CONTACT US

Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum
Argyle Street, Glasgow G3 8AG
0141 276 9599
museums@glasgowlife.org.uk
Text Phone:  0141 276 9500
Fax: 0141 276 9540

OPENING HOURS

Monday to Thursday and Saturday 10am–5pm Friday and Sunday 11am–5pm

Ceremonial Turtle Posts

Ceraminial Turtle Post

The Ceremonial Turtle Posts story features a pair of carved wooden ​posts.

They were collected on Dauar, Murray Islands, Torres Strait. Which is between Papua New Guinea and Australia.

They are the only material survivors of a ceremony which celebrated the fertility of people and nature.

The Torres Strait Islanders ceased to practise the ceremony following the arrival of missionaries in the area.
 
The ceremony and posts were studied by the anthropologist A C Haddon. They were brought to Glasgow in 1889 by Robert Bruce. Bruce was a Glaswegian living in Torres Strait.

Over a century later, Ephraim Bani, a Torres Strait Islander, visited museums in Europe. He wanted to learn about collections from the islands and to talk about their continued meanings for Torres Strait Islanders today.
 
This display traces the intersecting histories of the turtle posts. And their journey to Glasgow and contemporary significance.
Visit the Collections Navigator
Find out how to Get Involved in Glasgow Museums
Glasgow Life Logo
CONTACT US