Homecoming - Máhccan
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- Reviews
- Citation
- Cataloging
- Transcript
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Filmmaker Suvi West takes the audience behind the scenes of the museum world, revealing a visual, philosophical, and spiritual realm. Sámi herself, she seeks a connection with her ancestors through old museum objects, eventually arriving at the collective pain points of the Sámi people. How can the damage caused by outsiders be repaired so that collective pains can be left behind?
Máhccan - Homecoming is set in the changing world of museums and deals with the repatriation of museum objects. Repatriation refers to the return of cultural heritage to its original owners. In recent years, museums around the world have had to confront their own colonialist burden and consider returning objects taken from oppressed or subjugated nations, often through theft.
The National Museum of Finland acts as a pioneer in the international museum world. In 2021, it returned thousands of everyday objects taken from the Sámi people to the Sámi Museum Siida. This represents a significant repatriation on a global scale. At the same time, the holiest objects of the Sámi people, the drums, remain imprisoned in the basements of museums around the world. While the return of everyday objects brings joy and empowerment to the Sámi people, the absent drums continue to carry the inherited sorrow from one generation to another.
West asks whether the returning objects can help a fractured nation cope with past sorrows? How can one hear the voice of ancestors, who traditionally have aided the Sámi people in navigating life? And how can one confront a sacred drum that has been violently taken, traditionally considered inappropriate to photograph or touch, as it belongs only to its owner?
West embarks on a journey following museum objects from Helsinki to Inari and from Berlin to the shores of the Arctic Ocean. Her travel companions and advisors include experts from the museum world, past generations, and dreams that guide the story. As the dream-like journey progresses, West delves deeper into the bloody past of the Sámi people and the realm of unresolved sorrows. The effects of historical events are felt and become visible in the present moment.
Citation
Main credits
West, Suvi (film director)
West, Suvi (screenwriter)
Kömi, Anssi (film director)
Niskala, Janne (film producer)
Other credits
Editing, Hanna Kuirinlahti; cinematography, Anssi Kömi; music, Georg Buljo.
Distributor subjects
No distributor subjects provided.Keywords
00:00:32.040 --> 00:00:34.080
For hundreds of years,
00:00:34.240 --> 00:00:37.680
Sámi artifacts have been taken
away from Sápmi, the Sámi lands,
00:00:37.840 --> 00:00:39.920
into museums around the world.
00:00:40.800 --> 00:00:45.040
In 2021, The National Museum of Finland
and the Sámi Museum Siida
00:00:45.200 --> 00:00:49.880
agreed on the repatriation of
over two thousand Sámi artefacts to Sápmi.
00:00:51.120 --> 00:00:58.120
This is a globally significant
repatriation.
00:00:59.640 --> 00:01:02.040
-[wind howls]
-[bells chime]
00:01:19.160 --> 00:01:21.120
[Suvi] Ancestors,
00:01:21.280 --> 00:01:25.640
you, who live in the sacred Sáivu
beneath our feet.
00:01:26.360 --> 00:01:30.160
What is this story you want me to tell?
00:01:31.960 --> 00:01:35.400
[man sings a joik] ♪ Le, le, leh, le ♪
00:01:37.600 --> 00:01:40.560
♪ Le, le, leh, le ♪
00:01:42.280 --> 00:01:46.560
♪ From Inari, Utsjoki ♪
00:01:46.720 --> 00:01:50.560
♪ Sevettijärvi, Näätämö ♪
00:01:51.320 --> 00:01:55.000
♪ Saariselkä, Vuotso ♪
00:01:55.160 --> 00:01:59.000
♪ Enontekiö, Paatsjoki ♪
00:02:00.160 --> 00:02:03.360
♪ Le, le, leh, le... ♪
00:02:10.640 --> 00:02:14.360
♪ To The National Museum of Finland ♪
00:02:14.520 --> 00:02:17.800
♪ Le, le, leh, le... ♪
00:02:21.520 --> 00:02:27.600
♪ Grandpa's sledge, cradle,
copper pointer, trough, bowl ♪
00:02:27.760 --> 00:02:32.720
♪ Needle case,
coffee bag, tobacco pouch ♪
00:02:32.880 --> 00:02:37.760
♪ Netting needle, cup, halter,
reindeer coat, case, fishnet weight ♪
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♪ Widow's hat, tether,
loop, bear neckpiece ♪
00:02:44.560 --> 00:02:47.240
♪ To home ♪
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♪ To Sápmi ♪
00:02:54.800 --> 00:02:58.080
♪ They return ♪
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HOMECOMING
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COLLECTION AND CONSERVATION CENTRE
OF THE FINNISH HERITAGE AGENCY
00:03:21.760 --> 00:03:23.840
VANTAA, FINLAND
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[Eero] We're using this as a project room
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for Sámi artefacts, for example,
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most of which we have in this room here.
00:03:42.520 --> 00:03:50.040
And on that shelf,
we have the items for the exhibition.
00:03:50.200 --> 00:03:54.760
Here's a selection for you to examine
00:03:56.480 --> 00:04:01.080
before they are sent back
to the Sámi Museum Siida.
00:04:03.720 --> 00:04:05.640
[Suvi] Ooh...
00:04:07.080 --> 00:04:09.160
[quiet piano music]
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[Suvi] There's love in it.
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It was a shelter for a child.
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I wonder who it belonged to in Angel...
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[Eero] That's the curious thing
about these.
00:04:43.080 --> 00:04:46.640
They make you wonder
about their previous owner.
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I think that's a part of the allure
of museum pieces.
00:04:50.160 --> 00:04:53.400
[Suvi] This is so fascinating.
Oh my, this has both...
00:04:53.560 --> 00:04:56.040
-It has a cross.
-That's a cross.
00:04:56.200 --> 00:05:01.120
But it also has a symbol
related to Sámi spirituality.
00:05:02.040 --> 00:05:07.160
They wanted to combine Christianity
with the old Sámi faith.
00:05:07.320 --> 00:05:09.920
[Eero] Christianity came in, sure enough,
00:05:10.080 --> 00:05:14.360
but all the old traditions and beliefs
continued to coexist with it.
00:05:14.520 --> 00:05:16.600
They still do, in a way.
00:05:19.200 --> 00:05:21.000
Look.
00:05:28.320 --> 00:05:30.440
This is absolutely special.
00:05:30.600 --> 00:05:34.480
[Eero] I can see that handling them
evokes some special joy in you,
00:05:34.640 --> 00:05:36.760
understandably.
00:05:44.360 --> 00:05:46.160
Phew.
00:05:54.760 --> 00:05:59.320
Do you sense any sort of energy
or spirit in these items?
00:05:59.480 --> 00:06:01.720
Do you ever get a feeling like that?
00:06:01.880 --> 00:06:04.280
Yeah, I feel it now when you're here.
00:06:04.440 --> 00:06:07.080
-Okay.
-That plays a part in it.
00:06:07.680 --> 00:06:11.760
Now that I'm experiencing
these items with you,
00:06:11.920 --> 00:06:15.080
it somehow affirms the idea
00:06:15.240 --> 00:06:19.200
that their return will grant them
the life they deserve.
00:06:27.680 --> 00:06:34.240
I
ITEMS
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[piano music]
00:07:10.320 --> 00:07:12.240
[Suvi] Ancestors,
00:07:12.400 --> 00:07:17.800
the items carry with them
our shared joys and sorrows.
00:07:17.960 --> 00:07:21.400
What will happen when they return?
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[ambient music]
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NATIONAL MUSEUM OF FINLAND
HELSINKI, FINLAND
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[woman] The repatriated items can now
be reintroduced to the Sámi community.
00:07:57.160 --> 00:07:59.840
They bear knowledge
00:08:00.000 --> 00:08:05.240
that only the Sámi community
can read and interpret.
00:08:05.400 --> 00:08:09.040
[woman] I can now bring my children
to the museum,
00:08:09.200 --> 00:08:14.120
and together we can start to decipher
our family history
00:08:14.280 --> 00:08:18.360
without second-hand interpretations.
00:08:19.680 --> 00:08:22.920
[woman] I consider this
the first step on a road
00:08:23.080 --> 00:08:26.280
that leads to the improved social status
of the Sámi people,
00:08:26.440 --> 00:08:28.800
control over our own cultural heritage,
00:08:28.960 --> 00:08:32.720
and fairer representation
in the museums of the world.
00:08:41.720 --> 00:08:43.640
[piano music]
00:09:26.160 --> 00:09:30.320
SÁMI MUSEUM SIIDA
INARI, SÁPMI
00:09:35.040 --> 00:09:38.640
-[truck's back-up alarm]
-[piano music continues]
00:10:35.200 --> 00:10:37.400
Here they are.
00:10:49.200 --> 00:10:54.400
[Heini] I'm not sure... These have been
assigned to Grandmother Naska,
00:10:54.560 --> 00:10:58.360
but are they women's leggings?
Or, does it say...
00:10:58.520 --> 00:11:03.760
I've never seen reindeer fur leggings
worn by a Skolt woman before.
00:11:03.920 --> 00:11:07.640
I think they were worn by a woman.
Here is the raw edge.
00:11:07.800 --> 00:11:10.560
Here is the calf side.
00:11:10.720 --> 00:11:13.400
This is the shin side.
00:11:13.560 --> 00:11:16.560
This part is not very wide.
00:11:16.720 --> 00:11:20.200
But there are two seams here
and this thing here.
00:11:20.360 --> 00:11:24.880
-So, the owner clearly had thick thighs.
-Right.
00:11:25.040 --> 00:11:30.200
Of course, the most important heritage
and, you know...
00:11:31.400 --> 00:11:35.200
...our heirloom, what we've inherited,
00:11:35.360 --> 00:11:38.360
is our craftmanship.
00:11:38.520 --> 00:11:41.440
That's what I've inherited.
00:11:44.080 --> 00:11:47.640
How do you feel seeing
Grandmother Naska's items?
00:11:49.840 --> 00:11:52.960
I don't know, they always feel like...
00:11:53.960 --> 00:11:55.840
...answers.
00:11:56.000 --> 00:11:59.440
Though I don't know the question yet.
00:12:02.040 --> 00:12:05.680
Looking at these items, do you feel that
00:12:05.840 --> 00:12:10.320
Sámi culture is something that thrived
00:12:10.480 --> 00:12:13.720
back in the days of Grandmother Naska?
00:12:13.880 --> 00:12:20.960
Or is Sámi culture,
rather than tied to these items,
00:12:21.120 --> 00:12:25.680
or at least in addition to them,
more in your hands?
00:12:25.840 --> 00:12:29.720
As you're literally making
handicrafts every day.
00:12:29.880 --> 00:12:32.000
It lives through your craft
00:12:32.160 --> 00:12:37.000
as much as in these items,
these museum items.
00:12:37.160 --> 00:12:39.000
True.
00:12:40.600 --> 00:12:43.000
We should keep in mind that...
00:12:44.880 --> 00:12:47.400
Or what I'd like to say is that...
00:12:51.600 --> 00:12:55.080
Looking at these items, we're still here.
00:12:56.560 --> 00:12:58.960
And that's what matters.
00:13:01.040 --> 00:13:05.160
-It's so lovely that you have these.
-Yeah, I think so too.
00:13:05.600 --> 00:13:09.920
[Suvi] Your identity
is not limited to your person.
00:13:10.080 --> 00:13:14.040
It also includes your whole family.
00:13:14.200 --> 00:13:19.320
And it's not only about handicrafts.
You made me wonder what it is for me.
00:13:19.480 --> 00:13:22.800
[Heini] You have your own form
of expression, storytelling.
00:13:22.960 --> 00:13:29.840
I think that it might actually come
from Biennáš-Jovnna.
00:13:31.400 --> 00:13:35.840
Biennáš-Jovnna has even visited
my dreams, telling me how to make films.
00:13:39.400 --> 00:13:42.600
SÁMI MUSEUM SIIDA'S EXHIBITION
UTSJOKI, SÁPMI
00:13:42.760 --> 00:13:47.600
[woman] Who are these women?
Who do you think they are?
00:13:47.760 --> 00:13:49.840
[woman] Eila Tapiola.
00:13:50.840 --> 00:13:54.520
[woman] That's probably
someone from the Laiti family.
00:13:54.680 --> 00:13:56.840
[murmur of voices]
00:13:58.800 --> 00:14:01.240
[man] She's not a Laiti girl.
00:14:01.400 --> 00:14:04.360
[woman] No info on this picture either.
00:14:07.000 --> 00:14:11.000
-[woman] Is that Čalku's wife?
-[man] Ingg' Elle.
00:14:11.160 --> 00:14:13.440
-[woman] Who?
-[woman] Iŋgg' Elle.
00:14:13.600 --> 00:14:16.720
[man] From before the war,
before the evacuation.
00:14:16.880 --> 00:14:19.400
[woman] Before the evacuation, yes.
00:14:19.560 --> 00:14:22.760
[man] The fashion
was different afterwards.
00:14:22.920 --> 00:14:25.840
[woman]
Yes, after they returned from the south.
00:14:26.000 --> 00:14:28.240
[woman] Uhca Ovllá Káre.
00:14:28.400 --> 00:14:31.320
[man] That's Gánddáš-Biret on the left.
00:14:33.840 --> 00:14:37.920
[man] That's my grandmother.
[Suvi] Really? You recognised her?
00:14:38.080 --> 00:14:42.280
Go tell them. You'll get the picture,
since she's family.
00:14:43.640 --> 00:14:46.480
-I'll go and tell them.
-[Suvi] Go tell them.
00:14:46.640 --> 00:14:48.960
You'll get the photo.
00:14:49.120 --> 00:14:51.640
[woman] Let's continue.
00:14:52.720 --> 00:14:56.800
[woman] These items we have with us,
they are region-specific.
00:14:56.960 --> 00:14:58.840
They're from around here.
00:14:59.000 --> 00:15:05.200
[woman] These are from Theodor Schwindt's
collection trip to Lapland in 1902.
00:15:05.360 --> 00:15:07.680
[woman] Those decorations seem strange.
00:15:07.840 --> 00:15:11.200
[woman] There has been a mistake.
They're not from here.
00:15:11.360 --> 00:15:15.960
[woman] These are from 1902.
120-year-old shoes.
00:15:16.120 --> 00:15:19.920
[woman] We've never had
decorations like these in the heels.
00:15:20.080 --> 00:15:24.000
Not to mention the use of a cross pattern.
00:15:24.160 --> 00:15:29.200
We had these foreign cross patterns
only in knitwear, maybe.
00:15:29.360 --> 00:15:34.600
[man] Could they be influences
coming through the Skolt Sámi culture?
00:15:35.320 --> 00:15:39.600
[woman] I suppose that's possible.
People do move around.
00:15:39.760 --> 00:15:43.760
[man] Because these decorations point
more to that direction.
00:15:43.920 --> 00:15:48.680
[woman] They are made from calf legs.
00:15:49.640 --> 00:15:56.200
I'd say the reindeer was butchered
in August or September at the latest.
00:15:57.560 --> 00:16:02.840
The legs have no guard hair yet.
00:16:03.000 --> 00:16:05.960
So it was butchered very early.
00:16:06.960 --> 00:16:12.240
[man] A shame that the collectors had no
interest in the stories, only the items.
00:16:12.400 --> 00:16:14.400
[woman] Indeed.
00:16:21.920 --> 00:16:23.840
[piano music]
00:16:44.880 --> 00:16:47.440
[dog barks in the distance]
00:16:53.840 --> 00:16:57.560
I have to show you
and ask for some advice...
00:16:58.440 --> 00:17:02.560
-[Suvi laughs]
-Whoa! You're using a lot of pins.
00:17:02.720 --> 00:17:05.400
But because this isn't completely even,
00:17:05.560 --> 00:17:09.040
I'll still have to sew some parts.
00:17:09.200 --> 00:17:11.120
Yes, even it out.
00:17:11.280 --> 00:17:14.160
It takes a lot of work,
00:17:14.320 --> 00:17:18.320
but I doubt
it'll take as much as this one.
00:17:18.480 --> 00:17:22.440
I couldn't do that.
I can barely manage River Sámi crafts.
00:17:22.600 --> 00:17:26.880
There's no way I could do
the western or Skolt handicrafts.
00:17:27.040 --> 00:17:32.440
[Heini] Every single stitch
is like a prayer to the child
00:17:33.080 --> 00:17:35.480
and also to our people.
00:17:36.800 --> 00:17:41.920
It connects us
to the past, present, and future.
00:17:57.080 --> 00:18:01.440
This is the horn hat
00:18:01.600 --> 00:18:04.240
that Theodor Schwindt brought
00:18:04.400 --> 00:18:08.240
to the National Museum's collection
in 1902.
00:18:08.400 --> 00:18:10.920
He bought it in Dalvadas.
00:18:11.640 --> 00:18:17.120
And wasn't Golle-Gáddjá
an ancestor of yours, too?
00:18:17.280 --> 00:18:19.640
-No, she isn't.
-Oh, I see.
00:18:19.800 --> 00:18:25.480
[Eeva-Kristiina] As you can see,
the maker was a very skilled artisan.
00:18:25.640 --> 00:18:30.640
But looking at the ears,
00:18:30.800 --> 00:18:36.040
we find something odd.
00:18:36.200 --> 00:18:40.520
It has been sewn rather crudely,
not as beautifully.
00:18:40.680 --> 00:18:43.680
And this is what has allowed
00:18:43.840 --> 00:18:48.000
the analysis of the stitching.
00:18:48.160 --> 00:18:52.880
It's made of the underfur of a bear,
man's hair,
00:18:53.040 --> 00:18:55.600
and grass yarn.
00:18:55.760 --> 00:18:59.120
Imagine, the woman who wore it
00:18:59.280 --> 00:19:03.520
carried the strength of a bear with her.
00:19:04.800 --> 00:19:10.200
This has been on display
in the National Museum for 97 years.
00:19:10.360 --> 00:19:15.800
All that time, it has visualised
what a Sámi woman looks like.
00:19:15.960 --> 00:19:18.800
-This hat?
-Specifically this hat.
00:19:19.880 --> 00:19:23.160
Actually, I have a feeling that...
00:19:24.920 --> 00:19:28.040
...she's here right now.
00:19:28.200 --> 00:19:32.240
Are you picking up a sort of
special feeling right now?
00:19:33.240 --> 00:19:35.440
[vibraphone music]
00:19:51.480 --> 00:19:53.480
[Suvi] Ancestors,
00:19:53.640 --> 00:19:56.560
many form a connection
through these items,
00:19:56.720 --> 00:20:00.040
reaching through generations
all the way to Sáivu.
00:20:01.680 --> 00:20:06.840
But where are you?
You, my own ancestors?
00:20:07.560 --> 00:20:10.640
Nillá Risten, Biennáš-Jovnna,
00:20:11.240 --> 00:20:16.240
Issát Sámmol,
the Rávnnás, Mággás, and Pieras.
00:20:16.400 --> 00:20:19.840
Maybe I'd feel
your presence more clearly
00:20:20.000 --> 00:20:23.280
if I could only find
some of your possessions.
00:20:33.880 --> 00:20:36.400
[Heini shouts] Can we come?
00:20:40.240 --> 00:20:42.360
Can we come?
00:20:46.760 --> 00:20:49.640
-We're coming!
-[Suvi] You saw a bear here?
00:20:49.800 --> 00:20:52.720
[Heini] Yes, on Saturday. A big one.
00:20:52.880 --> 00:20:55.320
[Suvi] Without cubs? Alright.
00:20:56.560 --> 00:21:00.880
Don't bears have some kind of
special significance to the Skolt Sámi?
00:21:01.040 --> 00:21:06.680
[Heini] Yeah, they do. A Skolt man
is to wear a bear's tooth on his belt.
00:21:06.840 --> 00:21:09.280
Everyone used to wear one.
00:21:09.440 --> 00:21:13.640
It prevents back pain,
but maybe it also has symbolism to it.
00:21:14.760 --> 00:21:16.760
Like the strength of a bear.
00:21:16.920 --> 00:21:18.960
[Suvi] Was the story that
00:21:19.120 --> 00:21:23.560
the Skolt Sámi ancestors
were a hybrid of bear and man?
00:21:23.720 --> 00:21:26.480
[Heini] Yeah, there's a story like that.
00:21:26.640 --> 00:21:29.480
-[Suvi] Bear people.
-[Heini] Right.
00:22:03.520 --> 00:22:10.080
I feel slightly conflicted
about this repatriation,
00:22:10.240 --> 00:22:14.360
as all the people around me
seem so happy,
00:22:14.520 --> 00:22:17.560
and I feel somehow that I don't...
00:22:17.720 --> 00:22:22.080
I feel like I'm an outsider
in this process.
00:22:22.240 --> 00:22:29.120
Maybe it's because I don't know
what items are my ancestors'.
00:22:29.280 --> 00:22:32.680
[Eeva-Kristiina] I'm sure some of them
are your ancestors'
00:22:32.840 --> 00:22:35.160
and your family's items,
00:22:35.320 --> 00:22:42.320
and I do know that Biennáš-Jovnna's
Sámi dress is in Gothenburg.
00:22:42.480 --> 00:22:46.720
Huh? Biennáš-Jovnna's
Sámi dress is in Gothenburg?
00:22:46.880 --> 00:22:50.600
-You're kidding me!
-They have his laces also, I think.
00:22:50.760 --> 00:22:53.120
Why would they be in Gothenburg?
00:22:53.280 --> 00:22:58.000
Well, some researcher has come and...
00:22:59.440 --> 00:23:02.360
There we go.
You're finding the connection.
00:23:02.520 --> 00:23:05.000
-Told you so.
-Yeah.
00:23:05.640 --> 00:23:08.080
I'll send you the information.
00:23:08.240 --> 00:23:10.240
[ambient music]
00:23:44.400 --> 00:23:46.320
[Suvi] Ancestors,
00:23:46.480 --> 00:23:49.640
how did being
objects of study feel like?
00:23:50.600 --> 00:23:53.520
They tested you,
00:23:53.680 --> 00:23:58.680
took your possessions,
recorded your odd customs.
00:23:59.400 --> 00:24:03.720
They said
we'd become civilised and fade away.
00:24:05.880 --> 00:24:09.400
What you went through in the past
00:24:09.560 --> 00:24:12.040
still lives on in me.
00:24:18.000 --> 00:24:24.760
[Veli-Pekka] One time I met with
foreign visitors in Oulu,
00:24:24.920 --> 00:24:28.880
and they were very interested
in Sámi culture.
00:24:29.040 --> 00:24:34.480
I was called in to tell them about it.
00:24:34.640 --> 00:24:41.560
They were excited by
a real Sámi coming in.
00:24:41.720 --> 00:24:45.600
I got hot and took off my shirt,
00:24:45.760 --> 00:24:49.880
and I was wearing
a Bart Simpson t-shirt underneath.
00:24:50.040 --> 00:24:52.120
Immediately,
00:24:52.280 --> 00:24:58.520
I saw how their idea of me
as a real Sámi crumbled,
00:24:58.680 --> 00:25:02.960
as did their interest.
00:25:04.200 --> 00:25:09.120
[Suvi] I've often experienced the same,
that you should look a certain way.
00:25:09.280 --> 00:25:11.680
That's why I haven't, for example,
00:25:11.840 --> 00:25:14.400
worn a Sámi dress
outside Sámi areas in years.
00:25:14.560 --> 00:25:17.720
People might comment on my appearance,
00:25:17.880 --> 00:25:22.280
wondering if I look Sámi enough.
00:25:22.440 --> 00:25:25.680
The background for that
is in racial research, I guess.
00:25:27.120 --> 00:25:30.800
[Veli-Pekka] It was founded on the notion
00:25:30.960 --> 00:25:37.080
that each people had
a characteristic mode of existence.
00:25:37.240 --> 00:25:44.760
For example, Sámi people
were considered wild folk,
00:25:44.920 --> 00:25:48.600
incapable of becoming civilised.
00:25:48.760 --> 00:25:54.160
A real Sámi couldn't eat
with a fork and a knife.
00:25:55.320 --> 00:25:59.520
I suppose some still think like this,
00:25:59.960 --> 00:26:05.360
that modernisation is not
within the rights of indigenous peoples,
00:26:05.520 --> 00:26:08.720
that they should remain a certain way.
00:26:34.960 --> 00:26:38.120
[Suvi] You lead me to Europe,
00:26:38.280 --> 00:26:43.720
to zoos, circuses, research centres,
00:26:44.600 --> 00:26:48.240
places that the Sámi once inhabited.
00:26:50.960 --> 00:26:55.920
Do you want me to tell
how you were seen then?
00:27:41.680 --> 00:27:43.800
[birds sing]
00:27:59.520 --> 00:28:03.280
[Clemens in English]
Shows of exoticised humans.
00:28:03.440 --> 00:28:09.000
We know that most shows attracted
a lot of people at the time.
00:28:09.160 --> 00:28:12.720
We know that one of the shows
at the end of the 1890s
00:28:12.880 --> 00:28:15.400
attracted 90,000 people a day.
00:28:15.560 --> 00:28:20.080
That clearly explains the motivation
for the zoos all over Europe.
00:28:21.120 --> 00:28:24.200
They were not free
in how they would spend their day.
00:28:24.360 --> 00:28:29.880
It was expected that
they show "their natural life".
00:28:30.040 --> 00:28:34.840
It was highly staged.
It followed a certain dramatic setting.
00:28:35.000 --> 00:28:40.160
So there would be seal hunting
with the Inuit groups, for example.
00:28:40.320 --> 00:28:45.040
And the Sámi would probably be expected
00:28:45.200 --> 00:28:49.560
to deal with the reindeer
that accompanied the group.
00:28:51.240 --> 00:28:56.960
They would build
a hut, a yurt, a tent every day
00:28:57.120 --> 00:28:59.920
in a certain dramatic setting.
00:29:01.080 --> 00:29:03.680
[Suvi] It's like so...
00:29:03.840 --> 00:29:06.920
...unauthentic. [laughs]
00:29:07.680 --> 00:29:11.440
[Clemens] None of the impresarios
who brought them over
00:29:11.600 --> 00:29:14.520
were aiming for authenticity.
00:29:14.680 --> 00:29:18.040
It was in order to recreate images,
00:29:18.200 --> 00:29:23.560
which already probably were present
in the minds of the zoo visitors.
00:29:23.720 --> 00:29:28.400
It was never meant to destroy stereotypes
but to enhance them.
00:29:28.560 --> 00:29:31.720
Here you can see the audience.
00:29:31.880 --> 00:29:38.440
It's an interesting image,
as it shows how they were stared at.
00:29:39.920 --> 00:29:44.560
They are not just sitting in a café.
It looks like part of the show.
00:29:44.720 --> 00:29:49.560
Going out to the Kurfürstendamm
and having a coffee there is like,
00:29:49.720 --> 00:29:54.040
"come to the zoo
and watch more of these guys".
00:29:58.160 --> 00:30:00.760
[Suvi] I don't know
what to think about it.
00:30:00.920 --> 00:30:05.680
It's weird, because I've been dealing
with questions of representation
00:30:05.840 --> 00:30:08.520
and otherness so much.
00:30:09.120 --> 00:30:12.640
I thought I was done thinking about this
00:30:12.800 --> 00:30:15.200
and done with these feelings.
00:30:15.360 --> 00:30:18.080
But they are so striking for me.
00:30:18.240 --> 00:30:23.200
The times of exoticism and human zoos
are definitely not over.
00:30:23.360 --> 00:30:26.600
This still has a huge modern-day effect.
00:30:26.760 --> 00:30:30.680
This is the way how the Sámi are portrayed
00:30:30.840 --> 00:30:37.240
not only in 1887 and 1952.
00:30:37.400 --> 00:30:40.560
In many places this is still
00:30:40.720 --> 00:30:46.800
a regular image of Sámi people
in the museums of the world.
00:30:46.960 --> 00:30:50.600
And it means that we,
who are living our lives,
00:30:50.760 --> 00:30:55.160
are not seen Sámi enough,
like authentic enough.
00:30:55.640 --> 00:30:57.720
[ambient music]
00:31:39.600 --> 00:31:43.680
-[in English] How is the position
of the head rest? -It's good.
00:32:24.920 --> 00:32:29.000
MUSEUM OF EUROPEAN CULTURES
BERLIN, GERMANY
00:32:49.400 --> 00:32:53.920
-[Suvi in English] Okay...
-Here's our Sámi collection.
00:32:54.080 --> 00:32:56.360
These three cupboards.
00:32:57.680 --> 00:33:01.080
And over there, around the corner,
00:33:01.240 --> 00:33:05.640
we have a special cupboard for Sámi hats.
00:33:05.800 --> 00:33:09.400
-[Suvi] How many items?
-[woman] Altogether 1,600.
00:33:09.880 --> 00:33:12.760
And 1,000 pictures.
00:33:13.840 --> 00:33:17.880
-This dress is from our...
-Area?
00:33:18.040 --> 00:33:22.560
[Suvi] That is exactly my area's hat.
00:33:23.880 --> 00:33:26.440
That's food, right?
00:33:26.600 --> 00:33:29.200
-Dried food.
-Food?
00:33:32.960 --> 00:33:36.640
-[woman] For a boy.
-I think this is the back.
00:33:36.800 --> 00:33:39.920
Ah, so it's the wrong way around.
00:33:42.040 --> 00:33:44.040
Yeah, you're right.
00:33:44.520 --> 00:33:49.960
-It's said that the colour red
is usual for girls. -Yes.
00:34:14.000 --> 00:34:16.000
Excuse me...
00:34:16.840 --> 00:34:20.000
What if we don't...
Maybe I don't need to see this.
00:34:20.160 --> 00:34:25.320
-This is not from my area at all.
-But this is "the original one".
00:34:25.480 --> 00:34:30.760
I know it's the original,
but maybe I'm not the right person to...
00:34:31.160 --> 00:34:35.320
I will ask the cinematographer
one question.
00:34:35.480 --> 00:34:38.040
[in Finnish] Anssi, what do you think?
00:34:38.200 --> 00:34:45.400
This second drum,
which is an original, certainly genuine...
00:34:45.560 --> 00:34:52.400
Should I take a look at it
now that I'm here or not,
00:34:52.560 --> 00:34:56.360
since it's not from my home region?
00:34:56.520 --> 00:35:00.960
It's from the Swedish side of Sápmi,
which is kind of outside my culture,
00:35:01.120 --> 00:35:03.080
so maybe I...
00:35:03.240 --> 00:35:06.600
We were supposed to look at it,
00:35:06.760 --> 00:35:12.280
but I'm not sure if it's something for me
to look at. What do you think?
00:35:12.440 --> 00:35:17.600
[Anssi] If that's how you feel,
I don't think we need to see it. -Right?
00:35:17.760 --> 00:35:19.800
[ambient music]
00:35:43.080 --> 00:35:48.000
II
SACRED DRUMS
00:35:59.800 --> 00:36:02.240
-[music stops]
-[birds sing]
00:36:16.800 --> 00:36:21.640
[Suvi] I think it's interesting that,
for other native peoples,
00:36:21.800 --> 00:36:25.000
repatriation refers to sacred artefacts.
00:36:25.160 --> 00:36:28.320
Sacred, like our drums are for us.
00:36:28.960 --> 00:36:32.400
Or the return of human remains.
00:36:32.560 --> 00:36:36.320
Yet, we are so tied to everyday articles.
00:36:36.480 --> 00:36:43.200
I see it at as a feature of Nordic,
or maybe Sámi, repatriation.
00:36:43.360 --> 00:36:49.000
For us, it's about cups,
Sámi dresses, and laces,
00:36:49.160 --> 00:36:52.520
and not so much about ancestors
00:36:53.720 --> 00:36:57.200
or spiritual heritage.
00:36:57.360 --> 00:37:03.120
Then again, it's good that
we get to practise repatriation
00:37:03.280 --> 00:37:09.640
with things that don't involve
as much trauma or feelings of loss.
00:37:09.800 --> 00:37:11.920
[ambient music]
00:37:21.240 --> 00:37:26.040
[Suvi] You take me to deeper
and darker waters.
00:37:27.200 --> 00:37:31.680
Where our drums play
the music of melancholy.
00:37:36.920 --> 00:37:39.760
VARDØ, SÁPMI
00:38:00.120 --> 00:38:02.240
[child yells]
00:38:03.920 --> 00:38:06.280
Uh-oh.
00:38:07.520 --> 00:38:11.560
[wails] Mum, my dress.
00:38:11.720 --> 00:38:14.000
My dress got wet!
00:38:14.520 --> 00:38:17.040
[Suvi] Right on the Elsa dress.
00:38:17.920 --> 00:38:20.800
Try not to spill it...
00:38:23.880 --> 00:38:25.760
There.
00:38:32.560 --> 00:38:35.600
[Suvi] Poala-Ánde, Anders Poulsen.
00:38:36.360 --> 00:38:40.800
Brought before the court in Vadsø
00:38:40.960 --> 00:38:43.680
on 9 February 1692.
00:38:44.560 --> 00:38:48.760
Accused of using a rune drum
and practising witchcraft.
00:38:49.440 --> 00:38:55.080
Confessed that his mother had taught him
the wisdom of the drum.
00:38:56.400 --> 00:38:59.760
That he had crafted the drum himself.
00:38:59.920 --> 00:39:04.240
That he knew the meaning
of every symbol.
00:39:04.400 --> 00:39:08.960
That he had not cursed
the Heavenly Father or Christianity.
00:39:10.840 --> 00:39:14.760
Confessed that he had learned
to use the drum
00:39:14.920 --> 00:39:18.720
to understand how distant people lived,
00:39:18.880 --> 00:39:22.240
to predict the fortunes of travellers,
00:39:22.400 --> 00:39:29.040
to help people in need,
and do other good deeds.
00:39:34.560 --> 00:39:36.640
STEILNESET MEMORIAL
00:39:36.800 --> 00:39:39.800
COMMEMORATING 91 PEOPLE
BURNED FOR WITCHCRAFT
00:39:39.960 --> 00:39:42.360
VARDØ, SÁPMI
00:39:52.280 --> 00:39:57.680
[Suvi] Killed in his cell with an axe
while awaiting execution.
00:40:05.320 --> 00:40:07.640
[fire burns loudly]
00:40:34.960 --> 00:40:37.040
[peaceful music]
00:40:37.200 --> 00:40:41.840
Ancestors,
the drums appear in my dreams.
00:40:43.360 --> 00:40:48.360
How to talk about something
that is hidden from outsiders
00:40:48.520 --> 00:40:51.160
but so very sacred for us?
00:40:53.000 --> 00:40:55.120
How to explain
00:40:55.280 --> 00:40:59.120
that the drums have allowed us
to navigate through life?
00:40:59.280 --> 00:41:05.640
That they are personal and
shouldn't be handled by just anyone.
00:41:08.680 --> 00:41:12.520
RDM - SÁMI ARTEFACT COLLECTION
KARASJOK, SÁPMI
00:41:18.600 --> 00:41:24.320
[Jelena] When we started our work,
I learned from the elders
00:41:24.480 --> 00:41:27.920
that they talk with the drums.
00:41:28.640 --> 00:41:34.360
They ask for permission to visit
and say thank you afterwards.
00:41:34.520 --> 00:41:38.680
They say: "Thank you
for allowing me to see you."
00:41:38.840 --> 00:41:42.280
In a way,
it's like talking to a human being.
00:41:44.160 --> 00:41:49.520
[Suvi] I don't know.
Now that I'm working on this story,
00:41:49.680 --> 00:41:53.880
I don't know how it will turn out
or where it will take me.
00:41:54.040 --> 00:41:58.000
Often I'm completely...
It's out of my control.
00:41:58.720 --> 00:42:05.400
Stories, people, and artefacts lead me,
and I simply follow.
00:42:06.400 --> 00:42:11.880
Now I've began to feel
that the ancestors are with me.
00:42:12.040 --> 00:42:17.640
I wonder about the connection
between the drums and ancestors.
00:42:19.920 --> 00:42:23.280
Do you have any answers for me?
00:42:25.040 --> 00:42:27.840
I wish I had the right answer,
00:42:28.000 --> 00:42:32.800
but when it comes to this, I think...
00:42:33.600 --> 00:42:38.400
See, our drums have always served as ties
00:42:38.560 --> 00:42:42.480
between the living and the ancestors.
00:42:42.640 --> 00:42:46.760
The most precious value
00:42:46.920 --> 00:42:50.040
is to know your family
and where you belong.
00:42:50.200 --> 00:42:54.960
Without that knowledge, you have no roots.
00:42:55.960 --> 00:43:01.080
Society can't function either
if it's unaware of its roots.
00:43:01.240 --> 00:43:04.520
So, the drums' connection to the ancestors
00:43:04.680 --> 00:43:09.120
is our entire people's connection
to our ancestors.
00:43:10.520 --> 00:43:12.520
[monotone music]
00:43:25.080 --> 00:43:28.120
[Suvi] How many drums
even are there, 60?
00:43:28.280 --> 00:43:31.200
[Eeva-Kristiina] I think there are 71.
00:43:31.800 --> 00:43:35.680
In Rome, Berlin, Leipzig,
00:43:35.840 --> 00:43:40.000
Meiningen, Munich, London.
00:43:41.440 --> 00:43:44.480
You see, it was a very expensive item
00:43:44.640 --> 00:43:48.400
back then in the 1600s.
00:43:48.560 --> 00:43:53.960
Every prince and great lord wanted one
00:43:54.120 --> 00:43:57.440
for their cabinet of curiosities.
00:43:58.320 --> 00:44:02.680
[Suvi] Yes, and only four of them
are in Sámi museums.
00:44:08.640 --> 00:44:12.720
[Jelena] We must reclaim the drums.
00:44:12.880 --> 00:44:17.280
Back to our people,
so we can tell their stories.
00:44:17.440 --> 00:44:21.840
So, in one way, we can mend the wounds
00:44:22.000 --> 00:44:25.400
that our people have suffered.
00:44:28.480 --> 00:44:33.360
[Áile] The drums are important
because they represent
00:44:33.520 --> 00:44:37.800
the starting point of
the eradication of our culture.
00:44:39.720 --> 00:44:42.760
You have to remember
that the drums are objects
00:44:42.920 --> 00:44:45.120
that someone has died for.
00:44:45.280 --> 00:44:51.440
An object stolen from someone
because of their faith.
00:44:54.240 --> 00:44:59.560
It's completely different from taking
something mundane, like a shoe.
00:45:17.560 --> 00:45:20.800
[Suvi] Is it rolling?
[Anssi] It's rolling.
00:45:22.480 --> 00:45:25.480
[Suvi] This is specifically
our region's drum,
00:45:25.640 --> 00:45:29.640
and yet, it's only on loan
here in Inari from Stockholm.
00:45:29.800 --> 00:45:33.080
The museum in Stockholm
still decides its fate.
00:45:34.640 --> 00:45:39.440
But I have a very strong feeling
00:45:39.600 --> 00:45:42.640
that I'm allowed to
see the drum and meet it.
00:45:42.800 --> 00:45:47.040
Because it is our region's drum,
and I even dreamed of it.
00:45:50.000 --> 00:45:53.040
Concerning the filming of the drum...
00:45:53.200 --> 00:45:56.440
I'm still not sure
whether we can film it or not.
00:45:56.600 --> 00:46:00.880
That's also up to you, Anssi.
00:46:01.040 --> 00:46:05.080
You have to examine your feelings
about filming the drum.
00:46:05.240 --> 00:46:08.680
[Anssi] I should probably avoid
filming it directly.
00:46:08.840 --> 00:46:11.920
At least the front of it.
00:46:12.640 --> 00:46:17.280
The drum and its symbols
00:46:17.440 --> 00:46:23.320
were used quite differently back then.
00:46:25.440 --> 00:46:29.400
-I don't think it's necessary to show it.
-[Suvi] Okay.
00:46:36.480 --> 00:46:41.000
-Shall we head over there?
Oh, it's here? -Yes, over here.
00:46:41.160 --> 00:46:45.840
-We'll move it from here to there.
-Oh, you move it? I see.
00:46:47.000 --> 00:46:49.280
It's in here.
00:46:50.560 --> 00:46:52.520
[ambient music]
00:47:49.080 --> 00:47:50.880
[silence]
00:48:03.880 --> 00:48:06.120
[heavy door bangs shut]
00:48:06.920 --> 00:48:09.320
[Suvi] You were allowed to touch it?
00:48:09.480 --> 00:48:13.200
[Áile] I got to see it for the first time
outside the display case.
00:48:13.360 --> 00:48:18.120
I held it in my hands,
and I had a tremendous expectation
00:48:18.280 --> 00:48:22.640
that this experience will change my life.
00:48:24.440 --> 00:48:28.720
And perhaps it did,
for the artefact was truly dead.
00:48:28.880 --> 00:48:33.520
I felt no connection to it.
00:48:35.400 --> 00:48:40.640
It was a great experience to see
that it isn't suffering a great deal,
00:48:40.800 --> 00:48:45.200
that it has found its own peace
in the state that it's in.
00:48:54.320 --> 00:48:56.320
[ominous sounds]
00:48:58.320 --> 00:49:04.600
III
ANCESTORS
00:49:04.760 --> 00:49:06.880
[peaceful music]
00:49:12.640 --> 00:49:14.640
[Suvi] Ancestors,
00:49:14.800 --> 00:49:20.800
you who are in Sáivu,
and you who have been taken from us.
00:49:21.880 --> 00:49:26.440
How did it feel when outsiders
were digging up our graves?
00:49:28.320 --> 00:49:34.520
They placed the skulls and bones
into black sacks and disappeared.
00:49:35.560 --> 00:49:40.880
Left behind open graves
and unprocessed sorrows.
00:49:46.640 --> 00:49:49.840
[Áile] I'm sure we'll find
the Moor of the Dead.
00:49:50.000 --> 00:49:54.520
[Suvi] Your ancestors are buried there.
Maybe mine, too.
00:50:01.000 --> 00:50:03.720
-Hello!
-Hello, hello!
00:50:03.880 --> 00:50:06.880
[Suvi] I reserved a room for today.
00:50:07.480 --> 00:50:09.840
-Okay, I found it.
-Yeah.
00:50:10.400 --> 00:50:15.280
Áile and I are looking for
the Moor of the Dead.
00:50:15.440 --> 00:50:20.200
[man] It's over there, past the cabins.
00:50:20.360 --> 00:50:23.920
But the old burial site
is right next to here.
00:50:24.560 --> 00:50:31.960
-[Suvi] So, the old burial site is
on the other side of the car park? -Yes.
00:50:32.120 --> 00:50:38.520
-And that's where people were
dug up for research? -Yes.
00:50:39.360 --> 00:50:41.400
[ambient music]
00:50:47.920 --> 00:50:50.760
[Suvi] Would this land be different
00:50:50.920 --> 00:50:55.120
if our people had been allowed
to remain in their graves?
00:50:58.720 --> 00:51:02.680
Ancestors, did you know then
00:51:02.840 --> 00:51:06.440
that graves were being disturbed
all over Sápmi
00:51:06.600 --> 00:51:10.920
for centuries in the name of research?
00:51:30.760 --> 00:51:34.040
-[Áile] That could be one.
-[Suvi] And look, there's one.
00:51:34.200 --> 00:51:36.800
-[Áile] Here's one, too.
-[Suvi] A grave.
00:51:36.960 --> 00:51:41.240
-[Áile] And over there.
-[Suvi] This one has clearly been dug up.
00:51:41.400 --> 00:51:45.200
[Áile] That could be one,
or it could be two, side by side.
00:51:45.360 --> 00:51:48.920
-[Áile] Also back there...
-[Suvi] There's one, too.
00:51:49.080 --> 00:51:53.240
-[Suvi] And here. How horrible.
-[Áile] Several over there.
00:51:54.320 --> 00:51:56.800
Okay, this is very clear.
00:51:58.040 --> 00:52:00.480
There, and also here.
00:52:05.520 --> 00:52:09.840
Do you know what they were looking for?
Only adults?
00:52:10.000 --> 00:52:13.760
I doubt they knew much about
the remnants they found back then.
00:52:13.920 --> 00:52:17.520
Although these graves were fairly new
00:52:17.680 --> 00:52:20.080
when they were excavated.
00:52:20.240 --> 00:52:25.280
I don't think there were any markers,
or anything like that.
00:52:25.440 --> 00:52:28.680
Most likely,
they opened the graves randomly
00:52:28.840 --> 00:52:32.160
and only then saw what they had found.
00:52:34.000 --> 00:52:38.840
[Suvi] And now they'll be buried in Siida?
[Áile] Possibly, yes.
00:52:39.000 --> 00:52:43.280
The information is so scattered
that they can't be entirely sure
00:52:43.440 --> 00:52:46.240
whether the remains are exactly from here.
00:52:46.400 --> 00:52:51.680
[Suvi] It's crazy to think that,
suddenly, this kind of...
00:52:51.840 --> 00:52:55.720
-[Áile] Whoa, I stepped in one.
-[Suvi] ...graveyard was found.
00:52:57.080 --> 00:53:00.720
-[Áile] Quite a sad place.
-[Suvi] You said it.
00:53:59.000 --> 00:54:01.240
[oppressive music]
00:55:25.520 --> 00:55:27.440
[silence]
00:55:29.240 --> 00:55:32.720
[Juhan]
It's been clear to me since childhood.
00:55:32.880 --> 00:55:36.720
Whenever we played or visited there,
00:55:36.880 --> 00:55:40.720
my mother, my uncle, and the elders
would always bark at us,
00:55:40.880 --> 00:55:44.040
telling us not to jump around.
00:55:44.200 --> 00:55:47.400
Because our ancestors are resting there.
00:55:48.200 --> 00:55:51.920
[Suvi] Why were the skulls taken?
Any information on that?
00:55:52.080 --> 00:55:57.680
[Juhan] As I understand it, they were
taken to Stockholm or somewhere,
00:55:57.840 --> 00:56:02.160
where people studied
whether we were men or monkeys.
00:56:05.040 --> 00:56:09.320
I've been thinking a lot
about what it meant.
00:56:09.480 --> 00:56:13.240
Have you heard about the time
when the people came,
00:56:13.400 --> 00:56:18.200
the ones who converted us
to Christianity, priests and so on,
00:56:18.360 --> 00:56:24.320
how it was easy for the Sámi people
to accept new gods, or a new God?
00:56:24.480 --> 00:56:28.120
Accepting God was not the difficult part.
00:56:28.280 --> 00:56:32.880
But it was difficult to abandon
the connection to the ancestors.
00:56:33.040 --> 00:56:39.480
The priests saw
communication with spirits as sinful.
00:56:39.640 --> 00:56:43.680
I've often thought about how Christianity
00:56:43.840 --> 00:56:48.360
and traditional spiritual practices
go hand in hand here.
00:56:48.520 --> 00:56:52.520
Quite firmly, at least in my own life.
00:56:53.640 --> 00:56:57.800
My mother was rather special
00:56:57.960 --> 00:57:01.600
in that she had dreams
and often talked about them.
00:57:02.040 --> 00:57:08.160
I've had these experiences
since my childhood.
00:57:12.640 --> 00:57:17.680
I'm sure many people have,
but they don't dare talk about it.
00:57:17.840 --> 00:57:20.680
Many fear that they will be discriminated
00:57:20.840 --> 00:57:23.840
and mocked because of that.
00:57:51.960 --> 00:57:55.960
[Suvi] Ancestors, can you hear me?
00:58:01.480 --> 00:58:03.560
As you probably know,
00:58:03.720 --> 00:58:08.800
some of our people's skulls
have been returned to Siida.
00:58:08.960 --> 00:58:12.520
Soon, they will be returned
to the earth.
00:58:15.920 --> 00:58:19.560
But how can we bury the grief and fear?
00:58:22.160 --> 00:58:24.640
How can we forgive?
00:58:31.160 --> 00:58:34.160
[Áile] I've been their neighbour
for a long time.
00:58:34.320 --> 00:58:38.120
I used to work for a long time
in the room next to them.
00:58:38.280 --> 00:58:40.520
They were next to my office.
00:58:40.680 --> 00:58:44.640
Why were there skulls in the other room?
What was that about?
00:58:44.800 --> 00:58:48.720
When I started working in Siida,
I was just told:
00:58:48.880 --> 00:58:54.400
"Here's a room with old Sámi skulls."
00:58:54.560 --> 00:58:58.120
That they were
the property of Helsinki University,
00:58:58.280 --> 00:59:02.760
and study permits for them were granted
by Siida and the Sámi Parliament.
00:59:02.920 --> 00:59:05.480
We wouldn't be admitting
study permits for them,
00:59:05.640 --> 00:59:09.640
and looking after them was
one of my responsibilities.
00:59:09.800 --> 00:59:15.040
I had no idea you had
such a strong connection to them.
00:59:15.200 --> 00:59:20.760
Yeah, and I've also felt deep guilt
00:59:20.920 --> 00:59:25.040
over my role in enabling this.
00:59:25.200 --> 00:59:28.000
Why didn't I say that it wasn't right?
00:59:28.160 --> 00:59:31.200
Why wasn't I the one to tell everyone
00:59:31.360 --> 00:59:33.920
that I don't approve of them being there?
00:59:34.080 --> 00:59:39.240
So, I've played a part in it and,
of course, that is my cross to bear.
00:59:39.400 --> 00:59:41.760
That's my mistake.
00:59:41.920 --> 00:59:44.960
But I also try to be merciful to myself.
00:59:45.120 --> 00:59:49.400
I didn't have the strength,
the knowledge, the resources,
00:59:49.560 --> 00:59:52.800
nor the status to correct it.
00:59:52.960 --> 00:59:57.080
Still, this is what
I've been apologising for,
00:59:57.240 --> 01:00:02.400
for not being able,
for not having the strength.
01:00:03.760 --> 01:00:07.480
I'm thankful
you were the one with the skulls.
01:00:07.640 --> 01:00:11.160
Did you ever go and comfort the ancestors?
01:00:12.040 --> 01:00:13.920
Yeah, I did.
01:00:14.080 --> 01:00:20.200
It's true, I did,
but I also got strength from them.
01:00:20.920 --> 01:00:25.040
When I was going through rough times,
01:00:25.200 --> 01:00:28.640
the awareness that they were there...
01:00:28.800 --> 01:00:32.440
It is wrong to say that they comforted me,
01:00:32.600 --> 01:00:38.720
or that it was good for me
that they were there, but I felt like...
01:00:39.360 --> 01:00:42.520
Yes, they were my ancestors.
01:00:43.240 --> 01:00:48.480
It's difficult to say who comforted whom,
01:00:48.640 --> 01:00:53.400
but somehow the feeling
that we were together in that situation
01:00:53.560 --> 01:00:55.640
gave me strength.
01:01:15.800 --> 01:01:17.880
[singing]
01:01:54.480 --> 01:01:58.840
[woman] The events of those days
wounded the Sámi people,
01:01:59.000 --> 01:02:01.800
and the pain still lingers.
01:02:01.960 --> 01:02:04.280
We hope and pray
01:02:04.440 --> 01:02:08.240
that this day would, for its small part,
01:02:08.400 --> 01:02:13.080
serve to heal those wounds
and ease the pain.
01:02:13.880 --> 01:02:18.000
[priest] The excavation of
deceased Sámi folk from their graves
01:02:18.160 --> 01:02:20.560
for research purposes
01:02:20.720 --> 01:02:25.840
reflected the values and attitudes
of the scientific community at the time,
01:02:26.000 --> 01:02:29.760
as well as society at large,
and the Church.
01:02:30.800 --> 01:02:34.320
I would like to
unequivocally express regret
01:02:34.480 --> 01:02:38.640
over the fact that the Church allowed
01:02:38.800 --> 01:02:42.640
the scientific community
to open the graves.
01:02:57.200 --> 01:03:04.320
[singing] ♪ ...and be your protector ♪
01:03:05.200 --> 01:03:12.720
♪ Let Him wash your tears away ♪
01:03:13.800 --> 01:03:21.160
♪ And bring joy to your heart ♪
01:03:22.040 --> 01:03:29.800
♪ May He carry your sorrows ♪
01:03:30.560 --> 01:03:38.600
♪ And give you what you need ♪
01:03:59.040 --> 01:04:01.680
ON 8 AUGUST 2022,
01:04:01.840 --> 01:04:05.600
68 DECEASED SÁMI PEOPLE
WERE REBURIED HERE.
01:04:05.760 --> 01:04:07.840
[peaceful music]
01:04:20.760 --> 01:04:23.960
SÁMI MUSEUM SIIDA'S
NEW EXHIBITION SITE, INARI
01:04:47.720 --> 01:04:51.360
[Suvi] You, old artefacts, will be
the centrepiece of an exhibition.
01:04:51.520 --> 01:04:53.560
Could you have believed
01:04:53.720 --> 01:04:59.000
that our heritage is finally
on display to and for us?
01:05:02.680 --> 01:05:06.520
[Heini] I'd say they are not ours.
Maybe they were sewn for someone else.
01:05:06.680 --> 01:05:09.960
Considering the size.
01:05:10.120 --> 01:05:14.880
Yeah...
What do you mean, for someone else?
01:05:15.040 --> 01:05:19.080
For like a Finn?
As a present or something.
01:05:57.520 --> 01:05:59.840
GOTHENBURG, SWEDEN
01:06:04.440 --> 01:06:08.240
[Suvi] Biennáš-Jovnna.
My great grandfather.
01:06:09.040 --> 01:06:14.120
You, who visited my dreams,
telling me how to make movies.
01:06:15.440 --> 01:06:20.560
You must be laughing in Sáivu
at my scrambling, as I travel abroad
01:06:20.720 --> 01:06:24.800
only to see your children's old things.
01:06:48.000 --> 01:06:51.080
[in English] Oh my god, they're cute.
01:06:54.440 --> 01:06:57.240
Yes, like a small, small child.
01:06:59.440 --> 01:07:01.520
A baby girl.
01:07:21.400 --> 01:07:23.960
[Suvi] So others can see, too.
01:07:33.040 --> 01:07:36.600
Anssi, what do you think?
01:07:36.760 --> 01:07:39.720
What comes to mind?
01:07:49.840 --> 01:07:54.160
[Anssi] Our children could've worn these
when they were small.
01:07:54.320 --> 01:07:56.240
[Suvi] Yeah.
01:08:28.440 --> 01:08:30.800
Biennáš-Jovnna is here.
01:08:38.960 --> 01:08:41.280
He's here. With us.
01:08:44.800 --> 01:08:47.000
[piano music]
01:09:16.480 --> 01:09:19.440
[man laughing and speaking indistinctly]
01:10:03.680 --> 01:10:06.080
[woman] One minute to go.
01:10:15.000 --> 01:10:17.520
I guess we'll go first.
01:10:17.680 --> 01:10:21.240
-Welcome.
-Thank you.
01:10:25.880 --> 01:10:29.000
-[applause]
-[piano music continues]
01:10:37.880 --> 01:10:40.920
SÁMI MUSEUM SIIDA'S
NEW EXHIBITION OPENING
01:10:41.080 --> 01:10:43.600
INARI, SÁPMI
01:11:11.400 --> 01:11:14.360
The design is not from around here.
01:11:15.560 --> 01:11:20.600
[woman] I don't know of any other items
my ancestors made.
01:11:22.120 --> 01:11:25.840
That's a lot more than many others have.
01:11:49.080 --> 01:11:52.920
[Suvi] Ancestors, are you here?
01:11:56.960 --> 01:12:01.760
Is this the story you wanted me to tell?
01:12:33.520 --> 01:12:40.800
Museums around the world still hold onto
about 50,000 Sámi artefacts.
01:12:41.840 --> 01:12:45.920
Most of the Sámi drums were destroyed
in the 17th and 18th centuries.
01:12:46.080 --> 01:12:50.520
71 drums remain, of which only four
are kept by Sámi museums.
01:12:51.960 --> 01:12:56.120
Thousands of Sámi ancestors still lie
in research institutions around the world.
01:12:56.280 --> 01:12:59.800
The skeletons and skulls
were sought-after merchandise,
01:12:59.960 --> 01:13:02.960
in the era of racial research,
for example,
01:13:03.120 --> 01:13:07.000
when scientists strove to prove
that the Sámi were a lesser race.
01:15:48.320 --> 01:15:51.000
Translation:
Arttu Pasanen & Aleksi Mörttinen
01:15:51.160 --> 01:15:53.520
Captions: Maarit Tulkki
Saga Vera