Glimpses of the colonial collections at the 1862 London Exhibition: The case of the Angolan Objects at the Portuguese section

Abstract

The 1862 London Exhibition “was a symbol of mid-Victorian aspira tion” with a clear image of Britain’s ambition and its empire. These exhibitions were opportunities for other empires, such as the Portuguese, to assert and highlight the potential of their colonies. The case of the Portuguese representation during the nineteenth century in world exhibitions has been examined; however, the display of colonial products remains somehow less explored, namely, those related to the African flora. This research examines the representation of Portugal and its colonies at the 1862 London Exhibition, in particular, the case of colonial objects of natural history collected from what is known today as Angola. After the loss of Brazil, Africa was seen in a mythical way as the Eldorado, ready to fulfill the destiny of the nation by which it could eventually recover the status of a great power. Several aspects of the exhibition were analyzed, in particular, the objects and actors involved in the preparation of the Portuguese section. Regarding the latter, two main figures were crucial for the organization of this representation: Friedrich Welwitsch (1806–1872), who performed the Iter Angolense expedition (1853–1860), and orga nized, contributed, and suggested objects that should be collected from Angola and Júlio Máximo de Oliveira Pimentel (the second viscount of Vila Maior, 1809–1884), the royal commissioner at the London Exhibition. To understand which objects were on display, Welwitsch’s publications, The Preliminary Notes on various objects from Angola (1861) and Explanatory Synopsis of Samples of Timber and Medicinal Drugs (1862), were crucial to this research. Although the Portuguese representation was severely criticized by the press, Welwitsch was awarded four gold medals for the colonial objects presented.