Museums don’t think in terms of “places of honour”. And while the steins probably weren’t preserved due to to the event not being recognised in the moment, museums absolutely preserve items from the beer hall putsch, such as this nazi flyer.
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I am, yes. Objects aren’t good or evil in themselves, but they tether us to the reality of the past like nothing else. That’s in a large part why I became an archaeologist and not a historian.
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If he was a real shaman, having to go on a perilous quest to recover it would be standard.
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I can see that for some objects, but I also think context matters. Surely we should stop somewhere with public display. Would you be in favor of say, a museum display in Germany of the (real! actual! step right up folks!) Auschwitz showerheads used to kill people with Zyklon B?
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Several museums in Germany, as well as the Auschwitz -Birkenau museum own Zyklon B cans. Unlike with the above objects, I am not going to link to their online collections, but they exist and are available to the public.
I would argue that museums such as the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum, which basically only display things like you mentioned, are especially important. Every school child in Germany visits them, and they couldn’t, if we had just levelled them at the time and decided to forget.
A museum doesn’t just exhibit things, it also preserves them. And when it does exhibit them, it is in context. Nobody says this fool’s dunce cap should be celebrated. But it is a historical artefact that should be preserved. And exhibited—in context—in the future.
ETA:
Museums aren’t sideshows. They challenge, and invite contemplation
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I see what you mean.
At their best, yes. But they can also invite fetishistic memorializing, as well as elevation of the trivial to an unwarranted status of significant consequence. Which makes me wonder, still, if this idiot’s head gear is worthy of enshrinement in a museum.
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I trust the Smithsonian to handle this correctly
Museums also aren’t shrines. As I said above
(emphasis mine in both cases).
What we consider trivia now are impactful reminders in the future. Such as the above-linked nazi flyer. I’m sure they were thrown away and torn up in anger by the hundreds at the time. But the one that is preserved in the German Historical Museum links us to an event in the past that echoes today on so many levels.
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I don’t think the Smithsonian has asked for it.
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No. We’re discussing a purely hypothetical situation. However, I argue they should ask for it
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PS: I realise that I am arguing in a rather forceful manner on this issue that is important to me. That doesn’t mean I don’t respect your opinion on this matter. It is a legitimate standpoint to worry about fetishization of objects and there are countless museums that are guilty of that (including Smithsonian institutions when it comes to artefacts of American constitutional history or the Space Race [as far as I can tell from a distance. I have never visited]).
I just think that in this case the risk of that happening is rather low and outweighed by the museum’s responsibility to preserve objects of high interest to contemporary history. And I want to stress the role museums play in a healthy society
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You can convince me - well I believe I already agreed - with the idea that certain relics from January 6th should be archived. I am still not sure if this guy falls under “iconic”… I guess from an aesthetic and being memorable it is. How much of a material impact he specifically had, compared to say John Wilkes Booth, is something future historians can debate. (And that debate will be effected by Qanon Shaman’s future actions. If he eventually fades away into obscurity, the relevance is pretty low. If he goes on to do other remarkable things obviously that makes the object more significant.)
So, anyway, you make a fair case for it being archived. I still stand by my general principles that LE abuses forfeiture of assets and property wwaaayyyy too fucking much in this country. So from that stand point, I am not sure how to reckon with the idea that while being archived is different than being locked up in an evidence room (and possibly destroyed later), it is still the government seizing property. I suppose every rule has exceptions. Also, something tells me the Q Shaman would WANT it donated, so if they gave it back and donated it, it wouldn’t be forfeiture. I dunno. Too soon for me to really argue too strongly on his behalf. 
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For better or for worse, he is the face of the insurrection. He might not have been a leader or a mastermind, but he was on TV that day in a unique and recognisable outfit that happens to say a lot about the confused mindset of the people there. Maybe Pelosi’s stolen desk nameplate or the gun that shot Ashley Babitt were more talked about as single objects, but if you show those three options to a random person on the street, only one will immediately be linked to the insurrection by most. This, in my mind, makes it iconic.
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Next up: some J6 convict asks for their turd back; discussion about whether/how to instead preserve it for posterity ensues.
(Perhaps Chansley will accept a consolation turd in lieu of his headgear, which should be forced upon Sen. Cruz)
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i agree. that was my point to begin with, and yeah, like all events with high emotions connected to them, it’s gonna take time and perspective to appreciate things in context. but for now, his hat definitely qualifies, and should be saved.
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If put out for display, a label describing the ‘artifact’ should go with it: Stupid Hat worn by a Stupid Fucking Traitor.
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