Prisms of the musical past: British international exhibitions and 'ancient instruments', 1885-1890

Nineteenth-century international exhibitions were monumental attempts to represent modernity, 'progress' and 'invention through displays of material objects. In materially illustrating a narrative of cultural 'progress', these exhibitions sometimes engaged vividly with the past, incorporating displays of historical objects shown in striking contrast to the new manufactures that were their core focus. This article examines musical displays at exhibitions held in London in 1885 and Edinburgh in 1890, where large exhibits of 'ancient' musical instruments, scores and related objects were presented. I argue that the display of 'ancient' instruments and objects, in blatant contrast to the exhibitions' theme of modern invention, demonstrates a conceptual breach between past and present, examination of which can reveal larger trends in the late 19th-centurys ambivalent relationship with the past.