Gustav Niederlein grew up in Germany, but later emigrated to Argentina and was a strong proponent of colonialism: he advocated German settlement in Argentina, participated in the “Conquest of the Desert“campaign (1870-1884) that destroyed indigenous cultures in Patagonia to make their land available for white settlers, and advertised Argentina’s suitability for settlement as a curator of the Argentinean expositions in the World Fairs of 1889 and 1993. This made him a sought after expert who was hired as an advisor and contributor, among others by
William P. Wilson’s Commercial Museum in Philadelphia and the French colonial museum in Paris. From 1894 onward he was in contact with Count von Linden, the founder of the Linden-Museum, who was interested in acquiring objects from Niederlein. After the American conquest of the Philippines, the US government commissioned Niederlein and Wilson to create a Philippine exposition for the 1904 World Fair that would provide a justification for the American “civilizing mission” there. Niederlein did this by displaying members of indigenous groups in a human zoo. Among them were also Cordillerans who had to perform “headhunting” dances and “savage rituals” for the visitors. Later, Niederlein sent some of their objects to Count von Linden, hoping that von Linden would recommend him for an order of merit from the King of Württemberg.
Text: Dr. Georg Noack