Contested histories VIP preview and curator talks

The VIP preview of Contested Histories enabled the curators to share more of their research with Museum donors and supporters about both the Iliffe archive itself, and the aims and significance of the exhibition. The archive comprises notebooks, diaries, newspaper clippings, correspondence, personal papers, ephemera and 500+ photographs documenting Iliffe’s time in Palestine during the British Mandate.  Dr McWilliam explored the background to the British Mandate and some of the lasting effects it still has in present day Israel and the Palestinian territories, and discussed why it was important in the exhibition to challenge visitors to think more deeply about the practice of recording ‘history’.  Mr Donaldson discussed both how the archive came to UQ and the richness of the archive.