Von Hügel & MAA

Many of the Fijian objects that bedecked Government House became part of the Museum's founding collections. Encouraged by von Hügel, Gordon and Maudslay (alumni of Trinity College and Trinity Hall respectively) offered much of their Fijian material to the University in 1883.

Their proposal boosted the Cambridge Antiquarian Society's longstanding campaign for a building to house their collections. On 6 May 1884 the new 'Museum of General and Local Archaeology' was opened as an annexe to the Fitzwilliam Museum on Peterhouse land. Baron von Hügel was appointed Curator, a position he held for 37 years.

Von Hügel worked tirelessly, drawing on his personal resources and his network of wealthy academics and friends to develop the museum and build up the collections. He energetically pursued new acquisitions, frequenting auction rooms and dealers, instigating museum exchanges and supporting collecting as part of field research by Cambridge-based scholars.

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Line drawing of a horse-drawn carriage laden with items

Caricature. 'The Curator's return from a Tunbridge sale in wet weather. I hope your journey across London was not so bad as this'. F.W.G(reen)? Nov. 5, 1902.

The collections were intended for teaching and comparative research. Over the next two decades the Museum was central to the development of the specialist disciplines of archaeology and ethnology (later social anthropology).

From its beginning the Museum was overcrowded and under-resourced. Von Hügel established a building fund and in 1910 the foundation stone was laid for a new purpose-built museum on Downing Street. The 'University Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology' opened in June 1913. The main gallery on the first floor, now dedicated to world anthropology, was named after Maudslay.

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Black and white photograph of the original cabinet at MAA

Cabinet of Fijian Ivories. Based on von Hügel's original cabinet of personal ornaments, on display in the Museum's Bevan gallery until the 1980s.

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Portrait of Baron Anatole Von Hügel, P. Voluzan, 1899-1900

"It thus comes about that up to the present von Hügel’s permanent memorial is the Museum. Those who remember the condition of affairs before and during the closing decade of the last-century will know that von Hügel has not laboured in vain."

- Alfred Cort Haddon, Baron A. von Hügel’s obituary, 1928.

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Painting of Baron Anatole von Hugel, wearing a suit and a fur collar against a blue wallpaper. An inscription is written in French in the top left corner

2013.14

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Photograph of the von Hugel relief outside MAA, with an inscription underneath about the origins of the museum.

Von Hügel's foundation stone outside MAA.

Collectors' case: Satchels, Rubu

Made from strips of pandanus leaf, these flat satchels might have been used to store folded isala or barkcloth turbans. Rubu were popular collection items from the early 19th century, probably because of the extensive range of patterns they display. Some of the motifs, like those on the largest bag displayed in the centre, may have been inspired by lace.

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Flat satchel made from strips of natural, red and black-dyed pandanus leaf

Fiji. Collected by Sir A. Gordon, 1875-80. 1918.213.31 E

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Rectangular satchel made from pandanus leaf, with zizzag and chequerboard patterns

Fiji. Collected by A. von Hügel, 1875-77. Z 4068

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Rectangular pandanus leaf satchel in natural and dark brown colours, with a triangular patterned design

Fiji. Provenance unknown. Z 4056

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Long thin rectangular satchel in natural colours, with diagonal stripe patterning

Fiji. Collected by Sir A. Gordon, 1875-80. Z 30023

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Rectangular woven satchel in natural shades, with a chequerboard design with horizontal and vertical line patterns. A cord hangs from the middle for holding or wrapping.

Fiji. Collected by A. von Hügel, 1875-77. Z 4060

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Flat rectangular satchel made from natural, black-dyed pandanus leaf, with geometric motifs from bottom to top.

Fiji. Collected by Sir A. Gordon, 1875-80. 1918.213.31 B

Collectors' case: Priest's dishes, iBuburaunibete

Carved from a solid piece of vesi wood and standing on intricately carved pedestal bases, these yaqona dishes were used by priests. While the form of the upper part of the dish remains relatively constant, the variety of shapes of the pedestal base testifies to the creativity of Fijian wood-carvers. A few duck-shaped yaqona dishes are known. This one was probably used for scented oil rather than yaqona.

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Cup in an unusual design, supported on a cylindrical foot with 4 flat legs. A plaited cord is wrapped twice around the top based and knotted. Cup edge has serrated detailing.

Fiji. Collected by C. Gordon Cumming, 1875-77. Z 3379

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Flat-ish Yaqona dish with a pedestal base which has stepped legs. Dark brown. Mid-length cord attached to one leg

Fiji. Collected by Sir A. Gordon, 1875-80. Z 3351

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Duck-shaped dish from a solid piece of dark wood, with clear triangular design elements.

Fiji. Collected by C. Gordon Cumming, 1875-77. Z 3458

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Large flat round Yaqona dish in a reddish wood, with a rounded base. The legs to the base are stepped.

Fiji. Collected by G. K. Roth, c. 1935. 1954.336

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Large flat yaqona bowl with detailed, slightly serrated edge. Singular rounded base with a coir cord wrapped around it.

Fiji. Collected by Sir A. Gordon, 1875-80. Z 3423

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Circular priest's dish, with a thick cylindrical pedestal base with a thin, ridged root.

Fiji. Collected by A. Maudslay, 1875-80. Z 3380

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Circular yaqona dish with a cylindrical base, which has cut outs and some faded red markings

Fiji. Acquired by Sir A. Gordon from F. Dufty, 1875-80, Levuka, Ovalau Island, Fiji. Z 3354

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Circular priest's yaqona dish in a dark colour, supported by a ring base with two mirrored L-shaped legs

Fiji. Collected by Sir A. Gordon, 1875-80. Z 3355

Collectors' case: Headrests, Kali

Placed at the back of the skull, kali supported the head while sleeping. Although serving a common function, these headrests took a wide range of shapes. The variety of materials (bamboo, wood, whale bone) and techniques employed (made from a single piece of wood or from several elements assembled with coir cords) may suggest different areas of production.

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Dark wood headrest with a piece of wood curving down to form one of the legs and carved in the shape of a leg.

Rewa Province, Viti Levu, Fiji. Collected by A. von Hügel, 1875-77. Z 3660

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Long headrest made of dark wood, with two legs in square shaping

Fiji. Collected by A. Maudslay, 1875-80. Z 3692

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Dark brown headrest with a circular wooden post, standing on two rounded metal legs/stands

Fiji. Collected by A. Maudslay, 1875-77. Z 3664

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Headrest of wood with very dark-coloured legs and a lighter brown bar.

Nasogovatu, Wainibuka River, Viti Levu, Fiji. Collected by A. von Hügel, 1875-77. Z 3682

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Light wood headrest with darker wood legs. The main piece has leaf design in the centre and geometric triangular patterns on the outer thirds.

Fiji. Collected by A. Maudslay, 1875-80. Z 29981

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Slightly curved wooden headrest on a central circular stand. The stand is cut out in a circular shape, with a further rectangular base beneath it.

Fiji. Collected by Sir A. Gordon, 1875-80. Z 3673

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Light wood headrest made of a single piece of wood. Slightly resembles antlers in the design, and slants slightly to the right.

Viti Levu Highlands, Fiji. Collected by A. von Hügel, 1875-77. Z 3689

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Thick mid brown wooden headrest on a base of with three legs. Made of a single piece, with the wood having minor splits in some areas.

Nadrau, Viti Levu, Fiji. Collected by Captain L. Knollys, c. 1876. Acquired by A. von Hügel from W. D. Webster, 1904, London. Z 3684

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Headrest made of whale bone, with a rounded top and the ends slightly curving upwards. Two legs of the same bone are attached by lugs at the back.

Kadavu, Fiji. Collected by A. von Hügel, 1875-77. Z 3676

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Reddish-wood headstand in an unusual design, with the base connected to the top with two 'v' shaped posts. There are further stabilising posts on either side of the 'v's, the one on the right is broken.

Fiji. Collected by A. Maudslay, 1875-80. Z 3677

Collectors' case: Pottery, Saqa

Fiji’s pottery traditions date back to the Lapita people over 3,000 years ago. Many changes in technique and style have occurred since then. In recent times, pots made of a mix of clay and sand, hand-formed, and glazed with the makadre gum of the dakua pine (Agathis vitiensis) have been used throughout Fiji. Their shape is often inspired by nature: imitations of citrus fruits; grape-like bunches of globular containers (saqamoli), ribbed vessels modelled on leba fruits and crescentic pots evoking plantains.

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