Invisible Heritage: Ancient Egypt and the Museums in Serbia

Abstract

The museum collections in Serbia, along with one mummy and two coffins, include a little over one hundred fifty artefacts from Ancient Egypt, acquired mainly as gifts by the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries, with only one scarab discovered during the archaeological excavations in the country. The Egyptian antiquities in our museums, scientifically studied and published almost without exemption, have long been inaccessible to the public, or occasionally available to a limited number of visitors (part of the collection of the National Museum in Belgrade situated in the Archaeological Collection of the Faculty of Philosophy). They are not mentioned in the web presentations of the museums where they are kept, i.e. the museums in Vršac, Belgrade, and Sombor. Potential reasons for this invisibility will be discussed, especially the issue whether these antiquities are perceived as heritage, in what category of heritage are they listed, and according to what criteria.