ABSTRACT
Most national museums attempt to exhibit ancient origins for the nation. Occasionally, as in Mexico, Indigenous groups such as the Aztecs become founding figures, thus allowing the nation to become older than its modern origins might suggest. In most museums change is either ignored or seamlessly incorporated into the narrative. The nation continues undaunted through wars, humiliations and loss to the sunny uplands of the present day. Displays demonstrate clearly how modern political concerns drive curatorial practice. The nation may have been humiliated at times in the past, even ceased to exist for long periods as an independent state but, if it can exhibit antiquity in its origins, it can take pride in its survival and endurance. Antiquity reinforces its right to independent status in the twenty-first century. While the focus of this chapter is on China, other national museums elsewhere demonstrate that China’s political use of history and archaeology is not exceptional.
