Roots and routes: Literary archaeologies of British museums in contemporary Black and Asian poetry.

This article examines how contemporary Black and Asian British poets—Bernardine Evaristo, Inua Ellams, and Daljit Nagra—use literary archaeology to explore the colonial histories and ongoing legacies of British museums, specifically the British Museum, the Museum of London, and the Manchester Museum. It analyzes how their poetry traces the migration of both people and objects, revealing museums as sites where colonial violence and cultural displacement persist through the continued possession and display of looted artefacts. The article highlights the ambivalent role of museums as public spaces that simultaneously preserve imperial histories and serve as venues for protest and creative intervention, emphasizing poetry's capacity to evoke affective responses that challenge institutional narratives and foster critical engagement with colonial legacies. Ultimately, these poetic mediations present museums not as static repositories but as dynamic, contested spaces where histories and identities remain in motion.