For millennia, the histories of people have been passed on, first, through oral, and then, written tradition. Beginning as early as the 18th century BCE, scribes in the city of Nippur made copies of tablets in Old Akkadian. The content of these tablets had originally been transcribed from ancient monuments that date to the 24th and 22nd century BCE. These monuments had been on display at Ekur, the name of the temple dedicated to the god Enlil. Furthermore, it must be noted that writing was not readily available to all social classes but reserved for the elite. Thus, the preservation of ancient texts represents the preservation of a specific class of people.
Similar examples of the power is exemplified through the a display of monuments inside temple buildings. Kings often raided, ransacked, and edited the standing monuments of the nations they subdued. One of the earliest accounts of this dates to the 13th-century BCE when the Elamite King, Suturck-Nahhunte, laid siege on Sippar. King Suturck-Nahhunte added inscriptions to standing monuments--an example of some of the first museum labels--and returned to his residence with stolen documents about land grants and the Laws of Hammurabi, as well as the Victory Stela of the Old Akkadian King Naran-Sin. The Elamite King then placed the Victory Stela of Narran-Sin on display in his city of Susa where it remained until the Persian Empire, (6-4th century BCE). Thus, the concept of preserving a history, editing it to authenticate one's power, and then displaying it publicly or inside an institutionalized building, such as a temple, pre-dates the “modern-day museum.”
Archeology also pre-dates the modern era and existed throughout ancient Mesopotamia. However, it is the last king of Babylon, Nabonidus (556-539 BCE), who is referred to as “the archeologist on the throne.” His reign provided the most amount of archeological excavations than any other period. Nabonidus placed an emphasis on the excavation of the city of Ur because it belonged to the god Nanna-Sin. His excavations revealed the stelae of Nebuchadnezzar I and ancient tablets that reference the ancient practice of high priestess, an office that flourished between the 3rd and early 2nd millennium. Nabonidus was inspired to reinstitute the practice, appointing his daughter as the new high priestess. He also ordered the restoration of the original residence of the high priestess in Egipar. His daughter oversaw the temple and sacred artifacts that were replaced within it--acting somewhat like a modern-day curator. Nabonidus’s excavations exemplify how he used the past to authenticate his identity because he adopted the identity of ancient kingship. He appointed his daughter into an ancient position that held power thousands of years ago and displayed ancient artifacts inside the temple. This preservation expresses the the artifact's importance, which was to assert his lineage and power through it.
In “What is a Museum?” E.P. and M. Alexander trace the origin of museums to classical Greece, though as stated the practice already existed in ancient Mesopotamia. The Greek word mouseion derives from the Muses: the nine goddesses who oversaw the well-being of the Greek epic, music, love poetry, oratory, history, tragedy, comedy, dance, and astronomy. Art forms that represented what is meant to be Greek, art forms of power. All of which were watched over from within a temple, an institutionalized building.
In the classical era, the Mouseion of the Alexandria displayed statues of thinkers, astronomical and surgical instruments, elephant trunks, animal hides, and included a botanical garden and zoological park, as well as a university or philosophical academy. Both the museum and famous international library of Alexandria were located in the royal quarter of Alexandria, intending to provoke thought among scholars such as Archimedes (a Greek mathematician, physicist, engineer, inventor, and astronomer), Appolonus of Perga (a Greek geometer and astronomer), and Eratosethenes (a Greek mathematician, geographer, poet, astronomer, and music theorist). The state supported the concept of the museum, intended for scholars to steward and advance understanding of the world around them. Scholarship was a focal point for Greek identity, expressed through the artifacts and texts inside these museums, which were still reserved for the upper echelon.
In the 5th century CE, Greeks displayed paintings in the Acropolis at Athens, which was an extension to the broader public. Later, the Romans displayed their booty from conquests such as paintings and sculptures in public gardens, temples, theaters, and baths. However, the Romans still had private collections that were displayed in the homes of generals, statesmen, and patricians, and even the public collections were not accessible to all. Access to public and private viewing was still very much dependent upon one’s social standing.
In the 16th century, as these institutions began to take on the more familiar form of the “modern-day museum,” Italian words galleria and gabinetto (gallery and cabinet) were introduced into the vocabulary of the modernized museum. Galleries tended to display paintings and sculptures while cabinets were filled with stuffed animals, botanical rarities, and small artifacts. These museums were still reserved for a private audience.
J. Mordant Crook, who studied the history of the British Museum, attributes “the modern-day museum” as a product of Renaissance humanism, 18th century CE enlightenment, and 19th century CE democracy. The humanist is interested in the classical past, the enlightened in scientific advancement, and democratic in the inclusion of more people. This combination led to the "modern-day museum," a more public viewing of artifacts.
The 18th century was governed by research of the natural laws. Scholars began to preserve natural specimens, works of art, and scientific inventions with the belief that education on these topics would not only lead to improvements in technology but to the perfection of humankind. In 1753, The British Museum opened and devoted itself to natural science. Shortly after the British Museum opened, the Louvre was designated as the “Museum of the Republic” of France. Artifacts from Napoleon’s conquests, such as to Egypt, were displayed to create a sense of nationalism and identity for France. At the time, European nations were competing against one another for technology and resources as they began to colonize Africa and Asia. European nations began to excavate in the ancient Near East and presented a history of their nation that was linked to powerful empires of the ancient world. Similarly, in how kings in ancient Mesopotamia connected their lineage to the past.
In the 18th century, private collections were assembled in the colonies of the United States. At the turn of the 19th century, these collections became public institutions as a way to ensure a depth of nationalism in the newly formed country. At this time, museums such as the Smithsonian Institution, Natural History Museum, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art were established. In the 20th century, these public museums shifted away from the aesthetic display of artifacts to education on them, which resulted in outreach to school groups and the broader public.This outreach educated the public on their history to create a greater sense of nationalism throughout the country. It was during this time that ancient Near Eastern museums such as the University Museum, the Oriental Institute, and the Kelsey Museum of Archeology were established on university campuses. Universities became spaces that cultivated scholarship for the advancement of the nation, similar to European’s emphasis on technology. Thus, museums in the United States displayed artifacts as a source of data as well as their link to ancient empires.
Some of the earliest records of museums can be traced back to Mesopotamia as kings ransacked the monuments of other nations, uncovered ancient objects, and reinstituted ancient practices to assert their kingship. The Greeks preserved artifacts to provoke thought it scholars. The Romans publicly displayed artifacts from conquests to exemplify their power. The early Christian church asserted their identity with relics. European universities incorporated museums to progress in technological advancements. Artifacts asserted nationalism. Thus, museums in the United States of America have followed their predecessors. As political, social, and economic shifts take place, museum shift the dialogue of artifacts, dependent on who needs to be represented.
In the more recent era, churches in the Middle Age displayed relics of Christ and the virgin Mary to express the history of the son of God, as well as their connection to him, their identity. Furthermore, some relics were acquired from Crusades, similar to the practice of ancient Mesopotamian kings.
Preservation of the past is not a modern idea.