{"id":1553,"date":"2019-03-13T16:46:40","date_gmt":"2019-03-13T14:46:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/theexotic.ch\/?page_id=1553"},"modified":"2019-03-28T16:23:03","modified_gmt":"2019-03-28T14:23:03","slug":"objects-of-desire","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/theexotic.ch\/?page_id=1553","title":{"rendered":"Objects"},"content":{"rendered":"

As part of the seminar “Swiss Collections, Swiss Connection” (Fall 2018, Bern University), the participants worked on pieces of interest for the exhibition Exotic Switzerland<\/em>, to be held in Lausanne in 2020 (Palais de Rumine). Here, we present the results of their research, as a\u00a0preview of the show.<\/p>\n

Trachtenbild<\/i><\/strong> von<\/i><\/strong>\u00a0Stans<\/i> – Valentina Shasivari<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

Joseph Reinhard, Trachtenbild von Stans<\/i>, um 1800, \u00d6l auf Leinwand, 71.5 x 58.4 cm, unsigniert Kunstmuseum Luzern.<\/p><\/div>\n

The Trachtenbild<\/i> von<\/i> Stans<\/i> was painted by the Lucernese painter Joseph Reinhard around 1800. It was part of the second cycle of paintings presenting Swiss costumes, so called Trachten<\/i>, as they were imagined to be typical of Swiss people at the time. The cycle counts around 46 paintings, subdivided by region and usually showing a couple or a family doing specific chores. After the success of the first cycle of Trachten<\/i> which Reinhard painted on commission for a rich industrialist in the 1790es the second cycle was made on Joseph Reinhard\u2019s own initiative. Here he relied more on typical elements of genre-paining to conceive an idea of Swiss peasantry.
\nOn the Trachtenbild<\/i> von<\/i> Stans<\/i> Reinhard sets the peasant family drinking milk in front of the ruins of a rustical building, a common visual code for originality and timelessness since 17th century landscape painting. In this painting this idea is combined with idealized features of Swiss peasantry such as a harmonious family drinking milk and the stylized peasant clothing to present rural Swiss life and simplicity as if it had \u201calways been like that\u201d.<\/p>\n

In reality though these ideas were a product of 18th century scientific discourses in the wake of Swiss nation building. It was a protestant scholar from Zurich, Johann Jakob Scheuchzer, who a few decades earlier laid the basis for the idea of Swiss peasants as an alpine people of \u201cmilk-eaters\u201d, living from the gifts of their surrounding nature. This image was later taken up by writers and novelists such as Rousseau, who unleashed a touristic boom with his influential novel \u201cNouvelle Heloise\u201d in which he depicts Switzerland as an idyllic and peaceful alpine island. It is not a coincidence though that the long-lasting image of Switzerland as a heavenly Arcadia of the alps was born with the onset of industrialization, which never seems to be a topic in the images circulating at the time. The image production of this time and the invention of the Trachtenbild<\/i> along with it can thus be read as a sort of aesthetic compensation in a time of economic changes and agrarian reforms, spreading ideals of a simple life in humility of good peasants living in harmony with nature. The paintings from the second cycle have been exposed in a cabinet of the painter himself and attracted a lot of scholars and tourists, who were interested in seeing the \u201cstrong features of this population\u201d, as a visitor noted at the time.<\/p>\n

To know more:\u00a0Trachtenbild von Stans<\/a><\/p>\n

Trachtenbild<\/i> of Gabriel<\/i> Figy<\/i> und<\/i> Elsbeth<\/i> Conrad<\/i> von<\/i> Glarus<\/i> – V. S.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

Josef Reinhard, Trachtenbild, Gabriel Figy und Elsbeth Conrad von Glarus<\/i>, um 1800, \u00d6l auf Leinwand, 71 x 59.2 cm, Kunstmuseum Luzern.<\/p><\/div>\n

The Trachtenbild<\/i> of<\/i> Gabriel<\/i> Figy<\/i> und<\/i> Elsbeth Conrad<\/i> von<\/i> Glarus<\/i>, is also part of the second cycle of Trachten<\/i> which Joseph Reinhard painted around 1800 in Lucerne. Trachten<\/i> were becoming a highly demanded image type in Switzerland at the time and by the 1850s were exported all around Europe. The cycle counts around 46 oil paintings measuring around 70 x 60 cm, subdivided by region and usually showing a couple or a family doing specific chores.
\nWhereas the first cycle of Trachten<\/i>, which Reinhard painted in the 1790es, the focus of the paintings was more on the almost caricatural bodily and facial features of the couples shown on a neutral background, the style of the second cycle draws more from typical elements of genre-paining to conceive an idea of Swiss peasantry. On the Trachtenbild<\/i> of<\/i> Gabriel<\/i> Figy<\/i> and<\/i> Elsbeth<\/i> Conrad<\/i> von<\/i> Glarus<\/i> the latter is shown as she is probably handing out the Schabziger cheese under the delighted gaze of who seems to be the customer. The Schabziger cheese and the blackboards depicted here were typical products from the canton of Glarus. In this sense the image links a region, Glarus, and its people in a picture of idealized peasantry, where people seem to live in harmony with their environment and their animals in what seems to be a pre-capitalistic setting of goods-exchange.<\/p>\n

In reality though, the painting was made in a time when ideas about peasantry were part of an intellectual discourse of 18th century industrialization and agrarian reforms which were quite common in European debates. Also in Switzerland, especially in the economic centers of Bern and Zurich, economic and patriotic societies were founded in which ideas on how to increase agrarian outputs were discussed. The image production of this time and the invention of the Trachtenbild<\/i> along with it can thus be read as a sort of aesthetic compensation or as a propagandistic instrument to spread ideals of a simple life of the good peasant. The images representing peasants were seldom (or never) self-representations of the peasant population itself but usually commissioned by scholars form the main cities, who more often than not were part of an economic elite. The picture-cycles were usually exposed in their homes and attracted other scholars or even tourists, who were interested in seeing the \u201cstrong features of this population\u201d, as a visitor noted at the time.<\/p>\n

The Staubbach in the Lauterbrunnen Valley<\/em><\/strong>, 1804 – Patricia Simon<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

Franz Niklaus K\u00f6nig (1765-1832), The Staubbach in the Lauterbrunnen Valley<\/i>, 1804, oil on canvas, 136,2 x 108 cm, deposited by the Bernische Kunstgesellschaft, since 1878, gift of the heirs of Mrs. Sulzberger-K\u00f6nig, Frauenfeld, Kunstmuseum Bern, Inventory Nr. G 0281.<\/p><\/div>\n

During the early development of tourism, the Bernese artist Franz Niklaus K\u00f6nig (1765-1832) painted The Staubbach in the Lauterbrunnen Valley<\/em>, a waterfall located in the Bernese Oberland. The Staubbach falls belong to the highest free falling waterfalls in Europe and are one of the most popular tourist destinations in Switzerland. For three centuries, tourists have been travelling to the Lauterbrunnen Valley and the painting illustrating this specific theme dates back to the early period of travellers visiting the Oberland. Especially waterfalls were a great tourist attraction and a common subject recorded in hundreds of paintings.<\/p>\n

The early travellers of the Bernese Oberland play a central role in K\u00f6nig\u2019s life, as for several years they formed the main target group, for whom he produced his art. The artist moved from Bern to Interlaken, where his atelier became the cultural centre of the region. He resided there for eleven years and earned his money by selling small format landscape views to tourists. Franz Niklaus K\u00f6nig is considered to be a pioneer in the early development of tourism in the Oberland, as he was a tour guide and had published an early guidebook.<\/p>\n

This artwork from 1804 stands out in K\u00f6nigs oeuvre as there is no evidence that it has ever been sold to a traveller. The painting was exhibited in the fist art and industrial exhibition ever organized in Bern, which took place in the same year. He exhibited a total of nine works in this show, including this specific oil painting. While today it is regarded as one of his main artworks, the painting was not well received by the public during the artist\u2019s lifetime<\/p>\n

Although this depiction can be integrated into the traditional veduta representation of the Swiss artists working at that time, this painting is different. It stands out for its size and function: it is much larger than the average artwork by K\u00f6nig. Therefore the question arose why would K\u00f6nig, in need of a regular income, make a monumental oil painting, whose temporal expenditure was much greater than a small format paper work? And why did he choose to paint a landscape with this particular waterfall as its subject, when the work was not sold to a traveller of the Oberland but exhibited in the city? An early museum concept in the city of Bern can provide the answer.<\/p>\n

To know more:\u00a0The Staubbach in the Lauterbrunnen Valley, 1804<\/a><\/p>\n

Celebration of Alpine Herders in Unspunnen on August 17, 1808<\/em><\/strong>, 1808\/09 – P. S.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

\u00c9lisabeth Vig\u00e9e Le Brun (1755-1842), Celebration of alpine herders in Unspunnen on August 17, 1808<\/i>, 1808\/09, Oil on canvas, 84 x 114 cm, Deposited by the Swiss Confederation,
Federal Office of Culture, The Gottfried Keller Foundation, since 1910
Kunstmuseum Bern, Inventory Nr. G 0843.<\/p><\/div>\n

In summer 1808, the French portrait painter \u00c9lisabeth Vig\u00e9e Le Brun travelled to Switzerland to study the Swiss landscape. During this time the artist attended the second celebration of the Alpine herders in Unspunnen, which then became the subject of said oil painting. This event in the Bernese Oberland was founded in 1805 and still exists to this day, now better known as the Unspunnenfest. One of the main reasons for organising this festival was the noticeable decline of the customs and practices of the alpine . During the festivities, competitions were held for various activities, such as stone put, Swiss wrestling and playing of the alphorn. This staging of the alpine population was also intended to attract an international audience to the mountains. The first celebration in 1805 was a great success, thus leading to it being organised for a second time in 1808, and later illustrated by Vig\u00e9e Le Brun in this painting. The object has a unique status in her oeuvre, as it is considered to be Vig\u00e9e Le Brun\u2019s most ambitious realisation of a landscape painting in oil.<\/p>\n

In the painting one can find the aforementioned activities, people dressed in traditional costumes and also the artist herself. Vig\u00e9e Le Brun has portrayed herself in the foreground of the scene, sitting in the grassland and making pastel drawings. In her published memoirs she has written about the event and the competitions even mentioning this very oil painting. Nevertheless, the authorship was considered unclear for a long time. Today the painting is credited to her, but the method of how the attribution was made is unsatisfying, even problematic. During decades, it was stated that different Swiss artists made the painting. After the painting could not be attributed to any Swiss painters due to incorrect depictions of the mountains and certain other elements, Vig\u00e9e Le Brun\u2019s authorship was accepted \u2013 as a last option. The attempt to find a Swiss artist as originator can be explained by the fact that the representation was considered to have great cultural and historical value for Switzerland.<\/p>\n

In connection with the celebration Vig\u00e9e Le Brun made a second painting \u2013 a self-portrait from 1809 \u2013 which the artist gave to one of the initiators of the celebration, the Bernese painter Franz Niklaus K\u00f6nig. Through the comparison of the two paintings within Vig\u00e9e Le Brun\u2019s oeuvre, the problem of the doubted authorship can be solved.<\/p>\n

To know more:\u00a0Celebration of Alpine Herders in Unspunnen on August 17, 1808, 1808\/09<\/a><\/p>\n

The Pendule au N\u00e8gre of the Historical Museum Bern – \u00a0Daniel Vifian<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

Louis-Martin Froidevaux and unknown French bronze caster, Pendule au N\u00e8gre, ca. 1805, gilded bronze, 36 cm high. Bern Historical Museum, Switzerland. Provenance: Graffenried family, possibly from the Burgistein Castle, Bern.<\/p><\/div>\n

The <\/span><\/span>figure clock <\/span><\/span>at the Bern Historical Museum belongs<\/span><\/span>\u00a0to the <\/span><\/span>so-called <\/span><\/span>pendule<\/span><\/span> au <\/span><\/span>n\u00e8gre<\/span><\/span>\u2019s<\/span><\/span> production of the late eighteenth century.<\/span><\/span> The<\/span><\/span> clock<\/span><\/span> itself<\/span><\/span>, wrapped <\/span><\/span>in<\/span><\/span> a<\/span><\/span>cotton<\/span><\/span> bundle\u2019s representation, is loaded on the back of a hard-working <\/span><\/span>young <\/span><\/span>black peasant, potentially slave,\u00a0<\/span><\/span>archetyp<\/span><\/span>ically represented with garish fleshy red lips and those round and always amazed eyes<\/span><\/span>. He is in a walking attitude and wears nothing more than a pair of pants and a hat, while <\/span><\/span>holding<\/span><\/span>i<\/span><\/span>n <\/span><\/span>one<\/span><\/span> hand a letter<\/span><\/span> to be delivered<\/span><\/span> and <\/span><\/span>in the other hand <\/span><\/span>a sugar-cane <\/span><\/span>serving as <\/span><\/span>walking stick. His laborious nature could be inspired by literary characters such as Domingo from <\/span><\/span>Bernardin<\/span><\/span> Saint-Pierre\u2019s <\/span><\/span>Paul and Virginia<\/span><\/span> novel of 1787<\/span><\/span>, meaning the <\/span><\/span>clock\u2019s figure <\/span><\/span>was<\/span><\/span> thought as a <\/span><\/span>bon <\/span><\/span>n\u00e8gre<\/span><\/span>.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Colonialist violence is not explicitly surrounding the figure, despite some details pointing to the larger economic-political context of the time. Its pedestal emphasize<\/span><\/span>s<\/span><\/span> the lack of <\/span><\/span>this environment<\/span><\/span> through its decorative motifs<\/span><\/span>.<\/span><\/span> A monkey playing on a rope over a mirror-composition of palms is flanked on both sides by the same representation of an antithetic couple of birds presumably eating from woven baskets with bows. <\/span><\/span>T<\/span><\/span>hey are offering<\/span><\/span> both <\/span><\/span>a geographical and <\/span><\/span>an imagined <\/span><\/span>context.<\/span><\/span> The<\/span><\/span> sugar cane<\/span><\/span> specifies<\/span><\/span> t<\/span><\/span>he scenography <\/span><\/span>as the<\/span><\/span> Caribbean islands; the status<\/span><\/span> as the<\/span><\/span> French colonies<\/span><\/span> and its sugar industry<\/span><\/span>; and the historical contingency<\/span><\/span> as<\/span><\/span> the development of the slave insurgencies and the debates around their freedom.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The figure clock <\/span><\/span>was donated by Marie Juliette <\/span><\/span>Graffenried-Favarger<\/span><\/span> in 1963.<\/span><\/span> While the figure was made in Paris <\/span><\/span>in<\/span><\/span> Empire<\/span><\/span> s<\/span><\/span>tyle (1<\/span><\/span>803<\/span><\/span>-18<\/span><\/span>21<\/span><\/span>), the clock was manufactured in the city of Bern. The dial\u2019s clock has the \u201c<\/span><\/span>Froidevaux<\/span><\/span> \u00e0 Berne\u201d signature, which stands for Louis-Martin<\/span><\/span> Froidevaux<\/span><\/span> (1766-1813)<\/span><\/span>,<\/span><\/span> resident in Bern. <\/span><\/span>Working since 1793<\/span><\/span>, the clock was <\/span><\/span>surely<\/span><\/span> made a<\/span><\/span>fter <\/span><\/span>1801, when he received a watchmaker\u2019s patent<\/span><\/span> on September 7. <\/span><\/span>And s<\/span><\/span>ince <\/span><\/span>the <\/span><\/span>donor\u2019s family w<\/span><\/span>as<\/span><\/span> from Neuch\u00e2tel, and since her husband\u2019s parents were second cousins,<\/span><\/span>\u00a0the clock was probably bought by her husband\u2019s grandfather Carl Emanuel von <\/span><\/span>Graffenried<\/span><\/span> (1762-1842).<\/span><\/span> T<\/span><\/span>he clock\u2019s original environment could have been <\/span><\/span>then <\/span><\/span>one of the interiors of the Bernese <\/span><\/span>Burgistein<\/span><\/span> Castle, in possession of the <\/span><\/span>Graffenried<\/span><\/span> family from 1714\/15 until today. Built in the 13<\/span><\/span>th<\/span><\/span> century, the castle passed through a complete renovation in a late Renaissance style around 1570; and by the end of the eighteenth century, some rooms were renewed with a <\/span><\/span>plain<\/span><\/span> d\u00e9cor, approaching to the prevailing fashions.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

To know more:\u00a0The Pendule au N\u00e8gre of the Historical Museum Bern<\/a><\/p>\n

The Han<\/strong>s Rudolf Rahn\u2018s Figure Clock of the National Museum Zurich – D. V.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

Hans Fend\u2019s workshop and unknown German watchmaker and carver, Figure clock with a Moor, 1646, Wood, silver, silk, 66 cm high. National Museum Zurich, Switzerland. Provenance:Present to Hans Rudolf Rahn in Baden; Zurich Rahn family.<\/p><\/div>\n

The Hans Rudolf <\/span><\/span>Rahn\u2019s<\/span><\/span> figure clock was <\/span><\/span>probably <\/span><\/span>given in depositum to the National Museum Zurich around the year 1913. <\/span><\/span>It consists <\/span><\/span>of<\/span><\/span> a wooden stand-up figure identified as a Moor, dressed as a soldier with bow, arrows, and a silver shield, over a <\/span><\/span>secr\u00e9taire<\/span><\/span> that serves as pedestal.<\/span><\/span> Sometimes containing the clock\u2019s mechanism, the <\/span><\/span>Rahn\u2019s<\/span><\/span> pedestal was though<\/span><\/span>t<\/span><\/span> to be <\/span><\/span>for a personal use, because it was provided with two drawers associated both with the secrecy and the private writing act. What <\/span><\/span>especially<\/span><\/span> <\/a>attracts the attention is the fact that the <\/span><\/span>Rahn\u2019s<\/span><\/span>clock is an automaton. The pronounced white eyeballs move from side to side with the mechanism every second, and the prognathic mouth opens and closes according to the change of every hour. The clock on the chest and the automaton\u2019s mechanism were made in Augsburg. <\/span><\/span>I<\/span><\/span>ts mechanism is hidden inside the torso<\/span><\/span>,<\/span><\/span> not just to be protected, but to maintain the mystery of the synchronized motion between the clocks hand and the head<\/span><\/span> intact. \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

M<\/span><\/span>ade of silk, its <\/span><\/span>garments<\/span><\/span> correspond to a <\/span><\/span>R<\/span><\/span>oman armor, with laced sandals and straps on shoulders and skirt. But where the armor is supposed to let the skin be shown, in the arms and legs, the clock\u2019s figure is covered by a thin white filigree, <\/span><\/span>t<\/span><\/span>hat avoids the figurative carving\u2019s problems and gives a luxurious material appearance to the composition. Decorated with gilded embroider<\/span><\/span>ed<\/span><\/span> flower motifs all over, the costume with its central \u201cfeather\u201d panache\u2019s representation in the crown, places the figure in an exotic<\/span><\/span> land.<\/span><\/span> Nevertheless, t<\/span><\/span>he <\/span><\/span>origin<\/span><\/span> of this image must be found related <\/span><\/span>to <\/span><\/span>the<\/span><\/span> European<\/span><\/span> heraldry.<\/span><\/span> The<\/span><\/span> clock\u2019s <\/span><\/span>sculpture <\/span><\/span>duplicat<\/span><\/span>es <\/span><\/span>the <\/span><\/span>Moor<\/span><\/span> represented in<\/span><\/span> the <\/span><\/span>Rahn\u2019s <\/span><\/span>coat of arms. <\/span><\/span>When in 1646 the <\/span><\/span>burgomaster<\/span><\/span> Hans Rudolf <\/span><\/span>Rahn<\/span><\/span> was prescribed to go to the baths of Baden for a natural healing, the tradition demanded to honor him with presents (<\/span><\/span>Badengeschenk<\/span><\/span>) as loyalty signs, which generally consisted in victuals and gold for the journey given the long distance to be traveled.<\/span><\/span> There, <\/span><\/span>Hans Rudolf<\/span><\/span>received the automaton and <\/span><\/span>took <\/span><\/span>it<\/span><\/span> with<\/span><\/span> him<\/span><\/span>, but he surely ordered to leave his coat of arms in form <\/span><\/span>of <\/span><\/span>a painting glass (<\/span><\/span>Wappenfensterscheibe<\/span><\/span>) as a sign of his physical presence.<\/span><\/span> T<\/span><\/span>he figure<\/span><\/span> clock<\/span><\/span> as a present for his return to Zurich i<\/span><\/span>s a companion in the journey, both as a luxury good and as a material symbol of authority.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

To know more:\u00a0The Hans Rudolf Rahn\u2018s Figure Clock of the National Museum Zurich<\/a><\/p>\n

Figure of a Turk – Milena von Schulthess<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

Figure of a Turk, ca. 1780, Soft Porcelain, painted, 15,6 x 8,2 x 6,7 cm, Porcelain manufactory Kilchberg-Schooren, Inv. Nr. HA-3, Nationalmuseum Zurich.<\/p><\/div>\n

Around 1780, the Kilchberg-Schooren porcelain manufactory near Zurich produced a porcelain figure depicting a Turkish comedian, which can be traced back to the Commedia<\/em> dell\u2019Arte that was a theatre form in the 18th century. The object was purchased by Heinrich Angst (1847-1922) who bequeathed his entire porcelain collection to the museum in 1903.<\/p>\n

It consists of white, painted porcelain and is about 16.5 cm large. The man depicted is wearing a red coat, which is open to the front. With his right hand he throws the hem of the coat away to the right side, the left one rests on his hip. His body is slightly turned to the left with his left leg protruding. This gives the appearance of a dancing movement. The garment that he wears under his coat is light blue and golden. Protruding buttons hold the top together over the length of his upper body. At hip level, there is a yellow scarf tied to a knot on the left side. His shoes as well as the turban on his head are painted in the same yellow tone. The turban is decorated with a flower-like bud in the same red as the coat. His face appears reddish and below the jaw a dark red line is visible framing the man’s face. It can be assumed that it is a mask. He wears a mustache and his hair is grey. The colours are probably not original anymore and have changed over the years due to aging.<\/p>\n

The comedian figure of the Kilchberg-Schooren Manufaktur is thus a depicted theatrical figure. This is interesting in context of the loss of approval of the Commedia dell’ Arte around 1780, the question arises why exactly at the time during the Enlightenment in Switzerland, such a figure was made. The figurative depiction of the Oriental was not about critically dealing with the subject, but rather about reproducing the lightness and playfulness of the actor depicted without any significant moral reason. What seems controversial to our eyes today is the fact that the portrayal of a Turk or Oriental actually could have a deeper meaning and should be treated anything but superficial. Even in the 18th century, the Ottoman Empire was still strong and had even conquered the city of Vienna in 1683. There are comparable art works by Jean Baptiste Van Mour and Jean-Etienne Liotard that depict Turkish or Oriental men, or in the second case European men in Oriental dresses. Therefore, the playfulness and the multiplicity of these depictions shed light on a growing fascination for Turkey, also stimulated by the multiple and sometimes violent encounters between East and West.<\/p>\n

To know more: Figure of a Turk<\/a><\/p>\n

Menschenhandel – M. S.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

Unidentified artist(s), Menschenhandel, ca. 1775, porcelain, painted, 18,7 x 15,5 x 13,5 cm, Porcelain manufactory Kilchberg-Schooren, Inv. Nr. HA-74, Nationalmuseum Zurich.<\/p><\/div>\n

Around 1775, the Kilchberg-Schooren porcelain manufactory in Zurich produced the porcelain figure the Menschenhandel<\/i>. It depicts three people on a pedestal. By their clothing, as well as by their skin color, their different geographical and cultural backgrounds can be determined. The group is composed in such a way that two of the men face the third, whereby only two seem to address each other. The European facing the Arabic man wears a typical nobleman costume of that time. Based on the tights, the collar and the hat, one can assume that it is a Spaniard. The Arabic man wears pump trousers, a loosely wrapped coat, a full beard and an Oriental cap. The third figure stands somewhat apart from the other two men, on the side of the Arab, and is depicted as a black-skinned young man. In contrast with the other two he wears no clothes and his hands, as well as his feet are caught in chains. All three persons are placed on a pedestal, which is represented as a stone ground, perhaps situated on the seaside due to the presence of tiny shells. An exchange of money takes place between the European and the Arab, in which the European handing over the money. This constellation of merchants and goods gives rise to the assumption that this scene is a barter trade.<\/p>\n

In 1903, the figure Menschenhandel<\/i> was given to the Museum by Heinrich Angst, first director of the National Museum Zurich. Yet no more description of the object was made until 2012 what seems paradoxical, due to the intriguing dimension of this piece. It can therefore be assumed that the scholarly literature is still not clear about the historical and political relevance of this porcelain figure.<\/p>\n

Indeed, the object raises the question of how the delicate material of porcelain is related to such a brutal act as the slave trade and also for what purpose such an ambiguous work of art was produced, bought and finally exhibited. On the one hand, the literature points out that some Swiss people had active participation in the slave trade. Yet on the other hand it was produced at the time of the emerging counter-movement against slavery. Therefore, the object can also be seen in the context of the Abolition movement, which spread to Europe from the second half of the 18th century. The exact meaning of the group of figures remains unknown and the assumption that the production was carried out with a positive view of the slave trade cannot be excluded.<\/p>\n

To know more: Menschenhandel<\/a><\/p>\n

Swiss Coconut Tankard – Annina Pandiani<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

Unidentified artist(s), Coconut tankard, 17th\/18th century, Polished coconut shell, engraved silver, h: 17.4cm, d: 8.4 cm, Mus\u00e9e d\u2019Art et d\u2019Histoire, Geneva, Inv. 5197.<\/p><\/div>\n

The object is a coconut tankard currently stored at the depot of the Mus\u00e9e d\u2019Art et d\u2019Histoire in Geneva. It is composed of an elongated coconut cut into two pieces and mounted in engraved silver. While the lower part of the coconut serves as the actual cavity of the tankard, the upper part, where it was originally connected to the tree, constitutes the lid of the tankard. Due to its handle, the object can be classified as drinking vessel, even though its actual usage as such is to be doubted. It is much more likely that tankards like this one served in the first place as objects of representation and therefore were displayed in one of the rooms of the house where visitors were received, as decorative tableware or even in a cabinet of curiosities. The point to be made is however, that possessing this coconut tankard was far more important than using it at the table to drink out of it. The exotic appeal of coconuts from a Western point of view plays an important role in this regard. There is an inherent tension to the mounting of the coconut in silver of embracing and incorporating the foreign object in terms of Swiss material culture. From a post-colonial point of view objects as this one are the material manifestation of the unbalanced power relations of the West and the rest of the world, pre-dominant during colonial times and lasting until today.<\/p>\n

Maybe the most important detail of the tankard is the coat of arms on its front, linked to the dating as well as to the story of possession of the object. In 1903 the coconut tankard was given to the museum by Anna Sarasin, the granddaughter of Jean-Jacques Rigaud (1785 \u2013 1854), who himself was a Swiss collector. According to the museum\u2019s documentary of the object, it can be linked to the Sirs of Littow, who are to be related to the village of Littau in the canton of Lucerne. It is therefore believed that the coconut tankard was made in the canton of Lucerne, probably in the city of Lucerne. A wooden branch is depicted in the coat of arms, which might be connected to the Swiss family names of Stocker, Stockert or St\u00f6ckli. Furthermore telling from the formal characteristics of the coat of arms the tankard can be dated to the 17th<\/sup> or 18th<\/sup> century. In conclusion it could be assumed that the coconut tankard was given to the descendants of the Sirs of Littow by the family or a member of the family of Stocker, Stockert or St\u00f6ckli respectively.<\/p>\n

To know more:\u00a0Swiss Coconut Tankard<\/a><\/p>\n

Exclusive Tin – A.P.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

Unidentified artist(s), Coconut tankard, 17th century, Polished coconut shell, tin, h: 17 cm, Bernisches Historisches Museum, Bern, Inv. 5684.<\/p><\/div>\n

This coconut tankard is made of a round, bulbous coconut mounted in tin. The tin forms the foot it stands on, three barrettes holding the coconut, the handle and the lid. The tin is kept in simple forms, the only ornamental details being fine lines following the shape of the mounting, a small apex on top of the lid and a scroll work like hilt attached to the connection between handle and lid to open the tankard. Engraved on the front of the lid are three capital letters \u201cMEF\u201d. According to the renowned Swiss scholar in the field of Swiss gold- and silversmith\u2019s art Dora Fanny Rittmeyer there existed a habit in Switzerland from Renaissance times to engrave the letters \u201cMGH\u201d on state-owned tableware meaning \u201cMeiner gn\u00e4digen Herren\u201d (\u201cto my merciful lords\u201d). So, I suggest considering the letters \u201cMEF\u201d to bear a similar meaning apart from the obvious possibility of the letters being initials. The coconut tankard is owned by the Bernisches Historisches Museum and was bought by the museum in 1906. It is roughly dated to the 17th<\/sup> century. Reading the above mentioned scroll work like hilt as part of late Renaissance ornamentals I would support this dating or even suggest to widen it to include the 16th<\/sup> century.<\/p>\n

What makes this object noteworthy is that the coconut is mounted in tin and not in gilded silver or silver as most objects of this kind made of coconut are. A possible approach is to see the object as an imitation of the more precious coconut objects mounted in silver that were popular among the upper class of the time. Meanwhile tankards with a tin mounting but a cavity made of glass or ceramics were extremely popular in the 17th<\/sup> century, as scholars have shown. The popularity of tin and tankards of the period of time the object is dated to can explain the existence of the coconut tankard as a more special version of the tankards of the time. In any case the tankard proves that foreign goods such as coconuts did not exclusively circulate among the upper class, but also among lower classes of society. It is clear that someone possessing such a tankard, even if it is made of tin, certainly was not poor, but still the object is an example of how notions of wealth and exclusiveness transcend social classes and how habits of incorporation and exoticism thereby are adapted by a broader group of society.<\/p>\n

To know more:\u00a0Exclusive Tin<\/a><\/p>\n

Feather Helmet – Angela Meyer<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

Unidentified artist(s), Feather Helmet (Mahiole), Hawaii, 18th century, 22 x 14 cm, plant fiber, feathers, Bern Historical Museum, Inv. 1791.531.0002.<\/p><\/div>\n

The extensive collection of the Historical Museum Bern reflects the history of Bern, including its connection to the world.\u00a0The one\u00a0object\u00a0in question here is a Hawaiian feather helmet, also known as \u201cMahiole\u201d. The helmet displays a crest, spanning the whole head from front to back. Its body is adorned with red feathers and a smaller\u00a0amount\u00a0of yellow feathers on said crest. The feathers stem from two native Hawaiian birds, which were of great value due to their rarity. The bird from which the yellow feathers stem from has even gone extinct since. The scaffolding of the helmet is constructed with a netting of two plants native to Hawaii, which were important not only because of their physical durability, but also their link to the Hawaiian gods. Every strata of society\u00a0was\u00a0involved in the making of the object, starting with the gathering of the different components, the consecutive assemblage and finally the blessing. The helmet is not a solitary object, but is bound together with a feather cloak. Both of them were markers of prestige and identification of the upper class, as well as physical protection in altercations among the different island tribes.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The voyages of James Cook have contributed significantly to the proclaimed scientific ethnographic research in the 18th<\/span>\u00a0century. During the third of these trips (1776-1780) the ships landed in Hawaii, where multiple objects were acquired. The exchange of goods with the native Islanders is particularly interesting due to the role Cook played.\u00a0The objects in question, the assemblage of feather helmet and feather cloak, play a major role in the intercultural negotiation and giving of presents.\u00a0The time of the ship\u2019s arrival coincided with the ritual calendar, which\u00a0led the Hawaiians to believe that\u00a0Captain Cook\u00a0was their god of fertility. Like this\u00a0he was able to collect objects of great symbolic weight in Hawaiian culture, such as the feather helmet.\u00a0Only later, when the sailors returned, the disruptive nature of the intruders becomes evident and they were being denied their place in the closely-knit network of Hawaiian society.\u00a0Despite the encounter ending with Captain Cook\u2019s death on his return to Hawaii, the feather helmet was brought back to Europe by John Webber, the Bernese painter in charge of the illustration of the arduous journey.\u00a0As part of his estate, the feather helmet was donated to the Historical Museum Bern\u00a0in 1791, where it is currently on display in the permanent exhibition.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

To know more:\u00a0Feather Helmet<\/a><\/p>\n

Feather Cloak – A.M.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

Unidentified artist(s), Feather Cloak (Ahu’Ula), Hawaii, 18th century, 182 x 150 cm, plant fiber, feathers, Bern Historical Museum, Inv. 1791.531.0001.<\/p><\/div>\n

The Hawaiian feather cloak\u00a0in the local collection of the\u00a0Historical\u00a0Museum\u00a0Bern\u00a0is\u00a0one of a kind and differs from many other cloaks, which can be found around Europe. The cloak, traditionally referred to as \u201eAhu\u2018ula\u201c, was an object of great importance in the heavily stratified Hawaiian society. The cloak is composed of a woven net of\u00a0two\u00a0native Hawaiian plants in which the feathers, red and yellow, of two rare native birds are embedded. The feathers are assimilated in a way that they display triangular patterns across the surface of the cloak. The different strata of\u00a0Hawaiian\u00a0society are brought together in the making of the feathery goods, such as the cloak, as well as other accompanying objects such as the feather helmet (see\u00a0Mahiole).\u00a0The\u00a0piece functions as object of prestige and marker\u00a0of identification\u00a0for the chiefs, the highest class in Hawaiian society. Furthermore, the netting was quite durable and served\u00a0physical protection during times of war.\u00a0The piece preserved in Bern is different, in as much that it has been altered.\u00a0The netting structure displays traces of alterations, where the cloak has been either mended or\u00a0maybe even adjusted to a different wearer\u00a0who was of greater height than the previous owner.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

During the third of\u00a0James\u00a0Cook\u2018s\u00a0trips\u00a0for the Crown\u00a0(1776-1780),\u00a0the Bernese painter John Webber\u00a0accompanied him to underline the captain\u2019s accounts with his visual works,\u00a0such as\u00a0drawings, watercolors, and so on.\u00a0The ships landed in Hawaii\u00a0in January 1778, where multiple\u00a0ethnographic\u00a0objects were acquired.\u00a0Captain Cook assigned a clear value to objects,\u00a0which he received as special gift during festivities.\u00a0Webber even created etchings of the moment where Captain James Cook received the feathered works upon his arrival. The feather cloaks were\u00a0acquired\u00a0in a\u00a0pompous\u00a0exchange,\u00a0to then later be distributed among some of the crewmembers. One of the cloaks was attributed to Webber\u00a0and then\u00a0travelled all the way back to\u00a0Bern. After having been brought to Berne by\u00a0the painter,\u00a0about 100 of the goods he collected during his travels as painter of Captain Cook\u00a0were donated to the Historical Museum of Berne, and they remain the property of the museum. The cloak\u00a0itself\u00a0was\u00a0donated in the year 1791, the exact circumstances of this donation are\u00a0still unclear up until this day, this being before John Webber passed away two years later in 1793.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

To know more:\u00a0Feather Cloak<\/a><\/p>\n

Katana\u00a0– Renato Moser<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

Japan, katana with sheath, undated, 89 x 4 cm, Bern, Historical Museum Bern. Personal sketch by Renato Moser, 2018, due to lacking high-resolution imagery.<\/p><\/div>\n

One of the Katanas the Bernisch Historisches Museum<\/em> owns is said to be part of the donation Albrecht Herport\u2019s in 1697. However, a closer study of this object and its provenance is telling several different stories and we are still looking for the missing link to bring them all together. Among other discoveries, it seems it was never part of Herport\u2019s donation which is listed in the Donation Book in the Burger Bibliothek Bern<\/em>. <\/span><\/p>\n

Albrecht\u00a0<\/span>Herpot<\/span>\u00a0spent nine years abroad with the Dutch East India Company fighting in South East Asia to guarantee trade. Thirty years after his return he made this donation. Of the several objects in the donation the majority were objects of nature like a big leaf from an exotic tree, a dried flying fish of the fruit of a sago palm. Beside those objects his travel report, some drawings and sketches were part of the donation as well as a\u00a0<\/span>Kriss<\/span><\/i>, an Indonesian Dagger) and \u201c<\/span>eine<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/i>sin<\/span><\/i>e<\/span><\/i>sische<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/i>Soldaten<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/i>Sebel<\/span><\/i>\u201d<\/span>, a sword of a Chinese soldier. What he really meant by this expression is unknown. whether he referred to the previous owner od to a standardized part of a soldier\u2019s armor is not known. And as there is no accurate description, nor sketch of the object, there is no evidence that the katana is the sword of the donation. Furthermore,\u00a0<\/span>Herport<\/span>\u00a0was an excellent observer with keen interest in weapons. In his drawings he characterizes in detail the weapons of different origins and he would have known the difference between a Japanese and a Chinese sword.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The katana is not comparable with the highly decorated, precious pieces usually found in museums, it\u2019s a rather simple 84 cm long sword, probably meant for export only. The blade is in a rather poor condition. It was sharpened several times and referring to the curator of low quality. The cut of a blade serves as a hint for the period it was made in. In this case it is difficult as this cut was used in different times. The usually highly decorated parts like\u00a0<\/span>Meniku<\/span><\/i>,\u00a0<\/span><\/i>Fuchi<\/span><\/i>,\u00a0<\/span><\/i>Kashiri<\/span><\/i>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>Tsuba<\/span><\/i>\u00a0are kept rather simple in this piece. However, several parts of it are missing. Two of them were needed to fix the blade to the handle. Asking\u00a0<\/span>Dr<\/span>. Loveday from University Geneva,\u00a0<\/span>an expert about this object, she had severe doubts, about the age. Katanas are distinguished by epochs. The Koto are the oldest and most precious ones. The Shinto are \u201cnew swords\u201d made in 16<\/span>th<\/span>\u00a0to 18<\/span>th<\/span>\u00a0century. The\u00a0<\/span>newes<\/span>\u00a0ones are called \u201cshin-<\/span>shinto<\/span>\u201d made in the 19<\/span>th<\/span>\u00a0and 20<\/span>th<\/span>\u00a0century. According to the expert this katana might be a \u201cshin-<\/span>shinto<\/span>\u201d.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Up to this point, the katana is opening far\u00a0<\/span>m<\/span>or<\/span>e<\/span>\u00a0questio<\/span>ns<\/span>\u00a0th<\/span>a<\/span>n it answers.\u00a0<\/span>To get closer to the story of the object, every\u00a0<\/span>single\u00a0<\/span>part of it must be analy<\/span>z<\/span>ed<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>individually<\/span>\u00a0and<\/span>\u00a0the results<\/span>\u00a0put together<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Chinese Handroll and Bamboo-Box\u00a0– R. M.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

Chinese Handroll, 17th century, 26 x 520 cm, colour on paper, Bern, Historical Museum Bern.
Bamboo pipe with lid, China, undated, 30,5 x 6 cm, Bamboo, carved, Bern, Historical Museum Bern.
Personal sketch by Renato Moser, 2018, due to lacking high-resolution imagery.<\/p><\/div>\n

In the collection of the\u00a0B<\/span>ernisches\u00a0Historisches\u00a0Museum\u00a0<\/span>is<\/span>\u00a0a long Chinese paper handroll with scenes in a garden around a palace where women spending their day. The ind<\/span>ex cards suggest that\u00a0an engraved<\/span>\u00a0b<\/span>a<\/span>mboo-box with a tree and two travelers on it was used as container for the handroll.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The handroll was supposedly made<\/span>\u00a0by a painter whose work was strongly influenced by Qui Ying, one of the best painters of his time. The fashion and the hair style of the women in the picture, as well as the style of the picture itself, refer to the period and the artist. Several distinctive scenes in a garden, show women spending their day with playing board games, having a conversation or enjoying themselves on a boat on a lake. As an outstanding piece of art, this handroll should have been mentioned in the donation book as well\u00a0<\/span>as\u00a0<\/span>in other references that mention the Cabinet of Wonders.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Similarly\u00a0outstanding is its container<\/span>, a 30,5 cm high and 6 cm in diameter<\/span>\u00a0b<\/span>a<\/span>mboo box<\/span>. However,\u00a0<\/span>neither here hints\u00a0<\/span>of its past can be found. And lacking comparable pieces, it is to figure out, when and where it was made.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Both objects are said to be part of a donation which cam<\/span>e\u00a0<\/span>to the\u00a0Burgerliche\u00a0Sammlung\u00a0in the\u00a0Burgerbibliothek\u00a0Bern<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>in\u00a0<\/span>1697. The mentioned don<\/span>a<\/span>t<\/span>o<\/span>r, the Bernese Burger Albrecht\u00a0Herport<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0spent nine years in South East Asia. From 1659 to 1668 he fought as a soldier for the Du<\/span>t<\/span>ch East India Company. During this time, he wrote a travel report, describing the live abroad, the battles and\u00a0<\/span>the nature, but leaving<\/span>\u00a0out arts and crafts. Back in Bern in 1697, he made the donation, from where the index cards originate. However, in the donation book, where all donations are\u00a0<\/span>written down<\/span>, neither the handroll nor the bamboo box ar<\/span>e<\/span>\u00a0mentioned<\/span>. Serious doubts about\u00a0there\u00a0objects being part of the original donation are justified. Before solving the question about the origin of the objects, the answer of the donator and the time when it was donated must be found. The story of the objects\u00a0<\/span>is\u00a0<\/span>not told by a single stopover but by every station of their journey to the museum.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

To know more:\u00a0Chinese Handroll and Bamboo<\/a><\/p>\n

Kaufladen-Miniature: An Educational Tool for Trade Processes and Social Representation – Laura Grubenmann<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

Unknown artist(s), toy of the family Zellweger in Trogen (Kt. Appenzell Ausserrhoden), probably produced in the Region of Appenzell, 1770-1790, wood construct, painted and diverse material, 44 x 70 x 47 cm, Inv.Nr.1916.210, Historical Museum Basel.<\/p><\/div>\n

The object in question is\u00a0<\/span>a\u00a0<\/span><\/i>Kaufladen<\/span><\/i>, respectively a\u00a0<\/span>Spezereien<\/span><\/i>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>Tuchladen<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/i>in<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/i>miniature size<\/span>.<\/span><\/i>\u00a0It is a toy for children<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0The shop contains raw materials, colonial goods and textiles. The shop comes from\u00a0<\/span>Trogen<\/span><\/i>, in the canton of\u00a0<\/span>Ap<\/span><\/i>p<\/span><\/i>enzell<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/i>Ausserrhoden<\/span><\/i>. It belonged to the\u00a0<\/span>Zellweger<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/i>family from\u00a0<\/span>Trogen<\/span><\/i>\u00a0in the canton\u00a0<\/span>Appenzell<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/i>Ausserrhoden<\/span><\/i>\u00a0in east Switzerland. Th<\/span>e\u00a0<\/span>Z<\/span><\/i>ellweger<\/span><\/i>\u00a0Family was a family of merchants who played a significant role in the textile trade of the late 18th and early 19th century.<\/span>1<\/span>\u00a0Presumably the\u00a0<\/span>Kaufladen<\/span><\/i>\u00a0was commissioned by\u00a0<\/span>Jakob<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/i>Zellweger<\/span><\/i>-Wetter<\/span><\/i>\u00a0(1723-1808) as a gift for his sons in the vicinity of\u00a0<\/span>Trogen<\/span><\/i>.<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The German word “Laden” refers to the foldable wooden panels, which are used for the roof\u202fof the store, which can be open or completely closed as well.\u00a0<\/span>The shop is specialized in two different sales. On the right side colonial goods are sold, such as hemp, different kinds of tobacco, paper and spices like sugar and cinnamon. On the left side various textile materials such as silk and cotton cloths and\u00a0<\/span>silk<\/span>\u00a0ribbons\u00a0<\/span>are sold.<\/span>\u00a0The\u00a0<\/span>shop itself as well as the original shop items are<\/span>\u00a0from the second half oft the 18th century.\u00a0 Over the years in which the shop was used as a toy, but also much later, from 1916 on when the shop was donat<\/span>ed to the historical museum in\u00a0<\/span>B<\/span><\/i>asel<\/span><\/i>, new content items were constantly added to the shop, such as the doll.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

On the one hand the play shop from\u00a0<\/span>Trogen<\/span><\/i>\u00a0was a representation of prestige and status of the\u00a0<\/span>Zellweger<\/span><\/i>\u00a0family.\u00a0 It shows the different goods that the family traded with over the years. The shop takes up the concept of the colonial\u00a0<\/span>shop which<\/span>\u00a0was run by<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/i>Zellweger<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/i>companies until 1774, at the end and highpoint of the\u00a0<\/span>Zellweger<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/i>era. The commercial activity does not only\u00a0<\/span>took<\/span>\u00a0place in the region of\u00a0<\/span>St.\u00a0<\/span><\/i>Gallen<\/span><\/i>\u00a0but also in Genoa and Lyon. On the other hand the\u00a0<\/span>\u201c<\/span>Spezerei<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u201c was used as tool to train prospective merchants by testing the abstraction of trade in a simple but still realistic form.<\/span>2<\/span>\u00a0As a child<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span><\/i>Zellweger<\/span><\/i>\u00a0family members learned how to earn their living as merchants in a playful way. They learned to\u00a0<\/span>recognise<\/span>\u00a0textiles by their material and\u00a0<\/span>colour<\/span>\u00a0proprieties and became familiar with the value of the various luxury items that could be bought and sold at that time.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

To know more:\u00a0Kaufladen-Miniature: An Educational Tool for Trade Processes and Social Representation<\/a><\/p>\n

Miniature-Kramladen<\/em>, an Object of Change – L. G.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

Unknown artist(s), Kramladen as toy of the family Hochreutiner in St. Gallen (Kt. St. Gallen), probably produced in the region of St.Gallen, 1787, wood construct, painted and diverse materials, 24 x 31 x 25 cm., Historical and Ethnographic Museum St. Gallen.<\/p><\/div>\n

The\u00a0miniature\u00a0object\u00a0<\/span>Kramladen<\/span><\/i>,\u00a0from\u00a0the\u00a0Children’s\u00a0Museum\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0<\/span>Historisches und V\u00f6lkerkundem<\/span><\/i>useum St. Gallen<\/span><\/i>,\u00a0is\u00a0a fragile\u00a0object\u00a0painted\u00a0in\u00a0bright\u00a0blue\u00a0and\u00a0red-orange.\u00a0It\u00a0was\u00a0made\u00a0in 1787,\u00a0as\u00a0the\u00a0dating\u00a0on\u00a0the\u00a0objects\u00a0frontside\u00a0shows. The\u00a0miniature\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0toy\u00a0shop\u00a0belonged\u00a0to\u00a0the\u00a0<\/span>Hochreutiner<\/span><\/i>\u00a0family\u00a0from\u00a0St. Gallen.\u00a0<\/span>The\u00a0tin\u00a0objects<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>in\u00a0the\u00a0shop\u00a0<\/span>depict\u00a0ready-prepared\u00a0dishes.\u00a0They\u00a0<\/span>seem\u00a0to\u00a0come\u00a0from\u00a0a\u00a0butcher’s\u00a0or\u00a0baker’s\u00a0miniature\u00a0shop. The\u00a0rest\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0inventory,<\/span>\u00a0the\u00a0wood\u00a0balls,\u00a0sponges\u00a0and\u00a0paper\u00a0bags,<\/span>\u00a0the\u00a0furnishings\u00a0and\u00a0the\u00a0case<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0are\u00a0reminiscent<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0of\u00a0a\u00a0toy\u00a0shop\u00a0version\u00a0of\u00a0a\u00a0<\/span>Spezerei<\/span><\/i>.\u00a0<\/span>The\u00a0<\/span>Spezerei<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span>was also\u00a0called\u00a0a\u00a0colonial\u00a0goods\u00a0store\u00a0and\u00a0later\u00a0a\u00a0drugstore.\u00a0<\/span>Such\u00a0shops\u00a0dealt\u00a0with\u00a0special,\u00a0often\u00a0imported\u00a0<\/span>goods<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>The\u00a0miniature\u00a0shop\u00a0toy\u00a0was\u00a0therefore\u00a0originally\u00a0a\u00a0spice\u00a0shop\u00a0or\u00a0a\u00a0colonial\u00a0goods\u00a0shop.\u00a0<\/span>A<\/span>t\u00a0the\u00a0<\/span>end\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a018<\/span>th\u00a0century<\/span>\u00a0it\u00a0was<\/span>\u00a0one\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0most\u00a0popular\u00a0models\u00a0offered\u00a0by\u00a0toy\u00a0manufacturers.<\/span>1<\/span>\u00a0While\u00a0the\u00a0ownership\u00a0of\u00a0a\u00a0<\/span>Spezerei<\/span><\/i>\u00a0refers\u00a0to\u00a0a bourgeois\u00a0family\u00a0of\u00a0traders,\u00a0the\u00a0sale\u00a0of<\/span>\u00a0food\u00a0from\u00a0butcher<\/span>–<\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0baker<\/span>\u00a0shops\u00a0are\u00a0rather\u00a0a\u00a0representation\u00a0of\u00a0local\u00a0crafts.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Therefore<\/span>,\u00a0the\u00a0<\/span>discussed<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>object\u00a0is\u00a0a\u00a0mixture\u00a0of\u00a0two\u00a0different\u00a0<\/span>depictions<\/span>\u00a0of\u00a0shops. Over time,\u00a0common\u00a0models\u00a0of\u00a0the<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Spezerei<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span>miniature\u00a0<\/span>shop<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>were<\/span>\u00a0transformed<\/span>\u00a0from\u00a0<\/span>i<\/span>t<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0owners<\/span>\u00a0into\u00a0<\/span>objects<\/span>\u00a0that\u00a0represented\u00a0the\u00a0own\u00a0handcraft-business<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Miniature\u00a0representations\u00a0of\u00a0products\u00a0could\u00a0be\u00a0bought\u00a0from\u00a0toy\u00a0manufacturers<\/span>\u00a0but\u00a0were\u00a0also\u00a0often\u00a0produced<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>in private\u00a0handcraft.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>T<\/span>he\u00a0process\u00a0of\u00a0industrializ<\/span>ation\u00a0at\u00a0the\u00a0beginning\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a019<\/span>th\u00a0century<\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0the\u00a0<\/span>resulting\u00a0<\/span>c<\/span>hange\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0individual within\u00a0the<\/span>\u00a0society\u00a0may\u00a0have\u00a0been\u00a0the\u00a0reason\u00a0<\/span>for\u00a0<\/span>such<\/span>\u00a0redesign<\/span>ed\u00a0<\/span>shop<\/span>s<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>This formal\u00a0\u00a0change\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0object\u00a0<\/span>brought\u00a0a\u00a0change\u00a0in\u00a0the\u00a0<\/span>position\u00a0of\u00a0craft\u00a0trades<\/span>\u00a0in\u00a0society\u00a0and<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>flowed\u00a0into\u00a0the\u00a0education<\/span>\u00a0of\u00a0children.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>The\u00a0children<\/span>\u00a0were\u00a0animated<\/span>\u00a0to\u00a0discover\u00a0a\u00a0fascination\u00a0for\u00a0the\u00a0craft\u00a0<\/span>trade, in\u00a0contrast\u00a0to\u00a0the\u00a0<\/span>Spezerei<\/span><\/i>\u00a0which\u00a0<\/span>was<\/span>\u00a0supposed\u00a0to\u00a0co<\/span>nvey\u00a0t<\/span>he\u00a0commercial\u00a0profession\u00a0of\u00a0members\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0<\/span>elite\u00a0society.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

To know more:\u00a0Miniature-Kramladen, an Object of Change<\/a><\/p>\n

Demonstrierkabinett<\/em>\u00a0Pharmacy Museum Basel\u00a0– Oona Baumann<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

Demonstrierkabinett, height 35cm, width 29 cm, 17th Century, Inventory number O344, Pharmacy Museum Basel.<\/p><\/div>\n

\u00a0<\/span>The so-called \u201eDrug\u00a0collection\u201c(Drogensammlung), \u201eDemonstrierkabinett\u201c or also<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>known as a\u00a0<\/span>materia\u00a0medica<\/span><\/i>\u00a0cabinet, is\u00a0<\/span>like\u00a0<\/span>a little chamber of curiosities. It contains<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>collected material samples from animate and inanimate nature.\u00a0<\/span>Its\u00a0<\/span>name is also telling.\u00a0<\/span>In scientific language,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>in which the word \u201edrug\u201c means\u00a0dried parts of plants, fungi, animals or<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>microorganisms that are used in the manufacture of pharmaceuticals. The term<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>originates from the Dutch language, in which the adjective \u201cdroog\u201d means dry.<\/span>\u00a0Therefore, the object is both the little collection and the<\/span>\u00a0container\u00a0<\/span>fabricated\u00a0<\/span>to preserve<\/span>\u00a0it<\/span>\u00a0and show the dried samples.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The cabinet dates back to the 17th century and was\u00a0<\/span>probably<\/span>\u00a0produced in Basel.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>With its 35\u00a0centimeters\u00a0in height and 29\u00a0<\/span>centimetre<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0in width, this little two-door<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>cabinet is made out of walnut wood and stands on four knobbed feet. Six drawers are<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>marked with Latin group names from the\u00a0<\/span>materia\u00a0medica<\/span><\/i>. The individual drawers are<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>divided into 64 numbered compartments in which the objects are placed. Each<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>drawer lid carries its corresponding table of content. There were overall 358\u00a0<\/span>simplica<\/span><\/i>,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>most of whom are still available.\u00a0<\/span>Simplica<\/span><\/i>\u00a0is the raw material the compound drugs<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>(composita) are made of. In addition to the six drawers, there was a seventh one<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>which contained a notepad listing all the trivia of a drawer lid.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

When purchasing drugs pharmacists used the cabinet as a comparison tool for<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>distinguishing between similar looking herbs causing different effects. In\u00a0addition\u00a0the<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>cabinets were also used for educational purposes in the 18th\/19th century.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Certain\u00a0simplica\u00a0had to be replaced over the years as they withered and faded. A box full of memories of the pharmacy’s history and the value of the collection.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The objects\u2019 origin remains unidentified. The museum\u2019s founder, Josef Anton\u00a0H\u00e4fliger,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>was an eager collector. Since the pharmacies\u2019 chattels were all handmade by artisan<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>craft workers they were passed on to the museum.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Therefore\u00a0the cabinet could have been made by a carpenter or found by\u00a0H\u00e4fliger\u00a0on<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>his travels in the Netherlands after which it was filled with partly exotic resins, spices<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>and herbs in Basel.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

To know more:\u00a0Demonstrierkabinett\u00a0Pharmacy Museum Basel<\/a><\/p>\n

Mumia\u00a0vera\u00a0aegyptica<\/em>\u00a0Pharmacy Museum Basel\u00a0– O. B.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

Mumia vera aegyptica, glass vessel containing mummy powder, placed on a wooden pedestal, inventory number O344, Pharmacy Museum Basel.<\/p><\/div>\n

The object\u00a0<\/span>entitled<\/span>\u00a0Mumia\u00a0vera\u00a0aegyptia<\/i>\u00a0from the Pharmacy M<\/span>useum of Basel is a glas<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0vessel<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>containing mummy powder. It is placed on a wooden pedestal labe<\/span>l<\/span>led as\u00a0<\/span>mumia\u00a0vera<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/i>aegyptia<\/span><\/i>. It is said that it was a g<\/span>ift from\u00a0Dr.\u00a0Ernst Katz in 1925<\/span>\u00a0who was in charge of<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>the \u201c<\/span>\u00a0Hohlbein\u00a0Pharmacy<\/span>\u201c for 50 years. The glass container serves only for exhibition<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>purposes. The inscription \u201emumia\u00a0vera\u00a01925\u201c can\u00a0be found on the bottom of the<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>vessel and was inscribed by Prof.\u00a0Dr.\u00a0J. A.\u00a0H\u00e4fliger.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

As he was an eager collector, Josef Anton\u00a0H\u00e4fliger\u00a0was the founder of the Pharmacy<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Museum of Basel. Glass vessels were not suitable for the pharmacy because they<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>could break too easily. The drugs were often stored in drug cans made of beech<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>wood turned into containers with lids.\u00a0<\/span>Mumia\u00a0vera<\/span><\/i>\u00a0was a special human medicinal<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>drug. The \u201ereal\u201c mummies\u00a0were imported from Egypt, usually not in the form of intact,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>embalmed corpses, but rather as small pieces or powder. The word “mum” was<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>translated from Persian into Arabic and originally meant wax as well as bitumen or<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>asphalt (“earth wax”). The Arabs transferred this designation to the embalmed bodies<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>they found in Egypt. Egyptian mummies have been an export hit for the European<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>market since the 16th century.\u00a0<\/span>Mumia\u00a0vera<\/span><\/i>\u00a0(often with the addition\u00a0<\/span>aegyptica<\/span><\/i>) was<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>available in every pharmacy as an official medicinal drug. It was intended as a drug<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>to stop bleeding and reduce fever, but was also in demand as an aphrodisiac. In<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>particular the wound healing powers were praised, even for bruises and fractures,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>cough, sore throat, dizziness and headaches. Later,\u00a0<\/span>mumia<\/span><\/i>\u00a0served as a<\/span>\u00a0universal<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>agent and was applied to almost everything as one of many ingredients.\u00a0Certainly<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>there had been forgeries in the trade with mummies. Some mummy traders are said<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>to have prepared and sold fresh corpses as antique mummies. The end of the<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>medicinal drug\u00a0<\/span>mumia<\/span><\/i>\u00a0came with the medicinal progress made in the era of<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Enlightment. The pharmacies occasionally still ran\u00a0<\/span>mumia<\/span><\/i>\u00a0for healing practices and<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>veterinarians until it completely disappeared in the 20th century.\u00a0<\/span>Mumia<\/span><\/i>\u00a0was also<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>used for technical purposes, to produce glaze paint used for oil paintings<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

To know more:\u00a0Mumia\u00a0vera\u00a0aegyptica\u00a0Pharmacy Museum Basel<\/a><\/p>\n

Kunstkamera Zurich – Michelle Br\u00e4ndle<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

A contemporary picture from the Kunstkamera in Zurich. Copper engraving. The \u201cNeujahrsblatt\u201d from the Burgerbibliothek showed it in 1688 on the rooftop of the waterchurch. ZBZ, Graphic collection.<\/p><\/div>\n

Collected things have a story to tell: they open up a whole new world and a fascination for the things themselves. Furthermore, museums have a history in themselves. When has this all started and for what reason? Of course, we will not find an exact point of time or even a building where it has begun. But there are institutions and collections from time before the museum of today existed.<\/p>\n

One important moment in the Swiss history of collecting is the Kunstkamera<\/em> of Zurich, Switzerland. A Kunstkamera<\/em> is the very beginning of today\u2019s museums and so the one in Zurich is the first in the whole country of Switzerland, at the time still a heterogeneous agglomeration of cities and connected territories. The first model of such a Kamera<\/em> is from duke Jean Duc de Berry<\/em> (1340-1416) in 1356, and many Kunstkamera<\/em> took this one as a role model.[1]<\/a> The definition of such a place is not that easy, but there are a few points all such Kameras<\/em> have in common. The main point is to show everything of the Kunstkamera<\/em> in public and of course to have a lot of different interesting things to show at all. As in Zurich with its crocodile or human skin there were many curiosities in all Kunstkameras<\/em>. That is why they had to find a way to keep all these things in a reasonable order. An important head in Zurich was the man who kept this order written down: Johann Jakob Scheuchzer (1672-1733). He studied medicine, botanic, mathematics, astronomy and degreed in the Netherlands.[2]<\/a> He wrote almost the whole inventory in a book, even with the people who gave all these things to the library as presents. This book is the so-called Donatorenbuch<\/em>. It is an illustrated script where every present is written down, that came into the library and whom from. So, many people one can find in this book including his status and the family emblem are names from rich familys around Zurich, who bought prestige and functions with their \u2018presents\u2019.<\/p>\n

In the 19. Century, when the Kunstkamera<\/em> had to move, everything came to the present central library. So together the Kunstkamera<\/em> and the library were Zurich\u2019s very first museum<\/a><\/p>\n

To know more:\u00a0Kunstkammer<\/a><\/p>\n

Chinese Book – M. B.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

The Chinese peacock box and the little book from Sishu kaobei from Zhang Pu. Conrad Pestalozzi gave it to the Central Library of Zurich in 1660. On the bottom of the box, there is the hand drawn emblem from the Pestalozzi family. ZB Ms. Or. 54.<\/p><\/div>\n

A library often has so many books that a few might get lost in the mix. Some of them have an interesting background, which is not visible on first sight. An example of such is the little Chinese book preserved in the Central Library of Zurich. The book was given to the library in a handmade paper box by Conrad Pestalozzi (1618\u20131661). Pestalozzi was a tradesman who moved to Amsterdam. He gave this little book to the library for prestige reasons. Because the Pestalozzi Family moved to Amsterdam and for a Swiss Family, it was important to keep their influence even when they were not in town. So it was well-established to give your home city something of great value.<\/p>\n

The book comes from the Ming dynasty. It is a printed copy and it includes a commentary of chapter nine and ten of the philosophical writings of Mencius (372\u2013289 b.c.). The prints are made by woodblock printing, a technique typical for Chinese printing history. Second, the box itself has a peacock drawn in different colors as decoration on top. Inside the box is a drawing of the family emblem of the Pestalozzi family and the exact same illustration is found inside the book itself. This emblem is drawn as a sign that the book was a present from a member of the Pestalozzi family to the library. The box does not seem to be made as a depository for a book. It\u2019s difficult to prove that, but one couldn\u2019t find another combination of a book and a box like that one. It also would make sense, the book just needed something not to get broken during its long journey. Whatever use the box originally had it makes the book appear to be more valuable.<\/p>\n

His second present was a colored copy of Martino Martinis China-Atlas. In the Donationenbuch, <\/em>written by XXX, <\/em>there is more about that present: It is a \u201esinesische Schachtel, darinnen ein sinesisch geschrybenes Buch von selbigem Papier\u201c (a Sinesian box, within a Sinesian written book out of the same paper). The book is said to come from far away from Switzerland but also far away from the Netherlands where Pestalozzi lived that time. Tradesmen from the Netherlands travelled a lot to Asia and somehow the little book found its way to Pestalozzi. It is not clear if he brought the book on his own or if there were intermediaries. A possible person involved might be Martino Martini, whom he got the China Atlas from. Martini was in China and on his way back to Rome, he came to the Netherlands at the same time Pestalozzi had been there. So, there is a big chance they met each other and exchanged some gifts like the little book.<\/p>\n

To know more:\u00a0Chinabuch<\/a><\/p>\n

The Foreign and the Local: Hybrid Characters Emerging – Anna Baumer<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

Unknown Artist [between 1782 and 1788], The Swiss Colonel Antoine Polier is entertained<\/i>, probably after a painting of Johan Zoffany, India, Uttar Pradesh, Faizabad or Lakhnau, watercolour on paper, 30.8 cm x 34.3 cm, Museum Rietberg, Zurich, Inv. 2005.83.<\/p><\/div>The so-called nawab<\/em> was a Western foreigner as well as an Indian local. With the Swiss Colonel Antoine Louis-Henri Polier (1741-1795), portrayed in the watercolour of an unknown artist between 1782 and 1788, The Swiss Colonel Antoine Polier is entertained<\/em>, the painting in various ways exemplifies the conflicting character of the nawab <\/em>and its influence on Indian art.<\/p>\n

The watercolour displays the Swiss Colonel Antoine Louis-Henri Polier (1741-1795) in an Indian Mughal nobleman\u2019s manner, watching a dance performed by three Indian women in the setting of an Indian pavilion. The space between Polier and the dancing women opens up to a garden landscape with a fountain gushing within the arrangement. The Lausanne-born Polier is portrayed with a moustache and is wearing white and yellow gold Mughal style clothing. He is lounging on the floor, sitting on some cushions placed on a rug. His gaze is fixed upon the woman dancing right in front of him. The painting shows the European having adapted an Indian noblemen\u2019s way of life. Polier thereby was able to underline his new status in India and the gentility he had gained through his social investments in collecting and patronizing Indian miniature paintings. The watercolour therefore serves as a tool for self-fashioning, showing the European savant Polier in a Mughal nobleman\u2019s place, indulging in a Mughal nobleman\u2019s activities: attending a Nautch<\/em>, an Indian type of dance.<\/p>\n

The watercolour is located at the Museum Rietberg in Zurich. The museum acquisitioned the painting in 2005 from the auction house Christie\u2019s, London. Before that, the watercolour belonged to the collection of William and Mildred Archer, art historians and writers, who themselves had lived in India from 1932-1946. In relation to Polier\u2019s letters, one can assume that the watercolour was inspired by a lost oil painting of Johan Zoffany in northern India around 1785.<\/p>\n

Stylistic characteristics of the painting can be found in European and Indian painting tradition as well: perspective, composition, use of shadows, three dimensional modelling remind of European art, while the architectural frame, the fine brushwork and gold-coloured elements and content recall Indian miniature painting. The hybridity of the painting\u2019s characteristics resemble Polier\u2019s character: being a Western foreigner as well as an Indian local, is mirrored in the ambivalent character of his portrait. Western and Indian stylistic elements are combined, and from this mix a new style with its own features emerges.<\/p>\n

To know more:\u00a0The Foreign and the Local: Hybrid Characters Emerging<\/a><\/p>\n

Collecting Manuscripts in Late 18th Century India – A.B.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

Unknown Author [c. 1760] Burmese Manuscript, engraved palm-leaf, palm-leaf string, 49.5 cm x 4.5 cm, Cantonal and University Library Lausanne.<\/p><\/div>Objects like the manuscript, that nowadays can be found in Switzerland, at the Cantonal and University Library of Lausanne (BCU Lausanne), show the involvement of Swiss actors in colonies that were controlled by their European neighbours. Like many young Swiss men, Colonel Antoine-Louis Henri Polier (1741-1795) served in the military for and in different countries. These people, like Polier himself, were often active as brokers, or \u2018go-betweens\u2019. As middlemen they played an important role in the colonies by inserting themselves between the colonial authorities and the colonized.<\/p>\n

For a long time the manuscript was believed to be written in the Malabar script and language, an Indian language spoken at the Southern West Coast of India. During my research I was able to discover that the manuscript was indeed written in the Burmese script, and the writing\u2019s language is bilingual: Burmese Pali, the canonical language of Theravada<\/em> Buddhism. The script also contains a Buddhist text about dana <\/em>and sila<\/em>, generosity and moral behaviour. Therefore one can presume that the manuscript was produced for a religious context in Burma, today\u2019s Myanmar, probably around 1760.<\/p>\n

On the one hand, this assumption leads to further questions regarding the manuscript\u2019s provenance in particular, and in general the question of a possible impact Western colonial activities and Western collector\u2019s activities had on the trade of manuscripts within the regions of South-Asia. Due to Polier\u2019s collecting practice in India, he amassed hundreds of manuscripts in Persian, Arabic, Hindustani and Sanskrit. On his way back to Europe, he, like many other military men, brought the remains from his life abroad to Switzerland. He left it to the former Academy of Lausanne, which not only contained a library, but also a Kunstkabinett, <\/em>a chamber of curiosities were foreign material culture was displayed. Probably one of those objects was this particular manuscript that became the possession of the BCU Lausanne, into which the Academy later was converted.<\/p>\n

On the other hand, Asian manuscripts (the notion Asian<\/em> often being synonymous for exotic <\/em>in the literature of the time) were well known to the European population and not exotic, in the sense of unknown, at all. In the countries of colonial power they were collected for their quality of being a political source of knowledge regarding the subject of their desire and in order to use this knowledge to master the unknown foreign and exotic. But concerning Polier, being a middleman between colonial authority and colonized population, I would like to argue, that at least for him, because of very personal reasons, collecting a Buddhist manuscript served (also) a different purpose: religious curiosity. It seems like Polier, coming from a protestant family with a marked affinity for Hebrew, living in an Islamic society in India and being instructed by a Sikh in Hinduism, was passionate to extend his religious knowledge towards another direction.<\/p>\n

To know more:\u00a0Collecting Manuscripts in Late 18th Century India<\/a><\/p>\n

Members of the First Russian Circumnavigation Make Paintings – Giuliana Rosaria Di Biase<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

Johann Caspar Horner, 1805, watercolor, 37 x 53,9 cm, \u00a9 V\u00f6lkerkundemuseum der Universit\u00e4t Z\u00fcrich, Inv.-Nr. 820.01.012.<\/p><\/div>\n

The\u00a0watercolor\u00a0representing\u00a0<\/span>the\u00a0<\/span>port o<\/span>f Nagasaki<\/span>\u00a0belongs<\/span>\u00a0to Johann Caspar Horner<\/span>, the Zurich-born man who sailed the circumnavigation\u00a0by the Tsar Alexander I. as an astronomer. The expedition taking place from 1803 to 1806\u00a0 \u00a0and under the command of Adam Johann von\u00a0Krusenstern<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>The\u00a0watercolor\u00a0<\/span>dates back to 1805, when one of the ship<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0of the first Russian circumnavigation, calle<\/span>d\u00a0Nadeshda, spent 6 months in said location<\/span>\u00a0to establish diplomatic and economic<\/span>\u00a0relations with\u00a0<\/span>Japan<\/span>. T<\/span>he singular but\u00a0<\/span>usual practice among the lieutenants to make paint<\/span>ings of the visited locations explains the reason why today we have several\u00a0watercolors\u00a0<\/span>represent<\/span>ing\u00a0<\/span>similar subject<\/span>s<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0The painting<\/span>\u00a0was<\/span>\u00a0probably<\/span>\u00a0a<\/span>n illustration project for the\u00a0Kruserstern\u00a0At<\/span>las and it is now kept in the\u00a0V<\/span>\u00f6<\/span>lkerkundemuseum\u00a0of Zurich in the so called \u2018Horner Collection\u2019.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The port of Nagasaki<\/span>\u00a0could be considered\u00a0<\/span>as\u00a0<\/span>a<\/span>\u00a0strategic place<\/span>\u00a0for the foreign ships. The Russian ship on the left is<\/span>\u00a0flanked by the Chinese Junker<\/span>\u00a0in the background. Between the Japanese fishing<\/span>\u00a0boat<\/span>s,<\/span>\u00a0a ma<\/span>n wearing a kimono is sailing on a small wooden boat.\u00a0<\/span>On the left<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0apart from the Dutch factory\u00a0Deshima<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0the<\/span>\u00a0typical J<\/span>apanese house<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>called \u2018machiya\u2019 stand<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0out. The fact that\u00a0<\/span>only half of both\u00a0<\/span>Nadeshda\u00a0and the house\u00a0<\/span>are visible suggests\u00a0<\/span>that t<\/span>his<\/span>\u00a0watercolor<\/span>\u00a0ha<\/span>d<\/span>\u00a0been cut.\u00a0<\/span>T<\/span>he presence of the Russian ship in\u00a0<\/span>the\u00a0watercolor\u00a0allow<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0us under<\/span>stand that Horner was n<\/span>ot on board when he painted it, but ashore, where he\u00a0<\/span>also<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>had\u00a0<\/span>to take care of measuring\u00a0<\/span>t<\/span>he width and\u00a0lenght\u00a0of Nagasaki<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Although controlled by the Japanese guard<\/span>s<\/span>, t<\/span>he permission to access to the port<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>arrived<\/span>\u00a0only a few weeks late<\/span>r than their arrival, right\u00a0<\/span>when<\/span>\u00a0they had to repai<\/span>r their ship dest<\/span>r<\/span>oyed by a storm.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

This\u00a0waterco<\/span>lor\u00a0could be compared to the\u00a0watercolor\u00a0belonging<\/span>\u00a0to\u00a0Fedor\u00a0von Romberg<\/span>, another member\u00a0<\/span>of\u00a0Nadeshda<\/span>, where apart from the representation of the port and the full view of the Russian ship there is also the following capture in French \u201cVue de la\u00a0Prade\u00a0de Nagasaki,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>la\u00a0Faitorie\u00a0hollandaise sur\u00a0l\u2019isle\u00a0Dezima; et les\u00a0officiers\u00a0qui\u00a0montent\u00a0la\u00a0garde\u00a0avec les\u00a0soldats\u00a0et le cheval de parade\u201d.\u00a0<\/span>Here t<\/span>he Japanese house\u00a0<\/span>on the right\u00a0<\/span>appears\u00a0<\/span>hidden by trees<\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>this\u00a0<\/span>could be evidence<\/span>\u00a0that many circumnavigators used to paint the same subject also from different point<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0of view.<\/span>\u00a0Unlike the painting of Romberg,\u00a0<\/span>though,\u00a0<\/span>that of the<\/span>\u00a0Swiss astronomer has no caption<\/span>\u00a0and no signature<\/span>, which leaves open his attribution<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

To know more:\u00a0Members of the First Russian Circumnavigation Make Paintings<\/a><\/p>\n

Nuku\u00a0Hiva: The Only discovery of the First Russian Circumnavigation – G. D. B.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"

Johann Caspar Horner, Taiohae. 1804, gouache and watercolor on paper, \u00a9 V\u00f6lkerkundemuseum der Universit\u00e4t Z\u00fcrich, Inv.-Nr. 820.02.006.<\/p><\/div>\n

Taiohae<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>one of the biggest bay<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0of<\/span>\u00a0the Island of\u00a0<\/span>Nuku<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Hiva<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>is<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>the subject\u00a0<\/span>of<\/span>\u00a0the\u00a0<\/span>watercolor<\/span>\u00a0pai<\/span>nted by\u00a0<\/span>Johann Caspar Horner. This location<\/span>\u00a0was<\/span>\u00a0the only discovery\u00a0<\/span>of the first Russian circumnavigation, organised by the Tsar Alexander I under the command of Adam Johann von Krusenstern fro<\/span>m 18<\/span>03 to<\/span>\u00a01806.\u00a0<\/span>Horner<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>the astronomer\u00a0<\/span>who acc<\/span>ompani<\/span>ed the expedition,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>painted Taiohae\u00a0<\/span>in 1804, when\u00a0<\/span>the Russian ship<\/span>\u00a0spent 10-12 days in\u00a0<\/span>Nuku<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Hiva<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>The\u00a0<\/span>watercolor<\/span>\u00a0was<\/span>\u00a0probably\u00a0<\/span>a<\/span>n illustration project for the Krusen<\/span>stern Atlas.\u00a0<\/span>Horner\u2019s paintings were not publish<\/span>ed on his return from the circumnavigation<\/span>\u00a0and after his death they were donated to vari<\/span>ous associations<\/span>\u00a0in Zurich. Today\u00a0<\/span>this\u00a0<\/span>watercolor<\/span>\u00a0is kept<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>in the so\u00a0<\/span>called\u00a0<\/span>\u2018<\/span>Horner Collection<\/span>\u2019<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>in the\u00a0<\/span>V\u00f6<\/span>lkerkundemuseum<\/span>\u00a0in Zurich.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

T<\/span>he bay of Taiohae\u00a0<\/span>is painted\u00a0<\/span>in all its green vege<\/span>tation. I<\/span>ts inhabitants,\u00a0<\/span>wearing only some pieces<\/span>\u00a0of\u00a0<\/span>cloths<\/span>\u00a0round the waist<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>called<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/i>tschiabu<\/span><\/i>\u00a0for<\/span>\u00a0the men and\u00a0<\/span>teuweu<\/span><\/i>\u00a0for<\/span>\u00a0the woman,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>have<\/span>\u00a0the horned-coiffure,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>similar t<\/span>o<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>the Chinese<\/span>\u00a0hairstyle<\/span>. T<\/span>he<\/span>ir<\/span>\u00a0common\u00a0<\/span>practice of tattooing the whole<\/span>\u00a0body\u00a0<\/span>could explain why their white skin looks like brownish in this watercolour<\/span>. Beyond that,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>the influence of the sunny climate<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>is another valid explanation<\/span>\u00a0for the colo<\/span>u<\/span>r of their skin<\/span>. In the painting<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>a group of men\u00a0<\/span>is\u00a0<\/span>heading towards the shore and a<\/span>nother group on the right\u00a0<\/span>is trying to reach the foreign ships, approaching the Island, with a canoe. On the left side of the river there is a man who is gathering coconuts from a palm tree. He is located next<\/span>\u00a0to the house owed by\u00a0<\/span>Kiatonui<\/span><\/i>, the island\u2019s king, which was built on a stone platform.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The members of the expedition<\/span>\u00a0had the permission to go ashore only\u00a0<\/span>in\u00a0<\/span>w<\/span>atering or woodcutting parties.\u00a0<\/span>Considering the perspective of the water<\/span>color it could have been ma<\/span>d<\/span>e<\/span>\u00a0w<\/span>hen Horner was\u00a0<\/span>measuring t<\/span>he water pressure and the length<\/span>s of the i<\/span>sland<\/span>\u00a0ashore<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>While the painting of the Swiss astronomer<\/span>\u00a0is viewed<\/span>\u00a0from the shore, a\u00a0<\/span>watercolo<\/span>r<\/span>\u00a0belonging to\u00a0<\/span>L\u00f6<\/span>wenstern<\/span>, another member\u00a0<\/span>of\u00a0<\/span>Nadeshda<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0shows<\/span>\u00a0the Island<\/span>\u00a0from the sea. Drawings and sketch<\/span>e<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0circulated between the members of th<\/span>e expedition and this is the reason why<\/span>\u00a0the genealogy of the pictures should usually be reconsidered.\u00a0<\/span>The fact that Horner did not sign this work may be the reason for discussions that lead to redirect the belonging of this\u00a0<\/span>watercolour.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

To know more:\u00a0Nuku\u00a0Hiva: The Only discovery of the First Russian Circumnavigation<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As part of the seminar “Swiss Collections, Swiss Connection” (Fall 2018, Bern University), the participants worked on pieces of interest for the exhibition…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-1553","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/theexotic.ch\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1553","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/theexotic.ch\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/theexotic.ch\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/theexotic.ch\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/theexotic.ch\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1553"}],"version-history":[{"count":79,"href":"http:\/\/theexotic.ch\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1553\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1715,"href":"http:\/\/theexotic.ch\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1553\/revisions\/1715"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/theexotic.ch\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1553"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}

To know more:\u00a0Trachtenbild of Gabriel Figy und Elsbeth Conrad von Glarus<\/a><\/p>\n