Paper short abstract:

Recently (September 2010) a debate has broken out in the Netherlands surrounding the preservation and exhibition of the ‘weapons’ involved in recent political killings. This paper seeks to understand the upheaval by addressing the relation between societal rupture, public emotion and the value attributed to the objects involved.

Paper long abstract:

This paper addresses the relation between societal rupture, public emotion and the value attributed to the objects involved in the crisis. The material is based on three case studies, all related to 21st Dutch society. The objects concerned are: the pistol that killed politician Pim Fortuyn (May 2002); the knife that the assassinator left in the chest of filmmaker Theo van Gogh (November 2004); the car that was meant to hit the Queen and the royal family during the 2009 Queens Day celebrations, killing seven members of the audience instead. Although the (attempted) assassinations differ in political background, social context and outcome, they are similar in that they evoked a widespread public outcry and created a sense of crisis among the Dutch populace. Ephemeral memorials on the place of mischief were the most visible material manifestations of the emotions involved.

Recently (September 2010) a debate has evolved surrounding the preservation of the 'weapons' involved. The upheaval started when the bereaved of the 'Queens Day tragedy' learned about the intended preservation of the wrecked car in the Police Museum. Similar plans and similar emotions surround the preservation and possible future exhibition of the pistol and the knife, i.c. in the Rijksmuseum. The paper investigates the ambiguous nature of the objects, that for one part are historical objects, worthwhile to be kept and preserved, and to be exhibited sometime in the future. Simultaneously, they are sensational objects charged with hate and abhorrence in a media-driven emotion society.