2015/04/08 by David Dean, Peter E. Rider · 1 citation
Arts and Humanities · Social Sciences · Environmental Science · #Museums and Cultural Heritage #Canadian Identity and History #American Environmental and Regional History #Politics #Civilization #Portrait #Public history #History #Subject (documents) #National museum #Media studies #Subject matter #Political science #Sociology #Art history #Law #Archaeology #Library science #Curriculum
paper · pdf · doi:10.29311/mas.v3i1.63
openalex publication_date 2015/04/08 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
The role museums play in shaping the public’s understanding of the past has recently become a matter of considerable interest for historians and others. In Canada and Australia, portraits of their country’s history created by national museums have ignited considerable controversy. The Canadian Museum of Civlization’s Canada Hall was the subject of a review by four historians, chosen to examine the Hall’s portrayal of political history, while the National Museum of Australia faced a highly politicised public review of all of its exhibits soon after the museum opened. By analysing and interpreting the findings of these reviews, the authors raise questions about the ability of museums to respond to historical controversy, shifting historiographies and changing understandings of what is important in the past.