Indigenous Collections at the Museum of World Culture : Digitisation, Decolonisation and Other Stories

Sammanfattning: Introduction. This thesis investigates the digitisation of Indigenous collections at the Museum of World Culture (Gothenburg, Sweden), with particular attention to Carlotta’s role in shaping the digital collections. Previous studies have shown that there is a need for more research on the practical aspects of digitisation efforts on Indigenous cultural heritage in Sweden. Method. The museum’s documentation—digitisation strategies, annual reports and other official documents—was explored. In addition, several interviews and participant observations were conducted. Qualitative content analysis was used to evaluate the empirical data Analysis. The qualitative analyses of this study’s empirical data used postcritical and postcolonial museological theories. Additionally, Bhabha´s Third Space theory was applied Results. The results show that the digitisation of collections at the museum according to the organisation´s plans, applying the recommended guidelines and considering the ethical implications that arise when working with Indigenous material has not been achieved. Moreover, the results show that Carlotta is not a suitable collections management system for Indigenous cultural heritage. Conclusion. This study concludes that the Museum of World Culture needs to adapt the goals of its digitisation processes to the type of collections and resources they have and incorporate a decolonisation computing approach. In addition, there is a need for official regulations or guidelines addressed to those working with Indigenous collections in Swedish libraries, archives and museums.