Senior Wednesday: Malay Objects
Wednesday, October 1, 2025 | 1:30 PM – 2:30 PM
Tickets: $4 +tax, Free for Museum Members
Join us every first Wednesday at 1:30 PM for Senior Wednesday at the Museum of World Treasures!
Event Details
- Date: October 1, 2025
- Time: 1:30 PM
- Location: Museum of World Treasures [Get Directions]
Program Fee
- Museum Members: Free
- Non-Members: $4 per person plus tax
Attending Information
- Open to all ages
- No need to register; simply walk in!
- Light refreshments provided.
Talk Summary
Malay Objects: Museums, Education, and Empire in Southeast Asia
Why was an anthropology museum built in the jungles of Malaysia? Why did the British think Malay sword smiths and their wavy kris (keris) daggers would be the key to their colony? This presentation will answer these questions and describe how the British used Malay culture and objects to try and maintain their hold over their colony through handicrafts education and museum collecting in the early twentieth century. I will also discuss how Malay people responded and resisted to these attempts at education and cultural control.Speaker Bio - Matthew Schaer, Ph.D.
Matthew Schauer is an associate professor at Oklahoma State University. His research is on imperialism in Southeast Asia with a focus on education, material culture, museums, and exploration expeditions. He is also working on a project on British and American live animal trappers/filmmakers who worked in Southeast Asia in the early 20th century. He has a doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania and previously taught at the University of Pennsylvania, Eastern Oregon University, and Boston College. His publications include articles in World History Connected and the Journal of World History.
Senior Wednesdays are informational and entertaining sessions, designed for active seniors and offered by a collaboration of Wichita institutions. To learn more, visit: