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Michael Cassidy - L82206 Techniques in Human Geography 1 Critically explain the techniques you have used for exploring the geographies of the archive. For Geographers, the archive is a vast source of knowledge that comes in a range of forms, and can be explored through numerou s means. This st udy seeks to understand the archive through object-visual research, a more contemporary technique that has seen increasing populari ty. With a particular focus on the Natural History Exhibition found in Wollaton Hall, the investigation hopes to ascertain how certain subjects can be deconstructed and analysed to help further our understanding of the geographies of Empire. In the traditional, and perhaps more historical sense, the archive was found in the form of the library or other such similarly organised institution, and in which the researcher sought to remain neutral and emotionless in order to preserve the positivist and objective nature of their work, suggests Lorimer (2009). Howeve r, with the emergence of post-structuralism and an interest in post-colonialism, pioneered by the likes of Foucault and Harley, attention was drawn inwards towards the historicity of the archive; its origins, scope, layout and composition were all brought into question. Furthermore, what constitutes an archive and where one can be found is ever changing, contemporarily ranging from exhibition s to the Internet (Lorimer 2009). With this taken into consideration, this study focuses on the Natural History Exhibition found in Wollaton Hall, Nottingham. Constructed in the mid-sixteenth century, Wollaton Hall opened to the public in 1926 (Marshall 1999), where it became home to the city‟s first natural history museum. The exhibition is largely constructed of taxidermy mounts; animals preserved and restored through both scientific methods and artistic techniques (Alberti 2009). This study pays particular attention to the full body Asiatic lion mount, found in the exhibition (Figure 1), due to its intriguing yet illusive nature. Lorimer proposes that the researcher must consider one‟s own experience in the archive, and t he subsequent influence this has on works, to which Patchett concurs, stating that big-game mounts, such as the Asiatic lion, are often interpreted as “relics and trophies of colonial enterprise, a practice and past with which many are uncomfortable” (2008:20) – an experienc e that can certainly be felt when viewing the mount. Moreover, the illusive nature of the mount is constructed through the distinct lack of information surroundin g the object, imploring one to consider what is missing, and perhaps why this is the case (DeSilvey 2007). The Asiatic lion is a lion subspecies that exists as a single isolated population in India‟s Gujarat state, and is listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of
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