British Museum accepts donation of exquisite Chinese ivories. Does it send the wrong message?
The museum has defended the acquisition of the 556-piece collection, acquired by the Shanghai hotelier Sir Victor Sassoon
The British Museum has defended its decision to accept a donation of more than 500 “exquisite” Chinese ivory figures, saying it did not mean it condoned the ivory trade.
The museum revealed on Wednesday that it had accepted the gift of 556 ivory items acquired in the early 20th century by Sir Victor Sassoon, the famed Shanghai-based businessman and hotelier who died in 1961.
The intricately carved figures of gods and goddesses, and desk items such as brush-washers and water-droppers, are mostly from the 18th or 19th centuries.
The UK government is currently steering through parliament a ban on ivory sales that it says will be the strictest in the world. Exemptions in the legislation will allow museums to acquire historic ivory objects that have a cultural value.
Asked whether accepting the Sassoon ivory sent out the wrong message, Fischer said the museum “fully and unreservedly” supported banning the ivory trade worldwide. He pointed out that the collection was historic: “They exist … and they do not save any elephant’s life today.”
The figures have been in the UK since the 1950s and looked after by a trust, whose members were keen to wind down the operation.
Fischer said the museum would never collect modern ivory objects and believed there was a consensus that historic ivory objects needed to be preserved, not destroyed.
Jane Portal, head of the museum’s Asia department, said the gift meant the institution could become “a global centre for the study of ivories”.
The museum has not revealed the value of the collection. “They may be priceless or almost worthless in the future … who knows,” Portal said.
The gift was announced in the British Museum’s annual review, which revealed it was visited by 5.8 million people in 2017-18, making it the UK’s leading visitor attraction for the 11th year running.
He said the museum lent a record 2,200 objects to 81 venues outside the UK last year and currently had eight touring shows, including in Australia, Canada and Hong Kong.
Strengthening links and activities in Africa would become a priority, Fischer said, as would improving the museum’s Bloomsbury home. “This fantastic building needs some tender loving care so this year we are developing a project to consider how to improve the building for our visitors and our staff and of course our collections.”