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Collection

Discover the collection

Dive into objects, photographs, documents and stories from the Museum Maluku collection. Discover connections between people, places, history and the present.

More than 25,000 collection items

Nani: a sago beater used to loosen the pith inside the split trunk of the sago palm. sago production
Tifa: a musical instrument made from a hollowed-out tree trunk. The head of the drum is covered with deerskin.
Ear ornament with a piece of red cloth. Possibly from Tanimbar.

Start discovering

No search term in mind yet? These entry points take you straight into the collection. Each entry point is a search that is set up ready for you.

Black-and-white photograph from the photo collection of Otto Tatipikalawan, showing life in a Moluccan neighbourhood

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Residential camps and neighbourhoods

From the camps where Moluccan families arrived in 1951 to the neighbourhoods that emerged afterwards. Search by the name of a residential camp or a neighbourhood.

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Signs & meanings

Matakau

Signs that can warn, protect or mark boundaries. Discover objects, stories and the different meanings given to matakau.

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Tradition & performance

Tjakalele

Stories, images and objects around Tjakalele, with attention to meaning, performance and transmission within different communities.

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Family photographs Maluku Music Papua Pela Religion Timor
Salawaku: an elongated, slightly curved wooden shield, lacquered black and inlaid with small triangular shell pieces and a few larger shells

From the collection

Salawaku

Type
Object · shield
Origin
The Moluccas: including Seram, Ambon and the Kei Islands
Object number
OB10108

The salawaku is a traditional shield from the Moluccas and an important part of the material culture of various islands. Originally it was used in warfare, but the shield also had a symbolic and ritual significance within the community.

The decorations are not merely aesthetic. Patterns and motifs can refer to ancestors, clan ties or specific events. Some shields were passed down through generations. Although the original function has largely disappeared, the salawaku remains a powerful symbol of Moluccan identity, and it reappears in ceremonial dances and cultural events.

View salawakus in the collection

Subcollections

The collection consists of a number of interconnected parts. Each part has its own character, origin and way of being made accessible.

Archive shelving with masks from the Moluccas

  1. Archives

    Documents and personal collections from individuals, organisations and initiatives within the community. Largely digitised and catalogued; indexing is still ongoing, so not everything is online yet.

    Search the archives

  2. Image bank

    Photographs and other visual material from Maluku and the Netherlands, from daily life and family histories to culture, community and historical events. The online collection is being expanded step by step.

    Search the image bank

  3. Objects

    Museum objects connected with history, culture and daily life: artefacts, personal belongings and material relating to the history of migration.

    Search objects

  4. Library By appointment

    Publications, books, periodicals and other sources. Not yet searchable online, but available to consult at Malib by appointment.

Read more about the subcollections
Rows of archive shelving with hundreds of numbered boxes and folders in the Museum Maluku depot in Rotterdam
The depot and archive in Rotterdam. The collection that used to be on display in Utrecht is kept here, and can therefore not be viewed at the museum location in The Hague.

Search the online collection

In the online collection you will find a selection of photographs and objects, and a large part of the archives. It is accessible day and night. Searching works best with family names, years, places of residence and the names of former residential camps.

Search the online collection
  • Objects museum items with description and origin
  • Image documents photographs and other visual material
  • Archive items documents from personal and organisational archives
  • Inventories the structure of the archives themselves

Beyond the object

One photograph opens up a chain: a photographer, a place, a community and the question of exactly who is in it.

Two children cycling past the barracks of Kamp Vught, photographed in black and white

Life in the neighbourhood

In the 1980s and 1990s, the Moluccan photographer Otto Tatipikalawan was one of the few Moluccan photographers to portray Moluccan communities from within. This photograph of children cycling through Kamp Vught was part of the series ‘Life in the Neighbourhood’.

“I photograph things in Moluccan society that are worthwhile. There is so much: how young people born in the Netherlands do or don’t experience their Moluccan culture, but just as much the older generation in a changing society.”

Otto Tatipikalawan in De Barneveldse Courant, 25 May 1991

Do you know more?

Our collection holds stories that are sometimes still incomplete. Do you recognise someone in a photograph, know more about an object, or can you add context?

Your knowledge can help complete the story further.

An object number, a title or the link from the online collection.
For example who is in a photo, where it was taken, or what an object meant.
For example a family story, a personal memory or a publication.
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Thank you for your contribution

We have received your message. A colleague from the collection team will look at it and get in touch with you if we would like to know more.

For researchers and professionals

Research in the collection

Are you working on a research project, a publication, an exhibition or a teaching programme? There are various ways you can take things further with the collection.

Our physical archives are temporarily closed to research at the moment. Online research is still possible.

Adding something to the collection?

Museum Maluku assesses offered objects and archives against its collection policy. Not everything can be accepted. Whether an item fits depends on its origin, condition and the place it holds within the story.

Read about donating to the collection