Clowns from Amsterdam
13 years ago
Showing posts with label cultural theft. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cultural theft. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 3, 2013
Once again sacred Hopi objects will be sold by a Paris auction house
Survival International, a NGO defending the rights of the First Nations will be back in court in order to try and stop a new sale of 25 Friends - No, they are not masks - they are living entities, used in sacred ceremonies. This time it is the auction house EVE offering for sale among other two highly esteemed Katsinam: the Crow Mother and the Friend used in the Snake Dance. These ceremonies are not open to the public since they are so sacred. The sale will be on December 9 and the friendly spirits are already on show. The sale will be once again in La Maison Drouot.The Hopi are a small nation in Arizona. Their ceremonies and religious dances are important to them. Some dances are public and then you can enjoy the beauty of it all. It saddens me that my friends once again are hurt by greed and lack of understanding. Some items have been shown in April by Minet-Neret.
Friday, April 5, 2013
Hopi Katsinam alert
Sadness reigns and I am afraid that also arrogance is at play. There are few means at the disposal of the Hopi to try and repatriate their sacred Katsinam. The tribe receives help from two major museum directors.
The tribe also receives advice from the State and Interior Departments,
but each agency says its ability to intervene is limited. The sale is supposed to bring one million dollar. Some people are suggesting to hold a collection and buy the Katsinam in order to repatriate them and give them back to the Hopi, the Zuni, Jemez and Acoma. Most of the Katsinam are over 100 years old. I love Katsinas and own three of the small 'dolls' carved to teach their meaning to children and which can be sold to tourists. Yet the Katsinam in the auction are ceremonial sacred objects with a specific function. They are irreplaceable. Only their rightful custodians know how to care for them, how to use their power. International law seems not to regulate this situation. Yet moral law does. The auctioneers wonder why another auction last December by a smaller auction house in Paris didn't cause any reaction. Well, the Hopi didn't know, could not react. I know that Hopi religion is has strict ways of doing things and as a visitor on Hopi it is easy to do something inappropriate out of ignorance. Selling these Katsinam is inappropriate. The auction house Neret-Minet Tessier & Sarrou knows it is. The tribes, museums and individuals caring about this disastrous sale have told them so.
Please do tell them too, let them know how you feel:
M. Eric GENESTE
31bis rue du Faubourg Montmartre
75009 PARIS
Tèl: # 33 6.72.74.71.42
Email: erics@wanadoo.fr
Saturday, March 9, 2013
Reactions on Indian Country Today
My two blogs about the sales of Hopi Katsinam was picked up by Indian Country Today
under the title: 71 Hopi and Zuni Masks to be Auctioned in Paris. A lot of people comented on their post. I just copied and pasted the comments.
ICTMN Staff
March 07, 2013
On April 12, a
collection of 71 Hopi and Zuni masks will be auctioned by Neret-Minet at the
Druout Richelieu gallery and auction house in Paris, France. The array of
katsinam masks was amassed by a collector over the course of 30 years, and date
to the late 19th and early 20th century, according to the description at Druout.com (a translated
version can be found at ArtDaily.org).
"The idea
that a people would dedicate so much time and energy to the rise of celestial
bodies fascinated our collector," reads the auction's description.
"In his collection, the CROW MOTHER mask, Angwusnasomtaqa in the Hopi
language, held pride of place, and he had to wait over 20 years to attend the
Powamu rituals in early February, the only time the mother of all the Katsinam
appears in the village. By his own admission, you have to see the masks in
dances to fully appreciate them."
The text goes on
to describe ten other masks being auctioned.
Not everyone is
thrilled about the auction. In a post at Muddy Roads & Dusty Trails, a
blogger describes the Hopi as "horrified."
"Under
American law [the masks] should be repatriated to the Hopi Nation," the
blogger writes. "The auction house knows this, from their good description
of the pieces on can easily deduct that they know about the power of these
friends but prefer the power of cash and carry. Katsinam should never be sold
on the auction block. The sadness on Hopi is immeasurable. The art stolen under
the Nazi regime is also in the process of being returned to their original
owners families. Let the same rule be applied."
POST A COMMENT
14 Comments
Very Traditional
This is a very
sad and disappointing event to hear about! Any kind of ceremonial or religious
Native artifact needs to be returned to their decsendants not only here in the
states but from around the world. We need to form an organization where we have
people looking out for objects being sold or auctioned off like this case and
use the power and knowledge that the Great Spirit gave us to bring our
ancestors and implements home where they belong. "The Spirits are not
happy, neither am I."
Thu, 03/07/2013 - 19:11
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indianmedicine
It is so
interesting that NAI Culture has recognized "ET's", influencing this
World;when conventional Science denied any "Life Force" off this
Planet. Through the "Art & Ceremony", NAI have taught their
Generations of the vast Celestial Bodies that are just now being recognized and
told to the General Public and Science's that NAI have always called "The
Great Mystery of The Creator". Conventional European Thought publicly
denied the existence of Extra Terrestrial Life, Beings, and Space Travel -
where NAI in their Art captured the very essence of what the European Mind
denied; and Secret Societies taught in their "Schools of Thought".
Look at the Anasazi Ancient One's and their Legacy Painted on Canyon Walls -
which includes ET existence, visitation, and interface with "The
People".
Thu, 03/07/2013 - 20:24
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margarita fox
It is my
understanding that many "friends" were stolen from the Kiva at First
Mesa approximately thirty years ago -- interesting that this "collector"
began accumulating them "thirty years ago". Unless the collector is
Native American he would not have been permitted to see the dances on the Mesa
at any time. These should be returned to the Hopi. They carry a power that
helps all mankind and can destroy those who hoard them.
Fri, 03/08/2013 - 01:32
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proud indian
first our land
now our religion and beliefs... its just plain disgusting!!
Fri, 03/08/2013 - 06:10
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A random Navajo
Man this is what
I call a double standard, the French get all of their art stolen by the Nazi's
back, yet the Hopi who are Indigenous Americans can't even get there sacred
objects back even though according to law it is theirs. It is almost disgusting
to see that for a people whom respect human rights that they cannot respect our
rights as a people.
Fri, 03/08/2013 - 09:30
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Joe Abodeely
I have been the
CEO of the Arizona Military Museum for a third of a century. Arizona's rich and
colorful history was forged by the militaries of the Spanish, the Mexicans, and
the U.S. Before them were the various Indian cultures dating from prehistoric
times. Those great Indian cultures and artifacts were lost through history, but
some have survived and should all be honored and kept among the original
peoples' descendants. These masks should be returned to the Hopi people. I am
not a tree hugger nor a naive idealist. I am a retired Army Colonel who served
his country in Vietnam as a combat infantry unit commander. I love my country
and iits history which includes that of the Native American Indian.
Fri, 03/08/2013 - 09:31
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Anonymous
I am Hopi and I
can speak on behalf of my fellow Hopi Sinom, that this is terrible! We do not
sell these as these are very sacred to us. This outrages me as an individual.
So very sad.
Fri, 03/08/2013 - 14:13
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Zuni Pueblo
This is very sad
that we do not know that collecters all over the world can collect this like
this and auction them off. This is wrong!!!
Fri, 03/08/2013 - 14:56
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Zuni Pueblo
This is very sad
that we do not know that collecters all over the world can collect this like
this and auction them off. This is wrong!!!
Fri, 03/08/2013 - 14:56
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maktima
this is very
heart breaking but just know that the persons who will possess these sacred
beings will be dealt with by the katsina spirit itself. they don't know how
powerful these katsinas are but they will know later on in life.
Fri, 03/08/2013 - 15:24
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Anonymous
Hopi would never
give their tradition away let alone sell them. The katsinams need to be return
to the Hopi land as well as the Hopi people.
Fri, 03/08/2013 - 16:02
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Thieves
They need to
return those masks ASAP....
Fri, 03/08/2013 - 16:35
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Anonymous
This is a
complete outrage! Something must be done to keep our most sacred possessions
just that-sacred! This is exactly why outsiders are not allowed at out
cermonies, if these are sold this would be a blaitent disrespectful action to
my Hopi people. These must be returned immediately! These artifacts are
products of centuries old ceremonies done every year to pray for the Earth
& the well being of our people. Our name means the Peaceful People &
for this to be done to us gives me a feeling of great disgust.
Fri, 03/08/2013 - 16:37
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Never lost but ...
I am appalled!!
No respect for any kind of property or the Hopi self preservation. The person
who didn't have any idea what they were doing and obviosly still doesn't, will
only be sent to his own doom. We are all sad, and will pray for their safe
return home.
Fri, 03/08/2013 - 16:48
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