british museum

Hawthorne & Heaney visits Peru: A Journey in Time

February 8, 2022 by Intern

Independent, isolated yet highly developed. The Andean people challenge contemporary ideas of what makes a successful society, yet their civilisation began 3,500years ago (900 to 200 BC). The British Museum’s exhibition ‘Peru: a journey in time’ intrinsically integrates the different Andean communities in chronological order yet still allowing for an organic integration of life, death and rebirth which is poignant to the lives of the indigenous communities.

We must understand the connection the Andean people had with the land, which was shown predominately with symbols in their artwork, for example this cloth showing the three diverse landscapes the communities lived from, the rainforest, the mountains, and the ocean.

Hawthorne & Heaney visits Peru: A Journey in Time London Hand Embroidery — A piece of cloth, with hand painted symbols of the land. The bird feathers representing the rainforest, the circular shapes showing the mountains and the lakes and the waves for the Pacific Ocean.

They were incredibly resourceful from the sea and cultivated the land for crops, showing great technological innovation and communities that were rich in knowledge. However, unlike modern day cultivation they do not just take the resources, what is so beautiful about the Andean culture is that they believe that nature is a living being. ‘Sustaining all life, woven into the shared belief system of which the natural and supernatural worlds are intimately connected’. Many objects in the exhibition show this intimate connection through the divine beings embodying the power of plants and animals, reflecting how nature supplied for the needs of society.

An Andean understanding of time is contradicting to that of a western perception. The belief that past, present and future are directly interconnected and happening at the same moment is for us almost incomprehensible and disrupts almost everything we base our cultural beliefs on! The Andean people take the living past into the present which influences the future. The importance of respecting ancestors and ensuring a safe passage into the afterlife is integral to the communities.

Just dissecting this remarkable piece of textiles, we can take so much information about the funerary rituals. Firstly, the severed heads which represent the importance to the afterlife, it is suggested that the heads were taken from the sacrificial rituals which then developed into the life-giving ceremonies. The life-giving ceremonies were when the life force of individuals were symbolically extracted to maintain balance in the neutral cycle of life, enforcing this further the heads are sometimes depicted with plants sprouting from the skulls to show the interdependence of life and death.

Deities, were how the ancestors and mythical beings were depicted with head dresses on, nose pieces and accessories which gave them animal type features showing the strong link with nature. This style of dressing was not just depicted in the artwork to honour the ancestor, but also worn by the living bringing the deities to life.

Textiles also played a large role in respecting the dead and the ancestors. Skilled and trained weavers were sourced to create the most beautiful, patterned textiles to wrap the dead body, usually being much more complex weaving methods and finer fabrics used for the dead rather than the living who wore practical everyday cloth. The Textile industry was proof of technological innovation in society, being a collaborative activity, the trade was passed down to workers who would train for years to perfect their skill and improve their knowledge.

Sacrifice and Ritual were dominant methods of respecting the ancestors, pleasing the gods and ‘maintaining a balance between the natural and supernatural worlds’. Ritual battles provided this, the indigenous communities didn’t fight to expand territory but used soldiers in a Moche ceremony of ritual battle. In which pairs of finely dressed warriors engaged in hand two hand combat, the losing warrior was stripped and taken to the mountains to be sacrificed.

Hallucinogenic plants were used extensively and were an important part of Nasca ritual, it allowed individuals to transform into different states of being and transcend time. This was visible in the artworks and ceramics of the communities giving the individuals the ability to really aline with their belief of life, death and rebirth being connected so deeply.

The exhibition expresses all these elements of Andean life and culture in such a respectful and informative way I felt myself gliding round the room mesmerised by each fact and admiring such an enduring culture and community who lived through colonisation from the west. It truly is remarkable and really telling of how deep rooted and powerful their traditions were to survive western repression and rule and still be seen to be practised today, 200 years after gaining independence again from Spain.

‘In many ways, past traditions inform present practise, and the enduring belief that humans are a part of the living landscape helps to shape our shared future. The objects in the exhibition connect this narrative and provide a brief glimpse of these remarkable societies from whom there is so much to learn’. The last message from the Exhibition curators as you leave the exhibition, which I felt summed the whole display up wonderfully.

Thank you to the British Museum for this remarkable exhibition, if you found this interesting then I strongly suggest you visit the exhibition and see the artifacts for yourself! Closing 20^th February 2022.

Photos and Words by Amelia Vance

Hawthorne & Heaney visits Scythians: Warriors of ancient Siberia

February 8, 2018 by Natasha Searls-Punter

We like to keep our interests broad here at Hawthorne & Heaney so The British Museum’s current exhibition, Scythians: Warriors of ancient Siberia, looked appealing to us. On from the 14th September 2017 to the 14th January 2018 it looks at the nomadic tribes who flourished between 800 and 200 BC, displaying various examples of their gold jewellery, clothing, weapons and living equipment.

The exhibition is spread across 4 large rooms, with carefully illustrated videos and child friendly sections of signage. Whilst walking round there is a subtle soundtrack of wind blowing playing in all the room to really add effect the the visuals you see.

It starts off with a little introduction about the Scythians, which was a collective name for different tribes that spoke Iranian, and shared a similar lifestyle and dress. Little has been previously known about these people who controlled a vast region of northern China all the way to the Black sea, as they had no written language, but since burial sites have been found and the permafrost preserved most objects scientist and historians have started to piece together a look into their life.

They were sophisticated crafts people and fearsome warriors who lived in tents and herded sheep, tradition was a focal point around whatever they did, as they used to bury the dead with all they needed for the afterlife. They had a strong bond with their own horses and often they were buried along with the owners as they believed the bond carried through to the afterlife.

Hawthorne & Heaney visits Scythians: Warriors of ancient Siberia London Hand Embroidery — Scythians with horses under a tree. Gold belt plaque. Siberia, 4th–3rd century BC. © The State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg, 2017. Photo: V Terebenin.

The jewellry on display was stunning gold that was usually either hammered and polished by hand or cast using a technique using cloth and clay. Gold was associated with the sun and power and most of the scenes buckles and decorative horse saddles depicted were scenes of mythical animals killing ordinary animals, this was believed to symbolise concern over preservation of world order. The items are remarkably well preserved and some still contain their original turquoise or blue glass inlays.

Opposite these there is a bit of information about Tsar Peter the first, who sent exhibitions to southern Siberia and found the burial sites. After this he ordered anything gold found around there was to be sent to him,where he documented and recorded and stored all the items. Some of the watercolours used to document the items are also on display.

What I found most interesting was the clothing and textiles that were displayed. One of the burial sites that was found contained what they believed to be a Chief and his wife. The clothing was elaborately decorated with punched, gold crouching panther pieces and a lot of the fur that they wore, a variety of squirrel, leopard, and other animals, was dyed using traditional natural dyes such as indigo and cochineal. Other items of particular interest were the highly decorated shoes, head gear and the fake beards the men were buried with.

The beards were of particular speculation because scans and the preservation of the mummified bodies showed that they were often clean shaven and both men and women were heavily tattooed. Applique onto woolen items were heavily featured as well although these didn’t survived as well as others.

What tribes they couldn’t make and produce themselves they traded and stole from other tribes. The most highly prized item was Chinese patterned silk, some of these fragments have survived. The exhibition also touches on the weapons and armour that was used, the bond with their horses and the influences from other cultures such as the Greeks, and Persians. Eventually they were superseded by other nationalities and tribes as new traditions got introduced the old ones vanished and formed what we know as the mongol tribes and others.

Over all the exhibition is really informative and covers a wide variety of interests and is running till the 14th January 2018 at The British Museum.

All photos are from The British Museum Blog.

Hawthorne & Heaney Visits the British Museum

April 28, 2016 by Natasha Searls-Punter

It is always wonderful to see what culture and history London has to offer and at the moment, the British Museum has 2 exhibitions on that will be of interest to anyone whole appreciates textiles. Following on from the very sucessful ‘Fabrics of India’ exhibition, they have the ‘Krishna in the garden of Assam’ piece. Also showing now in the main collections are a range of Islamic Footwear some of which regulars may recognise from the ‘Shoes: Pleasure & Pain’ exhibition.

Krishna in the garden of Assam the cultural context of an Indian textile:

Currently on display at the British Museum is the ‘Vrindavani Vastra’ (cloth of Vrindavan), which is reported to be the largest surviving example of an Assamese devotional textile. Made from woven silk, this beautiful textile depicts the Hindu god Krishna and his life in the forest of Vrindavan. Produced circa 1680, and measuring over 9 metres, the textile features both imagery and text demonstrating the highly skilled and most unusual weaving techniques that must have existed in India at this time.

The Banyan gown pictured below is made of Chinese floral damask with a lining that is also made from pieces of similar Vrindavani textile woven sometime between 1550 and 1800. The re-use of such textiles in items of clothing has helped to ensure their survival today although sadly the weaving techniques that produced them have since been lost.

Alongside the other exhibits, including masks, garments, and manuscripts, a short introductory film and an exciting video artwork combine to build a picture of late 17th century lndian history and of Krishna worship.

The exhibition Krishna in the garden of Assam is at The British Museum 21 January – 15 August 2016. Admission is free.

Life and Sole: Footwear from the Islamic world

Also on display at the British Museum is the Life and sole exhibition, in which footwear reveals an intriguing insight into the historical, as well as current, social and cultural aspects of life in Islamic countries.

The display features shoes and footwear of different styles, materials, and production techniques, dating from circa 1800, and originating from North Africa, the Middle East, Turkey, Central Asia and South Asia.

From stilted bath clogs for bathing, to beautiful hand embroidered red leather wedding slippers, the display tells a story of people and their lifestyles and demonstrates the influence of politics and international trade on the fashion of footwear.

The exhibition runs from 14 November 2015-15 May 2016. Admission is free.

British Museum, Great Russell Street, London WC1B 3DG, United Kingdom

by Charlotte Hailwood 15/04/16