Museums on Saba and Sint Maarten receive NWO Museum Grant for their own research
THE HAGUE - The Saba Archaeological Center Foundation and the Sint Maarten National Heritage Foundation have received a Museum Grant from the Dutch Research Council (NWO). They are two of the sixteen applicants to receive a grant in the new funding round. According to NWO, this shows that Caribbean organisations have a good chance of obtaining funding from the research council’s programmes.
NWO’s Museum Grant Programme aims to strengthen the research role of museums. Museum professionals are given the space to conduct in-depth research into their own collections, heritage and museum practice. The results are published as open access, so that the entire museum sector can benefit.
Saba: collection management for new heritage centre
The Saba Archaeological Center Foundation receives the grant for the project “Collecting Without a Framework: Developing Collection Management and Storage Standards for the Saba Heritage Center in the Context of the Caribbean Netherlands”. The project leader is S. Balfour.
The research prepares for the opening of a new heritage centre on Saba in 2029. The project examines how collection management is organised in the Caribbean parts of the Kingdom and in the European Netherlands, and maps out good practices. Based on this, recommendations will be made for the future Saba Heritage Center. In this way, the island’s heritage is to be sustainably preserved, managed and shared with future generations.
Sint Maarten: slavery and emancipation at the centre
The Sint Maarten National Heritage Foundation receives a grant for the project “From Salt Pond to Emancipation: Slavery, Labour, Ruin, and Memory in the Sint Maarten Museum”, led by S.M. Dehaney.
The research focuses on the history of slavery and emancipation on the island. The researchers will study historical sites, ruins, family stories, museum collections and archives. Salt mining, life on the plantations and the long road to freedom are central, alongside attention to the Indigenous history of Sint Maarten.
