditions. This project is a way to exercise aresponsibility to preserve our local identityand to strengthen the link between the past,present and future. However, music is alwaysa great way to bring people from differentcultures together. Löytty concluded by sayingthat ultimately, “a musician is a musician”,wherever they play.

Article courtesy of Lavinia Nelulu, Intern,Museums Association of Namibia

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Session 535 ‘Holocaustand Genocide Education:

SharingExperienceAcrossBorders’The Salzburg Global Seminar is a non-profitorganisation that holds seminars onvarious themes throughout the year. Theseminars take place at SchlossLeopoldskron (home to the Salzburg GlobalSeminar), located in Salzburg Austria.MAN’s Operations Manager, Ms NaitsikileIizyenda was fortunate enough to attendSession 535 ‘Holocaust and GenocideEducation: Sharing Experience AcrossBorders’.

Session 535 focused on three coreissues;

1. how to bring the lessons ofthe Holocaust to futuregenerations, especially in theworld beyond Europe, NorthAmerica and Israel;

2. Ways to teach and buildawareness about the rootcauses of the Holocaust andother genocides, drawing onexperiences from around theglobe; and

3. Strategies to counteractHolocaust and genocidedenial and distortion.

This session was of particular importanceto the Museums Association of Namibiabecause MAN would like to develop aneducational programme that deals withholocaust and genocide education. Sinceacquiring the ‘Teaching about theHolocaust’ Exhibition from the SouthAfrican Holocaust Foundation Cape TownCentre in 2010, MAN has tried to make useof the exhibition as an educational toolwhile working towards developing a localprogramme with local content, using theexhibition as a foundation. However, thereis no definitive programme to circulate the

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exhibition and raise its relevance toNamibian Museums.

MAN would like to develop a “CombatingDiscrimination and UnderstandingGenocide Project” that would start off bytraining teachers on how to work with theexhibition. The ideal would be to develop atwo week course for a group of 5-10educators who, by attending the course,would also commit themselves to beavailable as facilitators for workshopslinked to the Holocaust exhibition. Inaddition MAN would like to develop asupplementary mobile exhibition thatcovers the Namibian genocide with aparticular emphasis on the directconnections that can be made between the1904 Genocide and the Holocaust and thedirect influence that these had on thedevelopment of racial thinking and theapparatus of control and containment thatwas imposed on groups targeted by NaziGermany.

MAN’s participation in the symposium wasbeneficial as it created many links andpossible partnerships to help carry thisproject forward. The main aim of theGenocide Education and CombatingDiscrimination Project is to use theHolocaust Exhibition as an educational toolto challenge predjudice. MANs main roleshould be to encourage Namibianmuseums to be educational platforms thatcontribute to dialogue about importantcontemporary issues in fulfilment of

MANs’ slogan of ‘Making MuseumsMatter’

Article and Photographs Courtesy of MsNaitsikile Iizyenda

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SCAMX Teachers’Workshop16 June 2014, Polytechnic of NamibiaHotel School

With the announcement of the re-launchof the School Clubs and MuseumsExhibition competition in February 2014,under the theme “Intangible Heritage”,project proposals were submitted to theMuseums Association of Namibia by highschool history clubs from all over Namibia.The best proposals from each regionreceived a grant of N$2,500 each to assistthem with research and the developmentof their project.

Over the years, experience had shown thatschools participating for the first time areat a disadvantage. For this reason, MANgives a training and planning workshopwith the teachers responsible for theHistory club from each of the selectedschools. The workshop aimed to equipeach school teacher with the necessaryskills to carry out research, to plan and tobudget for their exhibition. The Teachers’training workshop has proven itself and ledto be a significant improvement in thequality of the exhibitions in thecompetition.

The Museums Association of Namibiatherefore held a one day training workshopfor the teachers from the 20 selectedschool from the various regions of thecountry, at the Polytechnic of NamibiaHotel School on the 16th of June 2014.

The teachers were trained on how to puttogether an exhibition, how to select whichmaterial to display and how to display theirmaterial on their exhibition display board.The teachers had various questions onexhibition design which is one of the mostimportant parts of their projects. Therewas a high interest among the teachersduring this session of the workshop.Teachers were also trained on budgetingfor the funds for their projects and on howto utilize the funds to put together amazingexhibition designs and research.

Each teacher also had a one on oneconsultation with the Project Planning &Training officer, the Administrative Officerand the Operations manager on mattersthat arose in the review of their projectproposals to help improve their ideas fortheir project exhibitions.

Article courtesy of Ms. Bertha Iindongo,Finance Officer, Museums Association ofNamibia

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Olupale CombinedSchool History ClubWin SCAMX 2014The History Club at Olupale CombinedSchool beat off fierce competition to winthe first prize at the School Clubs andMuseums Exhibition Competition(SCAMX). The theme of this year’scompetition was Ìntangible CulturalHeritage’ with twenty schools researchingan aspect of their region’s culturalheritage. The winning school presented adisplay about the Oshipe festival which,traditionally, took place in northernNamibia to mark the mahangu harvest.

Robben Island Museum have sponsoredthe first prize which will enable fourlearners and their teacher to travel to CapeTown to take part in the `Nation-building’Spring School in October. The school willhold the SCAMX Shield until next year andtheir victory means that Oshikoto Regionwill be the hosts of next year’scompetition.

The SCAMX competition was run by theMuseums Association of Namibia for sevenyears, but was put on hold for the lastcouple of years due to a lack of funding.Fortunately, the Ministry of Youth,

National Service, Sports and Culture hasrecently increased the grant-in-aidprovided to MAN and this has enabled theorganization to re-launch the competition.The other main sponsors were the Ministryof Education and the Embassy of Finland.Dr Martha Akawa, who was the Chair of theJudging Panel, said “The standard of theresearch and displays for this year’scompetition was extremely high and it wasvery difficult for the judges to reachagreement”.

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The second prize was taken by thedefending champions, Negumbo SeniorSecondary School (Omusati Region), whopresented an excellent exhibition aboutthe Olufuko festival that takes place atOutapi annually. They won a long weekendsponsored by the Cheetah ConservationFund.

Haimbili Haufiku Senior Secondary School(Ohangwena Region) won third prize(surprise packages) for their work onOkaanda (the traditional baskets used forstoring grain). Hoeksteen CombinedSchool from Rosh Pinah (!Karas Region)won the special book prize for the best oralhistory for their research into the !AmanFestival that takes place annually inBethanie.

The two day competition took place inOutapi and participants really had anopportunity to learn about the region’sheritage. The competition included anexcursion to the OngulugwoombasheNational Heritage Site, the UukwaludhiRoyal Homestead and the Outapi WarMuseum, whilst the Ombalantu BaobabTree Heritage Centre hosted a braai. EveryHistory Club that participated in thecompetition received a Book Bag filled withinteresting and educational publications(generously sponsored by the NamibiaScientific Society and UNAM Press) as well

as a copy of the film `Paths to Freedom’(which was shown at the event) providedby On Land Productions.

Report from the WinnersNation-Building at Robben IslandMuseum - Salomo Ndeshimona

Olupale Combined School History Club, asthe winners of SCAMX 2014, won theopportunity to travel to Cape Town toattend the Robben Island Nation-buildingYouth Camp. The team of five (fourlearners and their mentor) left Namibia on1st October and returned on 10th October,2014. This year’s Spring School (as it wasformerly known) was held under thetheme `20 Years of Democracy: Youth inConversation about Political Violence’. TheCamp involved learners and educatorsfrom all nine provinces of South Africa, andthis year, a school from Zimbabwe alsoparticipated. The camp seeks to harnessthe power of creativity in multi-disciplinedworkshops in order to foster a lastinginterest in heritage amongst young people.

Each group of participants was given thetask of presenting a set of images thatreflected colonial and contemporarypolitical violence in their region or countryand to vive their views on the impact of thison society. The discussions were intense,for example, discussing the reasons for the

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xenophobic [hatred of foreigners – Ed]attacks on Zimbabweans that had takenplace in South Africa. We presentedimages of the concentration camps fromthe 1904 war, the Old Location shootingand the Cassinga Massacre and also sharedimages of Namibians (Ben Ulenga andToivo ya Toivo) who had spent time inprison on Robben Island and of the recentclashed between `Struggle Kids’ and theNamibian police.

The learners were able to participate inthree different Èlectives’ – Journalism,Poetry Writing and Videography. Thejournalist group presented posters withphotographs and stories. The poetry groupproduced some amazing work as theyproduced stanzas that described thestruggle for independence and freedom.Their poem was accompanied by thebackground humming of Senzemina –What Have We Done ? The recital left theaudience tearful and calling for more. Thevideo group obtained skills in operating acamera, producing, editing and directingand produced an intriguing video aboutRobben Island which each member of thegroup contributed to.

In conclusion the Youth Camp was theexperience of a lifetime and meant a lot tothe Namibian youth. It was a learningplatform and the youth were fully involvedin the dialogue. The team would like toacknowledge the mammoth efforts thatthe Museums Association of Namibia hasput in to make this dream become a reality.It meant so much to our Namibian youthwhose origins were from the rural area. Itwas a real boost. We would also like toacknowledge the support of the Ministry ofEducation in the Oshikoto Region whoassisted us with transport to and fromWindhoek. The partnership between MAN

and the Ministry of Education was crucialto the success of the competition. Welearned a lot even though it was tough toovercome the language barriers.

After this experience I would like torecommend that museum activities shouldbe increased amongst learners. Suchactivities will increase the love of historyamongst the Namibian youth andencourage more of them to join museumsand archives across Namibia. This will alsoprovide the opportunity to learn about andunderstand the different cultures ofNamibia and contribute to nation-building.I would like to see the regions encouragingthe establishment of more History Clubs inschools and budgeting so that schools canvisit their local museums. We ought toeducate the Namibian Child in their totalityand this should be our sharedresponsibility as educators and facilitators.

Photographs courtesy of Mr SalomoNdeshimona, History Teacher, OlupaleCombined School

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Heritage Week 2014

In a country like Namibia many people

have learned from stories told to them.

These stories carry information and ideas

about life and living, shared customs,

traditions and memories passed on from

parents to children.

Windhoek celebrated Heritage Week

(22nd- 27th September) themed,

‘Embracing our Roots’ with activities

happening all around Namibia. The week

was officially launched at the, National

Museum of Namibia where the guests

were treated to a night of song, dance and

Namibian cuisine. The night was attended

by an array of people, all dressed in

different traditional attire embracing each

other’s differences.

The week also encourages primary and

secondary schools to educate students

about the history, achievements, and

contributions of the Namibia people by

providing classroom instructions and

activities. Major museums and gallery’s

provided guided tours to these schools and

the public, of their institutions.

Activities in Windhoek

The Earth Sciences Museum introduced

the public to the largest known shower of

extra-terrestrial bodies to ever land on

earth known as the Gibeon Meteorites.

They are currently displayed in the Post St

Mall in Windhoek. This presentation was

accompanied with the amazing melodies

from the College of the Arts choir.

The Franco Namibia Cultural Centre (FNCC)

hosted a screening of the movie, ‘The

Power Stone’ which is about the power

stone of the Kwanyama people. The movie

was followed by a presentation by Dr

Napandulwe Shiweda, about the King

Mandume Festival.

The National Art Gallery of Namibia

(NAGN) in conjunction with Spoken Word

hosted ‘Night of Poetry’ where poets

recited poems themed to Heritage Week,

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they rimed about Africa, Namibian

cultures, heritage and life.

At the time, the gallery was exhibiting

artworks for the ‘Bank Windhoek

Triennial’, the exhibition consisted of

Namibian Visual artists and it was good

opportunity for their artworks to be

exposed to an alternative crowd.

The Museums Association of Namibia

(MAN) in conjunction with Xwana Cultural

Village and Traditional Restaurant, hosted

a night of feast. The restaurant offered a

truly Namibian experience, with its fully

Namibian traditional buffet.

The City of Windhoek once again organized

an exciting cultural walk which took place

along Robert Mugabe Avenue. Starting

with the Lueitwein Graves and ending at

the Zoo Park. Participants visited a number

of important heritage sites, along the way

and had encounters with cultural dancer’s

short statements and interesting facts

were given at each point.

Activities in the Regions

The following activities were organised by

MAN member museums all over Namibia;

UNAM History Society

The society planned a number of activities

at the UNAM Rundu Campus for Heritage

Week such as traditional cuisine,

accessioning objects from the Kavango

Museum, a storytelling session on campus,

a heritage week awareness march from the

campus to the town centre, heritage

awareness for local schools at Munyondo

GwaKapande cultural village, visits to

heritage sites in Rundu and cultural

performances.

Ombalantu Baobab tree and Heritage

Centre

The centre had storytelling, basket

weaving, Marula oil processing and wood

carving demonstrations.

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Ju’Hoansi Living Museum

The Ju’Hoansi living Museum used the

Heritage Week period to train children

from different schools in different

traditional and cultural instruments.

Nakambale Museum

The museum had demonstrations on

extracting oil from Marula fruit, traditional

basket weaving, making Makalani palm

mats and storytelling.

Cheetah Conservation Fund

The CCF used Heritage Week to print

Wildlife Heritage workbooks and trading

cards. They also gave an educational

presentation on culture and heritage in

Okakarara.

King Mandume Museum Trust

The King Mandume Museum Trust

organized activities in the Ohangwena

Region where they focussed on the

promotion of entrepreneurial activities

such as selling/trading mainly in locally

produced goods such as; artefacts,

handmade crafts, traditional foods and

drinks, as well as traditional dresses. Thirty

six exhibitors participated in that regard.

They also organised a tour for 12 schools to

the palace.

Onandjokwe Medical Museum

Onandjokwe Medical Museum were

visited by 9 schools which brought 30

learners each. They also invited Kuku

Leena David to showcase temporary

exhibitions as well as Meme Helena

Shifeleni and Meme Alleta Mutumbulwa to

display some of the traditional medicine

that they use and explain they are used for.

Article Courtesy of Ms Golda Ha-Eiros,Curator, National Art Gallery of Namibiaand Ms Lavinia Nelulu, Intern, MuseumsAssociation of Namibia

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OnandjokweMedicineGardenWhen Dr Selma Rainio established theHospital at Onandjokwe in 1911 she oftenfound herself short of medical supplies.She, therefore, learned about the ways inwhich local traditional healers used plantsgrowing in northern Namibia to treatvarious illnesses. As part of MAN’sÈxhibitions Development’ project (fundedby the Embassy of Finland) OnandjokweMedical Museum is planning to develop anew exhibition to describe the traditionalmedicinal uses of plants.

Above is a close up of the flower of theOmupopo tree. A tea made from the treeroots is used for stomach upsets. Scientificname: Albizia anthelmintica

However, rather than only showingphotographs of these plants the museumhas decided to develop a Medicinal Gardenwhere visitors will be able to see the plantsgrowing and learn about their differentuses.

The museum has already conductedresearch and identified at least 37 plantsthat are believed to have medicinal uses inthe area around Oniipa. The museum hasalready approached the National BotanicalResearch Institute for advice and to obtainmore scientific information for theinformation boards that will be producedfor the garden. The garden is intended tobe a peaceful place where patients andvisitors can also relax.

Omwandi (Jackalberry Tree). Scientificname: Diospyros Lycioide

If you are interested in providinginformation or donating some plants ormaterials to help the museum to create theÒnandjokwe Medicinal Garden’ thanplease contact the Curator, Ms LuciaHafeni, on 0812830033.

Article Courtesy of Dr Jeremy Silvester,Project planning and training Officer,Museums Association of Namibia

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YOUTH REVIEW:Transnamib MuseumThe history of rail transport in Namibiabegan with a small mining rail line at CapeCross in 1895. The first major railwayproject was started in 1897 when theGerman Colonial Authority built the600mm gauge State Railway fromSwakopmund to Windhoek. By 1902 theline was completed.

One could argue that most towns inNamibia owe their existence to thebuilding of railways. Because railwayscontributed to economic growth.

Having pondered on that for a while I mademy way to the TransNamib Museum forthe first time (even though I have lived inWindhoek for over eight years).

About the Museum

The TransNamib Museum is situated onthe first floor of the historic stationbuilding in the capital Windhoek. TheMuseum was inaugurated on 1 July 1993.Since then it has been visited by peoplefrom all walks of life.

At the museum

It focuses primarily on the story ofNamibia’s railway history through a seriesof exhibits that includes vehicles,equipment, documents, and artifacts. Oneof the sections is dedicated to thecountry’s marine and aviation histories.

One of the prides of the museum is officefurniture that is 100 years old as well as amodel steam locomotive on display in oneof the rooms. This model is on loan fromthe Verkehrsmuseum in Dresden. Anotherone of its prides is a “mother clock” that

was added to the collection in the early90’s.

One room has been remodeled toresemble the interior of an old traincompartment, featuring a washbasin andbed linen used by passengers.

Why you should visit

It will be a chance to see the narrow-gaugelocomotive from 1900 that used to run onthe Windhoek railway in front of thebuilding.

For railway enthusiasts and for those thatare keen on visiting historical places theywill enjoy seeing the historic building of theWindhoek Railway Station. Upon enteringthe museum I found out from the curatorhow rail work developed in Namibia and Ialso got a chance to see early photographsof locomotives (Mostly donated by WalterRusch) and the development of therailway.

Curator Konrad Schullenbach has workedthere since 1997 so it was a goodopportunity for me to ask him questionsabout the station. He said that he meets alot of different people daily with his joband that is very interesting for him.

“My passion for my job has allowed me toappreciate what I do as I have acquired a lot ofknowledge and have a background information

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about my job. I do it for the passion. It’s not awell-paid job but I get to preserve history andculture,” he said.

What was not interesting?

This might sound odd but I didn’t feel like Iwas transported back into history and thatis what I expect when I visit a museum.

I can look at the technical stuff and say thatit was not spacious. There was no sense ofadventure as I just step out of one door andin the next till my short trip was over. Thereis just one corridor which makes it difficultto fit a group of 10 or more visitors at once.

Without a guide, it would be difficult toidentify what I was looking at becausethere are no captions on the objects.

What can be done to make the museuminteresting for young people?

I think that the first thing to do would be toget more young people to work at themuseum. This will help the Curator interms of shared labour. Not only will theylearn about their history but they can bringnew ideas on how to attract more visitorsas well as to help with displays.

The other step would be to clear awaysome objects that are on display to createmore space. It might also help to haveexhibits on railway including sculpturesand materials from vendors to sell.

The potential exists for the museum toexpand to include more of the socialhistory of the people who worked on therailway tracks and to expand the history oftransport in Namibia to cover other formsof travel, such as the use of ox-wagons,horses and canoes. I also noticed thatpeople that are on wheelchairs cannotaccess the museum.

It’s a railway museum. I expected to sit in alocomotive compartment or to be able togo for a train ride. I would have enjoyed itmore if there was a shop or a restaurantdownstairs where I could sit down for acool drink, buy a key holder or a toylocomotive for a younger brother or sister.

After the visit I made a curious search onsocial media to see if there was a pagebecause it can be used as marketing asmost people these days use it. To mysurprise I found one with nine members, itwas not active and it was in Dutch!

The TransNamib Museum has a lot of workto do in terms of attracting young peopleto the museum. Museums need to stoprelying on the supposed intrinsic value oftheir collections. Stop "presenting" whenyou should be flaunting. Give me a story!

Article courtesy of Ms. Limba Mupetami,Intern, MAN.

Photographs Courtesy of Trace Garren,Townhouse Photography

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The Curator’s Toolkit:Pest ManagementIronically, whilst Namibia is internationallyrespected for its protection of wildlife aninfestation of insects, rodents or fungi canplace our collection at serious risk.Termites can eat their way throughhistorical documents and photographs,woodworm can destroy historical woodcarvings, mice can chew through electricalwires and baskets and fungi and mould canrot animal skins and leather products.What is the best way to tackle the risk orthe reality of museum pests?

It is recommended that a five point plan isfollowed:

1) Avoid – Insects and animals areattracted by rubbish and poor sanitation.The person responsible for cleaning themuseum plays an important role in`preventive conservation’. A dirty museumis putting its collection at risk. Leaks thatallow water to penetrate the structure ofthe building and cause dampness createperfect conditions for the growth of mouldthat can put the health of objects (andcurators) at risk!

2) Block –Curators should always be on thelookout for animal droppings and othersigns of life in their store rooms and displayunits! If an object or display shows signsof an infestation than it should be sealedoff to prevent it spreading.

3) Detect – If there is evidence that pestsare present than an effort should be madeto obtain a specimen and to describe anydamage that has been caused. TheEntomology Department at the NationalMuseum of Namibia that specialises in thestudy of insects might be able to help you

identify specimens and give advice on thebest way to remove them. Traps can alsobe set to provide an early warning of aninfestation.

4) Respond – Once a problem has beenclearly identified the appropriate controlmethod for the pest should be applied.Museums are advised to avoid traps thatuse poison. Traps can use adhesive –where insects get stuck to them. Suchtraps need to be replaced every twomonths. Other traps use light or scent(pheromone) to attract particular insects.Mechanical traps can be used for largeranimals.

5) Recover/Treat – If damage has beencaused to a precious heritage object than itis important to seek expert advice on thebest way to treat the object (to remove anyongoing infestation). Insect infestations inobjects will often require the objects to befrozen in controlled conditions to eradicatepests. Unfortunately it has often been thecase that well intended efforts to treat anobject have caused more damage to theobject than the original infestation. Forexample, certain cleaning products cancause serious chemical damage to fragiletextiles or bleach colour from an artifact.

MAN would encourage every museumcurator to take an hour or two to walkaround their museum to try and identifyany risk of pest infestation. It would beeven better if you could use MAN’sDisaster Planning Handbook as a tool tohelp you conduct a broader riskassessment for your displays and storageareas. As doctor’s like to say `prevention isbetter than cure’.

The Curators Toolkit is a regular columnfor providing tips for museum workers.

Old Telephone Switchboard, TransNamib Museum, Windhoek, Namibia

A statue of David Livingstone being attacked by a lionat the David Livingstone Centre, Blantyre, Glasgow

Documents

MUSEUM MATTERS 26 · 2017-06-29 · internship on the 13th of October 2014 and her internship will end on the 9th of January 2015. Lavinia is studying towards a Bachelor’s degree