Hugh Nevill (1847-1897), a British colonial officer and civil servant in Ceylon renowned for being a prolific and dedicated collector, amassed a varied collection of thousands of objects and palm leaf manuscripts from Sri Lanka that form a significant presence in representing Sri Lanka in all the major national and cultural institutions in the UK and Ireland, including the British Library. This presentation will explore in depth the British Library’s holdings of the Hugh Nevill collection of over 2,000 Sinhalese palm leaf manuscripts from Sri Lanka, with a focus on what is currently known about Hugh Nevill and his collecting practices. Nevill’s collecting practices will also be contextualised by critically examining both the expected and unexpected impact of colonial dislocation of the collections from Sri Lanka and situated within the wider context of decolonising collections through increased awareness, access and digital reunification of collections. The presentation concludes by looking ahead to the aims of the British Library through ongoing efforts to develop digitisation projects and partnerships with organisations in Sri Lanka to make these collections more widely accessible to all.
Arani Ilankuberan is the Head of South Asian Collections at the British Library. Her specialism is in South India and Sri Lanka, and she has previously held the post of South Indian collections Curator at the British Library. Before she joined the library, she worked as a researcher of the Sri Lankan Tamil Hindu community in London as part of an ESRC-funded project on London faith communities at Goldsmiths, University of London. She has also completed her PhD at Goldsmiths which examines the faith literacies and identities of the UK Tamil diaspora through viewing Tamil Hindu film.
Organised by Lori Wong (The Courtauld) and Sujatha Meegama (The Courtauld)
Supported by the Robert H.N. Ho Family Foundation Centre for Buddhist Art and Conservation.
The Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation Centre for Buddhist Art and Conservation at The Courtauld was established by a generous endowment in 2012 from the Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation.
