Dear Colleagues,

The vital role museums play in mediating cultural values and educating the public about them has been the focus of much recent scholarship within cultural and museum studies. Carol Duncan’s Civilizing Rituals (1995) alerted scholars to the religious dimensions of contemporary museum practices, thereby expanding the discussion of religion and museums in unforeseen ways. Despite this timely intervention into a discourse that had tended to downplay the religious dimensions of museum collections and museum practices, and notwithstanding the central place of religious objects within many museums, there remains a need for more scholarship devoted to the topic of religion in museums. In fact, although the relevance of material culture to religious studies is now widely acknowledged, the topic of religion in museums received little focused attention until the publication of Crispin Paine’s pathbreaking work Religious Objects in Museums (2013). On the practical side, museum directors and curators have grappled creatively with the issues raised by Duncan, Paine and others, and their efforts have borne fruit in such noteworthy museums as the St. Mungo Museum of Religious Art and Life in Glasgow, Scotland, and the Museum of World Religions in Taipei, Taiwan (to name only two).

The aim of this volume is to bring together work by scholars in religious studies, museum studies, philosophy, and cognate disciplines that addresses issues related to the curation and exhibition of religious objects in museums or to the representation of religious ideas and values within museums. Questions that might be explored include, but are not restricted to: How do museums address the sacred realm? In what ways are (different) religions represented in museums? How are religious objects transformed when they enter museum collections? Is the distinction between a ‘religious’ and a ‘mundane’ object a helpful one to keep? How do tangible objects convey religious ideas or values? How are religious objects used in museums? What ethical issues arise from the curation and display of religious objects? Submissions are encouraged that address the topic in the light of one or more religious tradition, and those with an Asian perspective are especially welcome. In addition, papers might discuss the topic of religion in museums generally or in relation to specific museum collections or exhibits.

Prof. Dr. Victoria S. Harrison
Guest Editor

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• museums
• religious objects
• material religion
• Carol Duncan: Crispin Paine
• curating religion