An Oxford University museum has been criticised for withdrawing an African mask from display to stop women seeing it due to a tribe’s beliefs.
The Pitts River Museum has labelled many of its exhibits with warnings about ‘cultural safety’ as well as removing images from its website.
Among those now missing from the online archive is a mask made by Nigeria’s Igbo people and which was originally used in male-only rituals.
The museum, part of the University of Oxford, has said it wants to address issues raised by a collection ‘closely tied to British Imperial expansion’.
But critics have branded their actions as showing the ‘absurdity of virtue signalling’.
This wooden mask is among the treasures still on display by Pitt Rivers Museum in Oxford
Other items have been removed from online show due to concerns about cultural sensitivity
The museum, founded in 1884, forms part of the University of Oxford
Warnings have been attached to online images such as this ‘isikara’ head ornament
Various items on the museum’s website now carry notes such as: ‘Users are warned that there may be images, words and descriptions that may be culturally sensitive and which might not normally be used in certain public or community contexts.’
The wooden Igbo mask has no photographs which can be seen online and its listing is captioned with the words ‘must not be seen by women’.
The website tells visitors: ‘At the Pitt Rivers Museum, we take cultural safety seriously. We aim to keep everyone informed by providing a cultural advice notice.’
The mask has been labelled ‘Must not be seen by women’ and has no online photos, while a note adds that curators are ‘unable to show the media publicly’.
A note on the museum website explains that, while photographs exist, curators “are unable to show the media publicly’.
It is said to be part of a policy to ensure women do not view the mask in relation to taboos about secret ceremonies, human remains, nudity as well as gender roles.
Among other possessions marked as ‘extremely cultural sensitive objects’ is an ‘isikira’ head ornament worn by Maasai girls in Kenya after undergoing female genital mutilation.
There is also a warning added to the listing for ‘tsantsa’, or shrunken heads, from Ecuador – one described as ‘decorated with string of green beetles’.
The website notes: ‘This object has been digitised but we are unable to show the media publicly. Please contact the museum for more information.’
The head and body of a human figure, possibly meant as a puppet, is exhibited online
Also shown on the museum’s website is a Covid face mask with a portrayal of the Houses of Parliament in Westminster – part of a series called ‘The Study Of Perspective’
This ‘isikara’ girl’s head ornament has rowds of beads, cowrie shells and iron chains
There have previously been protests about the museum’s shrunken heads displays in an exhibit titled ‘Treatment Of Dead Enemies’.
Exeter University historian Prof Jeremy Black has criticised the museum’s warnings as ‘the absurdity of virtue signalling’
In response to the new online warnings, history professor Jeremy Black, whose books include A History Of The Atlantic, told MailOnline: ‘Cultural safety – so-called – is a flawed idea that suggests that certain activists today, usually self-selected, have the monopoly of speaking about the past.
‘The absurdity of virtue signalling continues apace as new conventions meet new obsessions.’
Art critic and author Ruth Millington said: ‘To deny all women, of all cultures, sight of something because that is a taboo in one particular culture seems an extreme stance, particularly given that this country is a modern, liberal and enlightened society.
‘Surely women should be given the right to decide, after reading about any cultural sensitivities, if they wish to look upon the artefact or not.
‘When it comes to art, we should all have equal rights, regardless of sex, to view what we would like to.’
The museum announced in 2020 it was carrying out a ‘comprehensive programme of work we are doing to deeply engage with the museum’s colonial legacy’.
Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, who rules the Asante people in the west African country, negotiated a deal for the temporary return of ancestral artefacts from the British Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.
Now he hopes to keep hold of the Asante gold for good despite the current Conservative government refusing to change laws which ban museums from repatriating such items overseas permanently.
Another wooden mask with holes carved for the eyes is seen on the museum’s website
Displays have included one called ‘Treatment Of Dead Enemies’ featuring shrunken heads
Victims displayed are believed to have fallen victim to the indigenous Shuar people who inhabit the Upper Amazon region between Ecuador and Peru
A spokesperson told the Telegraph: ‘These restrictions only refer to a tiny number of objects where we have received specific requests from communities.
‘There is a lot more work to be done and we are keen to work with communities on the care of these objects.’
The museum, which was founded in 1884, has more than 700,000 items in its collections and attracts an annual 480,000 visitors.
It previously said: ‘Following the reopening of the museum in September 2020, visitors saw changes to some of the museum’s more contentious displays.
‘These changes are part of a comprehensive programme of work we are doing to deeply engage with the Museum’s colonial legacy. Overall, this is one of the most pioneering approaches to decolonisation at a museum in the UK.’
Pitt Rivers Museum chiefs have pledged to return its Benin Bronzes to Nigeria as well as a 15th-century statue to India.
And director Laura Van Broekhoven said: ‘There will be those who will miss being intrigued by the tsantsa, but we also know that most of our visitors have several favourite objects.
‘We know our visitors will continue to find things that bring joy, inspire creativity and curiosity as there is no museum better suited to wander and wonder than the Pitt Rivers Museum.’
MailOnline has contacted Pitt Rivers Museum for further comment.
Meanwhile, a Ghanaian king last month revealed his plans to take back ‘looted’ golden treasures.
Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, Ghana’s Asante king, is said to be keen to permanently keep the Asante gold artefacts handed over by Britain on loan at a ceremony and exhibition last Wednesday
This cast gold ornament is among the collection loaned back by the UK to Ghana
This was among the ceremonial caps worn by courtiers at Asante royal coronations
Former Labour MP Tristram Hunt has called for overhauls of the British Museum Act 1963 and the National Heritage Act 1983 which currently bar the two museums from permanently returning items to countries where they originated.
Bosses from both venues took part in a ceremony in the Asante capital Kumasi to mark the handover of royal regalia which had been seized by British troops in the 19th century.
A three-year loan deal has been agreed – but key figures on both sides are keen for this to be extended indefinitely.
The 1963 act prevents the British Museum from giving away anything from its collection – including the Elgin Marbles which Greece wants back – and the 1983 equivalent does the same for the V&A.
The 32 pieces of Asante Gold, named after the African empire from which they were taken, were handed over last week on the three-year agreement which could be extended for another three.
Some 17 of them are from the V&A with the other 15 from the British Museum, with the items going on display at the Manhyia Palace Museum in Kumasi.
The objects include a sword of state, gold badges worn by officials, ceremonial caps and pipes.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has been reported as being open to returning the British Museum’s Elgin Marbles to Greece but his party has not confirmed a policy position on the British Museum and National Heritage acts.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak snubbed a planned meeting last November with his Greek counterpart Kyriakos Mitsotakis amid a flare-up over the Elgin Marbles.
There have been suggestions an incoming Labour government could be open to return the Elgin Marbles (pictured) to Greece from their current home at the British Museum
Former Labour MP Tristram Hunt, director of the Victoria and Albert Museum in west London, has called for the return of items to countries where they originated
The Greek PM had ramped up public demands for the return of the ancient artefacts which are housed at the British Museum.
Greece has long demanded the return of the Parthenon Sculptures, which were removed from the country by Lord Elgin in the early 19th century during his time as British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire.
British Museum chairman George Osborne, Conservative former chancellor, has previously said he was exploring ways for the Elgin Marbles to be displayed in Greece.
There has been speculation this could involve a loan deal in which part of the sculptures would be sent to Athens.
