McCord Stewart 2023: Beads of Diplomacy

Wampum: Beads of Diplomacy

A Canadian Exclusive

Bearing witness to more than two centuries of diplomatic exchange between the nations of North America

October 20, 2023 - March 10, 2024

The Montreal’s McCord Stewart Museum presents a new exhibition Wampum: Beads of Diplomacy. For the first time, this unique exhibition brings together over 40 wampum belts from public and private collections in Quebec, Canada and Europe.

Wampum are objects made from shell beads that were exchanged for over two centuries (from the early 17th to the early 19th century) during diplomatic meetings between nations in northeastern America, including European nations. Also, some 40 cultural objects from the same period also help to contextualize and explain their fundamental role. 

Cultural and political symbols

The exhibition invites visitors to explore the cultural and political symbolism of wampum. These objects were the physical representation of words, agreements or laws that had to accompany any accord or talk between nations. Spoken words were only considered sincere if accompanied by wampum. These “belts of truth” therefore served to materialize the word, to confirm it and to seal alliances. Visitors will be able to understand the fundamental role of wampum in relations between Indigenous and European nations, the relationship between these objects and geopolitical issues in Canadian history, and their significance and influence today.

Jonathan Lainey, Curator, Indigenous Cultures, and lead curator of the exhibition, stated:

“Since wampum are valuable and coveted objects that bear witness to international alliances at the very heart of Canada, it’s important that we better understand them. We believe that putting on display the majority of wampum preserved in Canadian institutions will spark discussion and provoke thought. We hope this exhibition will create opportunities for gathering and exchange, just as wampum did in the past.”

In addition, the Museum is continuing its mission to amplify contemporary Indigenous voices by inviting the public to discover the work of contemporary artists Hannah Claus, Nadia Myre, Teharihulen Michel Savard and Skawennati, inspired by wampum, and to hear anecdotes from members of several nations through a series of videos.

International collaboration

Developed and co-produced with the musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac in Paris, the exhibition was first presented in Paris and then at the Seneca Art and Culture Center in Victor, New York. The only stop in Canada, the Montreal presentation brings together the largest selection of cultural belongings: it includes 13 wampum from the McCord Stewart Museum collection, as well as the wampum belt presented by the Kanesatake community to Pope Gregory XVI, which has not been repatriated since 1831. Visitors to the exhibition will also be able to view wampum and related objects – medals, weapons, ornaments, moccasins, maps, engravings, books, etc. – from the Museum’s own collection (66), as well as from the collections of the Canadian Museum of History (11), Parks Canada (3), the Bank of Canada Museum (5), the Musée de la civilisation (8), the Centre d’Archives Régionales du Séminaire de Nicolet (3), the Musée Huron-Wendat (1), the musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac in Paris (18) and the Trésor de la Cathédrale de Chartres (2).*

*Important: The wampum coming from the Vatican will be on display in the exhibition until December 4, and those from the Trésor de la Cathédrale de Chartes until January 14.

Publications

To accompany the exhibition, the McCord Stewart Museum has published an 81-page illustrated booklet, both a souvenir of the exhibition and a reference on the history and significance of wampum. The booklet features photos of twelve wampum necklaces and other related objects held by the McCord Stewart Museum, as well as excerpts of texts taken from the exhibition. Available exclusively at the Museum Boutique for $19.

Issue 33 of Gradhiva magazine, produced in conjunction with the exhibition at the musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac in Paris, will also be available at the Museum Boutique. Titled Wampum : les perles de la diplomatie, it contains several essays on

This exhibition is made possible with the support of the Terra Foundation for American Art. This project is funded in part by the Government of Canada, with the support of the Consulate General of France in Quebec City.

Wampum: Beads of Diplomacy Symposium

Thursday, February 22, and Friday, February 23, 2024, all day – Free – At the Museum

Taking advantage of the unprecedented context created by the exhibition Wampum: Beads of Diplomacy, the Museum will be holding a symposium devoted to wampum, bringing together Quebec, Canadian and international specialists from a variety of disciplines who have studied these unique objects and the social, political and religious practices that surround them. This forum will promote the de-compartmentalization of research: between disciplines, between museums and universities, between community knowledge-bearers and Indigenous studies departments.

Registration for the symposium will open at a later date.

This first ever major exhibition devoted to wampum belts was possible thanks to the unprecedented collaboration between the Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac in Paris and the McCord Stewart Museum in Montreal, in addition to generous support of public and private institutions in Quebec, Canada and abroad, as well as private individuals who agreed to provide key cultural assets from their personal collections.

Click on Images to enlarge them

All photos @ Nadia Slejskova

For more information about current exhibitions and special evens associated with this exhibition, visit the McCord Stewart Museum website.

For this article's dedicated internet address, click on the title above the very first photo.