History of African collections of the Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography

The foundation of the African funds of the MAE was laid in 1866 with the present of 24 objects collected by Léopold Garraud, a captain of the French fleet who for many years explored the Guinea coast, and in 1871 through 1873 was the commandant of the Gabon colony.

The African funds of the MAE were brought to a world level by the collection of a Russian-German traveler Wilhelm (Basil) Junker. From his expeditions to the upper streams of the Nile and the Sudan Rivers (1876-1886) he brought numerous objects, more than a thousand of which is kept in the MAE.

In the end of the 19th century friendly relations established between Russia and Ethiopia (Abyssinia), and many Russians (militaries, medical doctors, diplomats, etc.) visited this country. On returning home, many of them donated their collections to the MAE. It was to Ethiopia that in 1913 the MAE sent its first scientific expedition, whose purpose was acquisition of ethnographical collections. This expedition consisted of poet Nikolai Gumilev and his nephew Nikolai Sverchkov.

The African funds were enriched due to the exchanges with the museums of Stockholm, Vienna, Berlin, Leipzig and Hamburg. Thus, the MAE acquired objects from the collections of a famous German expert in Africa Leo Frobenius, and a colonial official Alfred Mansfield.

During the Soviet times, the MAE researchers rarely had a chance to travel to Africa, and the collections were mostly enriched due to diplomatic gifts. However, we should mention the visit to Mali and Ethiopia of Dmitry Olderogge, the founder of the African Department of the MAE.

In the last few decades such trips are becoming more regular, and due to this fact the African collections of the Museum are constantly being replenished. The collections of Vladimir Arseniev, Anna Erman, Evgeny Kal’schikov, Konstantin Pozdniakov, Valentin Vydrin, etc. are worth mentioning.

Silver armlet of commander.  Ethiopia (Abyssinia). Collector  - S. N. Rodzevich.		Basket - wedding gift.  Ethiopia (Abyssinia). The Harari.  Late 19th - early 20th cent. Collector - N. S. Gumilev.		Hide quiver with envenomed  bamboo arrows. Gabon, XVIII-XIX c.