Provenance Research Fund
Franco-German Research Fund on the Provenance of Cultural Objects from sub-Saharan Africa
In 2023, France and Germany decided to create a joint fund dedicated to provenance research on sub-Saharan objects in their public institutions. The French ministries for culture and for foreign affairs (ministère de la Culture, ministère de l’Europe et des Affaires Etrangères) as well as on the German side the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media (Die Beauftragte der Bundesregierung für Kultur und Medien) and the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung) have mandated the Centre Marc Bloch to run the fund.
Museums, cultural, scientific and academic institutions in both Germany and France hold substantial collections of cultural objects with great symbolic, artistic, historic or societal significance for the countries and societies of origin. Over the last few years, strengthening provenance research has been a major objective for Germany and France, as well as for many other European countries. France and Germany have sought to support making sub-Saharan cultural heritage more accessible again to the Sub-Saharan public.
In 2023, on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the Elysée Treaty, Germany and France decided to join forces in recognizing the importance of the appropriate handling of said objects. The creation of the Franco-German Fund on the provenance of cultural objects from Sub-Sahara is an integral part of a broader cultural policy seeking to strengthen and renew partnerships with Sub-Saharan Africa. The Fund seeks to promote research to further and deepen knowledge on cultural objects which are still insufficiently documented and often consist of very fragmented information. The search for provenance consists in tracing the history of the various owners of an object from its creation to its entry into the collections of an institution. This will promote a broader knowledge of the cultural history of these objects and the contexts in which they were acquired and circulated.
This Fund is a three-year initiative with an annual budget of 720.000€. Based on an annual call for proposals, it will support provenance research projects carried out by consortia bringing together French, German and sub-Saharan partners. The Scientific Council is responsible for defining the Fund’s program, project evaluation and selection. It is made up of nine highly recognized experts equally from France, Germany and sub-Saharan Africa.
Projects 2024
Call 2025
Call for Projects
This call for provenance research welcomes all disciplines. It is designed to support projects proposed jointly by researchers and professionals from France and Germany in close collaboration with cultural and scientific institutions and communities from sub-Saharan countries. Please note that the investigated items’ history does not necessarily need to be a Franco-German history. Applications are to be submitted until April 15, 2025, 11.59 p.m. Please send all necessary documents to Dr. Julie Sissia.
Documents
Timeline
20 November 2024: Opening of the call
February 2025: Online information events for applicants (one in French and one in German)
15 April 2025 (11.59 p.m.): Closing of the call for proposals
July 2024: Publication of results
September 2024: Start of projects
Networking and Partnership Call
Call for projects
In addition to the regular call published yearly, the Franco-German Fund introduces the Networking and Partnership Funding. This call is specifically designed to encourage the emergence of international research teams and to reinforce already existing collaborations on provenance research between France, Germany and Sub-Saharan Africa. It also aims to support initiatives by early-career researchers, museum professionals and by civil society actors. The new international project teams and partnerships can be the basis for follow-up projects within the annual regular call for projects of the Franco-German Fund. To this end, the call offers a flexible funding to support networking activities of projects of a maximal duration of 12 months. Applications can be submitted until Friday, 28th February 2025 at 11.59 p.m. via email to Dr. Julie Sissia.
Dokumente
Deadlines
28 February 2025
31 Mai 2025
31 August 2025
31 December 2025
Applications will be selected after each of the specified deadlines. Projects start no later than 5 months after the respective deadline.
Press / Events
Press release 2 - First three projects selected within the Franco-German Fund / Two new open calls for projects for 2025 including flexible funding for networking activities (20.11.2024)
Interview mit Souleymane Bachir Diagne, Vorsitzender des wissenschaftlichen Beirats (05.02.2024)
Press release 1 - Launch-Event of the Franco-German Fund on the Provenance of Cultural Obejcts from sub-Saharan Africa (21.01.2024)
Scientific Council
Chair
Souleymane Bachir DIAGNE
Professor, Columbia University
Discipline: Philosophy
Members
Felicity BODENSTEIN
Lecturer. Sorbonne Université
Discipline: Art History
Hugues HEUMEN TCHANA
Director, National Museum of Cameroon
Discipline: Museology
Emmanuel KASARHEROU
Director, Musée du Quai Branly - Jacques Chirac
Discipline: Museology
Antoinette MAGET DOMINICÉ
Professor, Université de Genève
Discipline: Law
Nzila Marina MUBUSISI
Chief Curator, National Museum of Namibia
Discipline: Heritage Management
Barbara PLANKENSTEINER
Director, MARKK Museum am Rothenbaum Hamburg
Discipline: Ethnology
Emilie SALABERRY
Director, Musée d'Angoulême
Discipline: Art History
Bénédicte SAVOY
Professor, TU Berlin
Discipline: Art History