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Visitors to the Hunterian Museum can now see a contemporary Tasmanian shell necklace on display in the museum’s main gallery.

The kanalaritja or shell necklace was presented to The Hunterian in 2025 by Tasmanian artist Jeanette James. The gift was a gesture of thanks following the return of a 19th-century Tasmanian Aboriginal kanalaritja from The Hunterian to its home in Tasmania.

The 19th-century kanalaritja was donated to The Hunterian in 1877. It was purchased in Tasmania by the wife of a British colonial medical officer who was stationed there. After almost 150 years in The Hunterian’s care, the necklace was repatriated to Tasmania in April 2025. It is now cared for by the Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre, supporting the organisation's ongoing efforts in cultural preservation and revitalisation.

Necklace making is Tasmania’s oldest continuing cultural practice, which has continued uninterrupted for thousands of years. Early kanalaritja are rare and considered a learning resource for present-day makers and significant heritage belongings with links to the past. Each kanalaritja is unique, with the patterns and shell types indicating the maker and place of creation.

For Tasmanian Aboriginal communities, kanalaritja are important cultural belongings that connect present-day makers with their ancestors, communities and country. The return of historical examples helps support cultural knowledge, research and artistic practice for future generations.

The Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre first requested the repatriation of the 19th-century kanalaritja from The Hunterian collection in 1994. At that time, museum staff judged that the 1877 donation had been ‘legal’ and, fearing that agreement might set a precedent, refused the request. A further application in 2002 was also refused on the same basis.

Following significant changes in museum ethics and repatriation practice in the UK, The Hunterian agreed to the return when the Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre submitted a third request in 2024.

A repatriation ceremony took place at the University of Glasgow in April 2025. The Hunterian was delighted to receive the gift of one of Jeanette James’ contemporary kanalaritja as a gesture of thanks.

Jeanette James said:

“The stringing of kanalaritja is a closely guarded cultural tradition maintained by a small group of Aboriginal women and their families. Shell stringing has endured from ancient times, through the traumatic cultural and physical upheavals of the British invasion and European colonisation.

“Every kanalaritja is a tangible link to our Ancestors. Each rediscovery of our cultural objects creates an opportunity for Ancestral reconnection and cultural reawakening. The stringer’s patterns and shell types can identify the maker and the seashore places where they were gathered, embodying the traditional knowledge of collecting and making. In this way, every return reconnects a kanalaritja with its community of origin and even the maker’s own family.”

The contemporary kanalaritja provides visitors with an opportunity to learn about one of Tasmania's oldest continuing cultural traditions and the importance of cultural repatriation in reconnecting communities with their heritage.

It is now part of the permanent display at the Hunterian Museum, University of Glasgow. Open 10am–5pm, Tuesday–Sunday. Entry is free.

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First published: 24 August 2026