Provenance Research Research Articles

Reclaiming Klungkung's Cultural Heritage: Navigating the Complexities of Repatriation in Post-Colonial Bali

This article examines the complexities of repatriating objects from Bali's Klungkung Court seized by Dutch forces in 1908. It argues that repatriation, often conducted as restitution between nations, fails to fully consider local communities' needs. Through a case study of five artifacts, the article explores historical, cultural, and ethical dimensions, highlighting repatriation challenges. It emphasizes engaging local stakeholders for an equitable process. Returning these artifacts can rectify historical injustices, uphold cultural sovereignty, and foster reconciliation between the Netherlands and Indonesia, despite challenges like provenance research and ownership disputes. Repatriation remains vital for addressing colonial legacies and promoting cultural justice by acknowledging wrongs, aiding healing, empowering descendants, and sustaining cultural practices. The study concludes that repatriation is a continual, complex process requiring commitment to justice, reconciliation, and cultural autonomy, focusing on the perspectives of communities from which objects were taken.

Knowledge Organization Systems and Provenance: Experiences and Challenges

ABSTRACTThis panel is situated at the intersections of Knowledge Organization Systems (KOS) and provenance research. In this panel, we will share experiences and challenges in documenting the changes of a KOS The panelists will provide real‐world examples drawn from their research and practice. These examples range from KOSs used in LIS, such as the Dewey Decimal Classifications, Homosaurus, and Library of Congress Subject Headings; to extended information science research fields, such as digital preservation metadata standards, biodiversity taxonomies, and ontologies. Currently, the models and practices for documenting changes in KOSs fall short in supporting even simple provenance queries like “who made the change?”“what are the reasons for the change?”or“when was the change made?” The panelists will collectively discuss examples of queries we have faced, as well as the implications for provenance for KOS research and practice.This panel is sponsored by Classification & Metadata Research Special Interest Group (SIG‐CMR).

What are the Main Complications When it Comes to the Restitution of the Objects Stolen During the Holocaust in Bosnia and Herzegovina?

Abstract During World War II, Bosnia and Hercegovina was occupied by the Ustashe-led Independent State of Croatia, a Nazi collaborator par excellence. Ustashe, mostly Croats, Muslims-Bosniaks, and domestic Germans, overwhelmingly participated in the annihilation of more than 85 % of the Bosnian Jewish population during the Shoah. Beside the physical destruction of the community, these Nazi collaborators plundered Jewish assets in an estimated value of over one billion US dollars and robbed priceless cultural artifacts along with the communal archives. While witness accounts agree that looting of most movable property (books, artwork, and other valuables) was carried out in the first days of occupation by the Nazis themselves, the robbery of Jewish property (apartments, houses, businesses) as well as torture and killings of domestic Jews was committed by the Ustashe. What complicates the restitution in this country is the state and memory politics, but also the inexistence of a central registry of stolen items that could be claimed. Moreover, it is of the essence that the GLAM institutions (galleries, libraries, archives, and museums) within Bosnia and the former Yugoslavia region engage in conducting detailed provenance research of their respective collections.

Analytical methodological adaptations for sampling ancient pigments in provenance research

Mineral pigment provenance is a promising direction in cultural heritage particularly in ancient polychromy research. The analysis of trace elements and Pb-isotopes can provide clues about the origin of pigment raw materials. While previous investigations already showed great potential for provenancing archeological-historical mineral pigments, sampling methods and reference data collections need to be developed further to evaluate the potential and limitations of this type of research. This work tests a new sampling method for pigment provenance research that collects sample material with easily available (suffused) cotton swabs for analysis by mass spectrometry. Three artifacts decorated with Egyptian blue and red pigments were selected for comparing sampling with cotton swabs to sampling with a scalpel. All three artifacts date to the 1st century BCE: The first is a colossal marble head from Lazio, Italy, which probably belonged to a seated cult statue of Zeus, and with extensive remains of ancient red paint. The two artifacts (a slag and a fragment of a terracotta vessel) were recovered during Petrie's excavations of an Egyptian blue production facility in Memphis, Egypt. The new results are consistent with previous studies, which provides the necessary quality control for the cotton swab sampling method. This work contributes to improving sampling methods for pigment provenance analysis as well as to a better understanding of past pigment production and trade networks.

ARCHAEOMETRIC analysis of pigments from archaeological contexts in the upper DELTA of the PARANÁ river (ARGENTINA)

AbstractThis research delves into ancient pigment practices among the Goya‐Malabrigo societies in the Upper Delta of the Paraná River during the Late Holocene. Utilising Raman microspectroscopy and X‐ray diffraction, we analysed 33 samples from six archaeological sites and four natural outcrops. Our discoveries uncovered hematite in red pigments across diverse materials (potsherds, shells, human bones, and sediments), anatase adorning ceramics with whitish tones, and charcoal creating darker shades. These findings not only contribute to the understanding of the mineral composition of ancient colours used by Indigenous people in domestic and funerary contexts but also set the first stage for forthcoming provenance research, integrating multiple archaeometric techniques to unravel the origins of these compelling pigments.

Quantitative Analysis of Aeolian Sand Provenance: A Comprehensive Analysis in the Otindag Dune Field, Central Inner Mongolia, China

The identification and quantification of aeolian sand contributions are essential for understanding the formation of dune fields and mechanisms of modern surface processes. In the present study, we take aeolian sand in the Otindag dune field (hereafter, often referred to as, simply, Otindag) as the research object. The dune field’s immediate source is quantitatively identified based on heavy minerals and the Conservativeness Index (CI), Consensus Ranking (CR), and the Consistent Tracer Selection (CTS) method. The primary source area of the aeolian sand was found to be from the northwestern, upwind area of the Otindag (59 ± 14%), followed by the Yinshan Mountain (17 ± 10%) and the lake basin (23 ± 12%). The proposed sediment transport model elucidates that sediments from the upwind of the Otindag are directly transported from the northwest to the Otindag, where they are deposited. Materials from the southern Yinshan Mountains are carried by rivers to the southern edge of the Otindag, where they are subsequently transported by wind and ultimately deposited. The lake deposits within the Otindag also contribute to the aeolian sand supply under the influence of wind. This study demonstrates that the fingerprinting techniques of CI, CR, and CTS serve as successful strategies for conducting quantitative provenance research in dune fields.

Non‐destructively characterizing sandstones, orthoquartzites, agates, and petrified wood for provenance research: Perspectives from the Southeastern Coastal Plain, United States

AbstractSiliceous sandstone (including quartzites), petrified wood, and agates located in Alabama and Mississippi were utilized as a toolstone resource during every recognized cultural period in the Lower Mississippi Valley region of the Southeastern United States. Regrettably, these materials have not been the focus of many provenance‐related investigations. Recent analyses of quartzite and sandstone from other regions in North America and from the Pyrenees were successful in discriminating sources using petrographic techniques. The current study examines the application of visible/near‐infrared reflectance and Fourier transform infrared reflectance (FTIR) spectroscopy on sourcing siliceous materials besides chert, particularly sandstones, orthoquartzites (quartz sandstone), petrified woods, and agates. This source characterization investigation focuses on a case study involving materials gathered from eight distinct collection sites, encompassing nine different siliceous resources collected in Alabama and Mississippi. These materials were sourced from two distinct geological formations: the Hattiesburg and Tallahatta. Results demonstrate the ability of non‐destructive reflectance spectroscopy and introduces a new outlier modeling method that detects, clusters, and separately models outliers with their own set of basis vectors. Principal component analyses, least absolute shrinkage and selection operator regression, linear discriminant function analysis (LDA), and random forest classification are used in this paper to better identify outlier elements as well as discriminate for stone materials accurately (between 67% and 100%). Although this is the first reflectance spectroscopy investigation used to characterize these materials for provenance applications, the preliminary results compare favorably with other provenance techniques whose aim is to quantify between‐formation (inter) and within‐formation (intra) outcrop variation. The quantified and differentiated sources, based on the hyperspectral signatures of the material, will provide a better understanding of prehistoric reliance on these lithic resources and produces a proxy to determine mobility, social interaction, and other past behavior.

The Ismaʿili Manuscripts in University Library Tübingen

Abstract The article is written in the framework of provenance research and focuses on the special, mostly precarious situation of Ismaili manuscripts. It sheds light on the history of a group of 42 Ismaili manuscripts, some of them stolen from the famous Hamdani Collection in Surat/Gujarat, India, and the circumstances of their acquisition by the University Library Tübingen between 1970 and 1972. When the manuscripts were acquired, the true origins and disposition of these manuscripts were still completely shrouded in darkness. More than fifty years after these events, I would like to put some pieces of the mosaic together and follow the history of the displaced manuscripts from their place of origin in Surat via Beirut to their final destination, Tübingen. My sources are: Archival material from Tübingen University Archive, dispersed documents, oral and written accounts of contemporary witnesses, further informants—and last not least, the manuscripts themselves.

The Nazi’s Mummy: The Afterlife of a Woman from Taltal

In this article, I highlight the insights gained by tracing the biography of one single object in the museum collection: a mummified woman. Her trajectory is followed from her original resting place in present-day Taltal, Chile, to the University of Kiel in Germany, and finally to the National Museums of World Culture in Gothenburg, Sweden. The article discusses how the woman has been traded as a collectors’ item and research commodity, and how she has been exhibited at the museum. By mapping the afterlife of the mummified woman from Taltal, we can discuss effective methods for conducting provenance research at collection-based institutions. Additionally, we can examine the lingering remnants of controversial ideologies within these collections and how they are addressed today. Moreover, the article aims to underscore the challenging disparity between personal knowledge and documented knowledge within museums.

The role of radiology in provenance research - experiences from the collaboration between radiology and anatomy at the University of Rostock and future perspectives.

Worldwide, the study and examination of human remains and the circumstances of their acquisition for anatomical collection have received great interest. As part of provenance research projects, a large number of collections are being investigated to determine whether the human remains have been acquired in a correct or unlawful way because the people could have been killed in order to be used as "anthropological objects" for research purposes and to become so-called "specimens". These topics have also been addressed by the Institute of Anatomy at the University Medical Center Rostock. The role of radiology in this interdisciplinary project will be presented using selected examples.The anatomical collection at the University of Rostock includes 40 human skulls, 14 plaster casts, 6 Egyptian mummy heads, and 1 full-body mummy. In addition to the examination by a historian, an anthropologist, and forensic pathologists, additional computed tomography was carried out on nine skulls and the full-body mummy. Micro-computed tomography was also carried out on seven skulls in order to enable a look behind the mummification material and tissue remains.(Micro-)computed tomography was able to close diagnostic gaps and the results presented some rather unexpected findings.Due to interdisciplinary collaboration, individual fates could be determined, which provided information about the individual's life and death circumstances. None of the examined individuals showed evidence of colonial-era injustice or the use of violence that would have led to their inclusion in the collection. (Micro-)computed tomography was a valuable addition to this provenance research project. · Computed tomography enhances interdisciplinary provenance research projects.. · Computed tomography enables a non-destructive examination of human remains.. · The future of research and presentation of human remains will increasingly be virtual.. · Steinhagen I, Brinker U, Kolbe V et al. The role of radiology in provenance research - experiences from the collaboration between radiology and anatomy at the University of Rostock and future perspectives. Fortschr Röntgenstr 2024; DOI 10.1055/a-2303-0312.

Sharing data, caring for collections. Open data on collection agents affiliated with the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin

Linked open data on collection agents contribute to increased discoverability, accessibility and transparency of natural history collections. Despite major efforts to digitise and open up museum and university object collections, related information is often stored in internal resources. This paper describes a project conducted at the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin (MfN) contributing to its collection disclosure and development initiatives. Information on historical collectors and other collection agents was transferred from the internal MfN collector wiki to Wikidata. For a total of 600 collection agents, existing Wikidata items were enriched or new items created. Special emphasis was put on linking these people to the Museum, to document their affiliation with the MfN, its collection and its archive. Within the project, an open participatory approach was taken. Several Wikidata edit-a-thons were organised to test this collaborative and innovative format for possible future application by the Museum. By opening up institutional silos and openly sharing data on agents connected to museum holdings, these data become more widely accessible and reusable, for example, as a resource for transdisciplinary provenance research.

Fingerprinting aeolian sediment sources in the Mu Us Sandy Land using the MixSIAR model

Understanding and quantifying aeolian sediment sources in sand seas is imperative to elucidate their formation mechanism and promote ecological restoration, particularly in transitional zones between agricultural farming and animal grazing. Despite considerable efforts to identify the provenance of the Mu Us Sandy Land (Mu Us), a clear boundary demarcating the provenance differences between its western and eastern regions remains elusive. Furthermore, the quantitative contributions of its potential source areas are yet to be determined. This study elucidated these aspects using robust source indicators and the MixSIAR fingerprinting model, underpinned by geochemical data. Utilizing provenance indicators such as the K/Ba, K/Rb, Ba/Sr, and Rb/Sr ratios, this study identified the line connecting Angsu and Huanghaojie Town as the clear boundary demarcating the provenance differences between the western and eastern Mu Us. The eastern Mu Us's coarse sand primarily derives from underlying sandstones (70.5%) and local fluvio-lacustrine deposits (29.5%), while the western region's coarse sand predominantly originates from Yellow River (YR) sediments in the Yinchuan Basin, transported from the Northeastern Tibetan Plateau (NTP) (82.2%), and local fluvio-lacustrine deposits (17.8%). Similarly, the Mu Us's fine sand mainly originates from local fluvio-lacustrine deposits, contributing 66.5% and 67.6% to the fine sand in the eastern and western regions, respectively. Under strong westerly winds, Gobi deposits from upwind areas contribute 33.5% and 32.4% of fine sediments to the eastern and western Mu Us, respectively. The spatial heterogeneity of material sources in the Mu Us highlights the combined influence of fluvial and wind processes. Lacustrine deposits play a crucial role in the sediment provenance of the Mu Us. This study demonstrates that the MixSIAR model constitutes an effective approach for quantitative provenance research in deserts located in climatic transitional zones worldwide.

“We are Working Against the Clock” – Interview with Pia Schölnberger, Director of the Austrian Commission for Provenance Research

“We are Working Against the Clock” – Interview with Pia Schölnberger, Director of the Austrian Commission for Provenance Research

Variability of coal mine overburden incorporated concrete and its effect on the seismic safety of reinforced concrete building

AbstractImproved utilization of coal mine overburden material (CMOB)‐incorporated concrete in the construction sector can contribute to developing a more sustainable built environment if the results of proven research on the behavior of structures constructed of CMOB‐incorporated concrete are applied. Even though there have only been a few studies on CMOB‐incorporated concrete, no research has been done on how this type of concrete can be used in structures. In particular, researchers have not paid much attention to the fact that the strength properties of CMOB‐incorporated concrete tend to be very variable, even though this variability is needed for a wide range of structural applications (such as limit state design formulation, reliability‐based structural analysis, etc.). For the first time, this research provides quantitative estimates of the variability in compressive‐, flexural‐, and splitting tensile strengths of cured concrete using varying amounts of a CMOB sample as fine aggregate. Taking into account the suggested distribution model, the research also provides a reliability‐based seismic risk assessment of a standard CMOB‐incorporated framed building. The failure probability and dispersion in the drift demand were found to be the same for the frames modeled with CMOB and standard concrete (natural sand); the results demonstrate that CMOB samples can be safely used for earthquake‐resistant constructions.

Classification performance of sEMG and kinematic parameters for distinguishing between non-lame and induced lameness conditions in horses.

Despite its proven research applications, it remains unknown whether surface electromyography (sEMG) can be used clinically to discriminate non-lame from lame conditions in horses. This study compared the classification performance of sEMG absolute value (sEMGabs) and asymmetry (sEMGasym) parameters, alongside validated kinematic upper-body asymmetry parameters, for distinguishing non-lame from induced fore- (iFL) and hindlimb (iHL) lameness. Bilateral sEMG and 3D-kinematic data were collected from clinically non-lame horses (n = 8) during in-hand trot. iFL and iHL (2-3/5 AAEP) were induced on separate days using a modified horseshoe, with baseline data initially collected each day. sEMG signals were DC-offset removed, high-pass filtered (40 Hz), and full-wave rectified. Normalized, average rectified value (ARV) was calculated for each muscle and stride (sEMGabs), with the difference between right and left-side ARV representing sEMGasym. Asymmetry parameters (MinDiff, MaxDiff, Hip Hike) were calculated from poll, withers, and pelvis vertical displacement. Receiver-operating-characteristic (ROC) and area under the curve (AUC) analysis determined the accuracy of each parameter for distinguishing baseline from iFL or iHL. Both sEMG parameters performed better for detecting iHL (0.97 ≥ AUC ≥ 0.48) compared to iFL (0.77 ≥ AUC ≥ 0.49). sEMGabs performed better (0.97 ≥ AUC ≥ 0.49) than sEMGasym (0.76 ≥ AUC ≥ 0.48) for detecting both iFL and iHL. Like previous studies, MinDiff Poll and Pelvis asymmetry parameters (MinDiff, MaxDiff, Hip Hike) demonstrated excellent discrimination for iFL and iHL, respectively (AUC > 0.95). Findings support future development of multivariate lameness-detection approaches that combine kinematics and sEMG. This may provide a more comprehensive approach to diagnosis, treatment, and monitoring of equine lameness, by measuring the underlying functional cause(s) at a neuromuscular level.

Wybrane znaki proweniencyjne ze zbiorów zabezpieczonych Biblioteki Uniwersyteckiej w Warszawie

A catalogue contains the most frequent owner’s marks placed in manuscripts and early printed books from restricted collections from University of Warsaw Library. Manuscripts and books were marked with enumerated signatures, supralibros, bookplates, manuscript notes, etc. in advance they were moved to current collection. The aforementioned marks were the main indication of the former collection. Copies of the owner’s marks could be used as an aid in the research of old collections by librarians and scholars interested in provenance research.

Historical Shelf Marks as Sources for Institutional Provenance Research: Reconstructing the University of Virginia’s First Library

Historical Shelf Marks as Sources for Institutional Provenance Research: Reconstructing the University of Virginia’s First Library

Paul Graupe, Arthur Goldschmidt and the dispute over an Adriaen van Ostade painting in wartime France

Abstract In 2023 the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, the collectors Susan and Matthew Weatherbie, and the heirs of the Jewish art dealers Paul Graupe and Arthur Goldschmidt reached a financial settlement over Adriaen van Ostade’s Customers Conversing in a Tavern. The museum had been alerted to a potential claim on the painting in 2017 while conducting research on promised gifts from the Weatherbies’ collection. At that time, the van Ostade was registered as a Nazi-era loss by the heirs of Graupe. Research revealed that it was handled by Graupe and his associate Goldschmidt when they were trying to flee Nazi-occupied Europe. This article provides insight into the working relationship of Graupe and Goldschmidt, and offers clues to the fate of other works of art placed in their custody which heirs of Holocaust victims may be seeking. It also offers a roadmap for museums navigating similar provenance research, donor relations and collection management questions.

Vyhodnocení provenienční plochy IUFRO s jedlí obrovskou na lokalitě Drahenice ve středních Čechách ve věku 41 let

The paper deals with growth and prosperity of 25 provenances of grand fir from Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana (USA), and from Vancouver (British Columbia, Canada) tested in the international provenance research trial No. 212 – Drahenice (Czech Republic; N49° 31‘ 10‘‘, E13° 57‘ 20‘‘, 570 m a.s.l., acidic beech site). Biometric measurements took place at the age of 41 years; qualitative features were visually assessed according to the IUFRO methodology. The best overall assessment of both production and quality shows provenance 12041 – Oyster Bay (BC). Other provenances with high growing stocks, i.e. 12005 – Bear Mountain (WA), 12038 – Clearwater (ID), 12043 – Sproat Lake (BC) and 12044 – Kaye Road (BC) showed some qualitative shortcomings (lower vitality, worse stem shape or thicker branches). The worst both in production and quality were provenances 12020 – Crescent Creek (OR) and 12011 – Clear Lake (WA). The results confirm the suitability of the current setting of the rules for the transfer of reproductive material from North America to the Czech Republic.

Framing participatory methods in provenance research: From the restitution of objects to a collaborative production of knowledge

Provenance research on European museum collections of colonial origin is a process of knowledge production from the reconstruction of collection items’ trajectories and the memories and meanings attached to them, often envisioning an eventual restitution to their supposed communities of origin. This paper examines how this process of examining and possibly returning physical relics of colonial extraction risks reproducing colonial knowledge and its accessibility. In order to counter this risk, it proposes a conceptual shift towards participatory approaches of engaging the scholarly as well as local communities on both sides in sharing and developing knowledge about and from the collections and creating equitable mutual access to the different layers of the produced knowledge. The thoughts presented here are supported with examples and experiences from collaborative field research on selected object collections from German museums in possible communities of origin in Tanzania.