On the Backs of Camels

27 February 2024 to 26 January 2025

Living together with camels and their close relatives shapes cultures. It is a source of livelihood for people around the world and part of their cultural identity. In a special exhibition scheduled to begin in 2024, the Weltmuseum Wien will explore the many aspects of life with dromedaries, Bactrian camels, llamas, and alpacas and will examine the effect that these animals, broadly called camelids, have had on the societies of which they are part.

About the exhibition

About the exhibition

Featuring films, photographs, artworks, and artefacts from the collections of the Weltmuseum Wien, several of which will be on public view for the first time, and with numerous loans from other institutions, the exhibition in six galleries narrates encounters with camelids past, present, and future.

The exhibition’s thematic arc extends from the first camels, which evolved in North America, how they were domesticated, spread across the world, and are kept today as universal livestock that have contributed to human survival.

The opportunities afforded by the extensive use of products derived from camelids establish a bridge to the present and also point to the future: to address climate change, camelids have emerged as a bearer of hope in medicine, nutrition, and the textile industry.

The United Nations General Assembly has declared 2024 to be the International Year of the Camelid. The Weltmuseum Wien presents the exhibition On the Backs of Camels as part of Austria’s international commitment to the above initiatives.

Daily (except Monday)
10 am to 6 pm
Tuesday
10 am to 9 pm

Weltmuseum Wien

Neue Hofburg, Heldenplatz
1010 Vienna, Austria

Accompanying programme

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Children & FamilyWeltmuseum Wien FriendsSchools & KindergartenBarrier-free inclusion event

Catalogue

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A catalogue of the same name has been published to accompany the exhibition. The publication explores the many facets of living together with dromedaries, Bactrian camels, llamas and alpacas and shows the influence the animals have on societies that live with and from them. The exhibition catalog has been published in German and comprises 136 pages. With contributions by Pamela Burger, Annika Dörner, Gabriele Habinger, Ilse Köhler-Rollefson, Vijay Ramchandani, Katharina Ulmschneider, Maria Wurzinger and Bettina Zorn.

Theseus Temple

Theseus Temple

In 2024 zeigt der Theseustemepel die Installation There May Exist von der 1986 in Dubai geborenen Künstlerin Zeinab Alhashemi. Die In Situ Arbeit widmet sich der kulturellen Bedeutung von Kamelen auf der arabischen Halbinsel. Die Künstlerin gestaltet mit Kamelfellen auf wechselnden Untergründen skulpturale Landschaftsbilder. Sie untersucht die Auswirkungen des Ölbooms in der Golfregion auf die kulturelle Bedeutung der Kamele und das Zusammenleben mit diesen Tieren, die zur Existenzsicherung, als Transportmittel und kultureller Referenzpunkt einst eine zentrale Rolle spielten.

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