PROV-GUI

The Collaborative Project on Provenance Research of Objects from Guinea (PROV-GUI) is a project under the Networking and Partnerships call, which will begin in October 2025 and run for 12 months. It aims, firstly, to address the current state of knowledge and visibility, still very limited, regarding objects originating from Guinea currently housed in museums in France and Germany.

The approach is primarily intended to be structuring and open to future work, aiming to stimulate research on the provenance of objects from Guinea. It is based on identifying objects and institutions, building a shared database of this information with a view to increasing visibility, and creating a networking space for associated stakeholders and resources, all of which is designed to grow. The project places an important emphasis on training with the aim of seeing the development of research work on objects, the social and cultural history of Guinea, and heritage ethnology both within the European framework and locally anchored in Guinea.

The PROV-GUI project is being implemented in collaboration and complementarity with ongoing programs in Guinea: renovation of the National Museum, new museum policies, and a virtual museum project based on national and international collections. The project is cross-disciplinary and inclusive, incorporating diverse stakeholders, including institutions, museologists, researchers, artists, diaspora groups, and communities of origin.

The theme of collaboration in provenance research, particularly with source communities, will be at the heart of a collective discussion. One component of the program directly addresses this technical and political theme through examples of collaboration with communities of origin in provenance research across several cultural areas, in the form of webinars and publications, with the support of the School of African Heritage in Porto Novo, Benin.