European University Legacies

Peter Bille Larsen is Senior Lecturer at the University of Geneva, where he heads the Geneva Heritage Lab. He has a strong interest in critical theory, heritage studies and political ecology including work in the fields of environmental governance, international human rights, heritage and sustainable development. He is also a member of the Swiss National UNESCO Commission and presides over the Interface Commission of the Swiss Anthropological Association to strengthen anthropological engagement on critical societal challenges. Recent books include World heritage and human rights (Earthscan, 2017), The Anthropology of Conservation NGOs (Palgrave, 2018), World heritage and sustainable development (Routledge, 2018), Governing heritage and creativity (Letteraventidue, 2023). Markéta Křížová is Professor of Ibero-American Studies at the Faculty of Arts, Charles University in Prague. Her research involves the history of overseas expansion, migrations and cultural transfers, history of modern slavery, as well as intellectual history (including the history of museums and history of racial thought). Her previous publications include the edited volume (with Jitka Maleckova) Central Europe and the Non-European world in the long 19th century (Berlin 2022).

European University Legacies is a bold, courageous and necessary book. It critically examines some of the most difficult aspects of heritage in European universities, including the legacies of slavery, racism, authoritarianism and coloniality. By engaging with these conversations, the book encourages universities to confront the present and work toward more just and equitable futures.

• AcknowledgmentsIntroduction: Revisiting Problematic University Heritage in Europe: From Pride to Questioning, Learning and ResponsibilityPeter Bille Larsen and Markéta KřížováPart One: Colonialities1. Reflections on the Sensitive Collections at the University of Coimbra: Case studies in Science and ColonialismPedro Casaleiro, Mariana Brum and Mariana Marques2. From Colonial to International at Wageningen Agricultural CollegeLarissa Schulte Nordholt3. Trinity’s Colonial Legacies: Transparency, Instrumentality, and Agency in an Engaged Research ProjectMobeen Hussain, Ciaran O’Neill, and Patrick Walsh4. Dealing with Complex Heritage: The Case of the Physical Anthropological Collections of the University of BolognaMaria Giovanna Belcastro, Teresa Nicolosi and Patrizia Battilani5. Addressing Racism in German Universities: An Utu/Ubuntu Perspective in Cologne University Rahab NjeriPart Two: Authoritarianisms​6. Authoritarianism, Post-Soviet Heritage and University Development in Ukraine: The Case of Uzhhorod National UniversityMyroslava Lendel, Nadiya Kerecman, Pavlo Lenyo, Maria Majorossy and Pavlo Khudish7. Hrdlička Museum of Man at Charles University: Challenges of Displaying Human Remains as Scientific ObjectsMarkéta Křížová8. Difficult Heritage or Objects of Science? The Material Legacy of Nazi German Rock Art Research in SwedenMattias Legnér9. Researching Dissonant Heritage in Estonian Academy of ArtsRiin Alatalu and Anu SoojärvPart Three: Modernities10. Re-visiting Heritage: University Policy and Feminist Research at the University of BarcelonaLaura Mercader Amigó, Dolores Pulido and Ramon Dilla Martí11. Problematic Heritage – a Museological Perspective: Documenting and Displaying University Collections at the University of GrazBernadette Biedermann12. Managing Photography of Racial Science in the Uppsala University LibraryUlrika Kjellman13. Addressing Legacies of Slavery, Empire and Race at the University of EdinburghIan Stewart and Simon Buck14. From Exceptionality and International Geneva to Racialized Colonial Entanglements and Modern BackstoriesPeter Bille LarsenAuthor BiographiesIndex