ATT ÅTERBÄRA MINNEN. En fallstudie om värdeskapande, minnen och identitet i återlämnandet av en samisk sejte

Abstract

This thesis examines how Sámi museum objects can be understood as collective carriers of memory and how their meanings have changed in relation to colonial collecting practices and contemporary return processes. The study focuses on the return of a sacred Sámi stone, a so-called sejte, from the Museum of World Culture in Gothenburg to Ájtte – the Swedish Mountain and Sámi Museum in Jokkmokk. Drawing on Jan and Aleida Assmann’s cultural memory theory, the study demonstrates how Sámi culture has been marginalized and argues that the return of Sámi objects should not be understood solely as administrative or legal acts, but as complex processes in which cultural memory, relationships and authority are redefined. Although the return of the sejte enables the restoration and reactivation of memory, the analysis shows that achieving heritage justice depends on how the object is managed, used and interpreted after its return. Perceptions of museum ownership and of where sejtar ‘belong’ also vary both between institutions and within Sámi communities. The thesis theoretical framework combines cultural memory theory with Edward Said’s postcolonial theory and the concept of Máhttsat ja Mujttalit (returning and remembering) and heritage justice. Methodologically, the study adopts a qualitative approach and is conducted as a combined case and literature study. The material consists primarily of previous research, museum documentation, archival material and supplementary correspondence.