Louren?o teaches Material Culture of Science in the Masters of History and Philosophy of Science (Faculty of Sciences, University of Lisbon) and is a research member of CIUHCT, the Interuniversity Research Centre for the History of Science and Technology (University of Lisbon) and the national coordinator of PRISC (Portuguese Research Infrastructure of Scientific Collections).
Abstract
In August 2015, the National Museum of Natural History and Science received from the Portuguese government the scientific collections of the former Tropical Research Institute. The collections – totalling 2.5 million objects and 5 km of documentation – are the result of 118 cartographic, archaeological, zoological, botanic, geological and anthropological missions conducted between the 1880s and 1974 to Portuguese former colonies in Africa and Asia. Although highly documented, these collections had barely been accessible to external researchers, let alone the general public. Moreover, the prevailing institutional narrative was one that highlighted Portugal as a ‘good coloniser’ and science as an instrument of economic development and cooperation.
Since then, the Museum has been conducting an extensive ‘decolonisation’ program, researching the history of these collections, establishing criteria to identify objects of extreme sensitivity, presenting exhibitions, working with communities of origin and museums in Africa and recovering hidden data and voices.
In this talk, I will discuss our working values, methods and results, with a focus on main challenges and dilemmas, particularly evidence of extreme violence and suffering, death and memorials, the role of the performing arts in public interpretation, ‘out of time’ scientific research questions and the legacy of colonialism in present-day Portugal and Europe.