Wellcome Collection to return 2,000 manuscripts in landmark agreement

The Wellcome Collection in London has committed to returning around 2,000 sacred manuscripts to the Jain religious community as part of a “landmark” restitution framework agreement.

A Memorandum of Understanding was signed in the House of Commons yesterday (14 May) between the Wellcome Trust for the Wellcome Collection, the Institute of Jainology and the University of Birmingham. A full legal agreement will now be drawn up in accordance with the memorandum.  

Jainism is an ancient Indian religion that emphasises spiritual purity, self-discipline and non-violence. The Wellcome holds what is believed to be the largest collection of Jain manuscripts outside South Asia.

More than half of the manuscripts were acquired by the museum’s 19^th-century founder Henry Wellcome from a single Jain temple that no longer exists in Punjab, in what is now Pakistan.

The agreement is the result of five years of dialogue and collaboration with Wellcome and the Institute of Jainology. The collections research was supported by a Headley Fellowship from the Art Fund.

In a statement announcing the development, the Wellcome Collection said the manuscripts had been “bought at a low price and against the best interests of their original owners”.

The museum said the deal demonstrates its “commitment to supporting a more equitable future through the inclusive, collaborative and ethical management of its collections”.  

The manuscript collection spans 15th-century illustrated manuscripts to texts from the 19th century covering religion, literature, medicine and culture, from Prakrit and Sanskrit to Gujarati, Rajasthani and early Hindi. The museum said the manuscripts provide “an important window onto the history of health and human experience”.

The collection will initially be moved to the Dharmanath Network in Jain Studies at the University of Birmingham, which plans to “open the collection to those researchers and faith communities who are best placed to read, interpret and translate their content for a global audience”.

Mehool Sanghrajka, the managing trustee of the Institute of Jainology, commended the museum’s “brave decision”, saying it would act as a model for other faith communities.

“We recognise that some of these manuscripts may not have survived the turmoil in India post-independence, and we are grateful to Wellcome for the care and respect they have shown these texts,” said Sanghrajika.

“We believe that rather than judging historical events with modern eyes, we should find ways through collaboration to transform Jain scholarship and research and give the community access to its cultural heritage. We look forward to our collective efforts in ensuring these treasures are accessible to future generations”

Daniel Martin, the associate director of collections and digital at the Wellcome Collection, said: “We thank the Jain community for our work together on this landmark restitution, through which we have formed a strong and lasting bond. We have set the bar high for a collaborative and compassionate approach to restitution that recognises the hurt caused by unethical acquisition and retention of material heritage.

“Wellcome Collection’s vision is a world where everyone’s experience of health matters. We share Jain principles of moral and spiritual health in realising that vision as we continue to interrogate the historical origins and ethical health of our collections.”

Marie-Helene Gorisse, the lead for the Dharmanath Network in Jain Studies at the University of Birmingham, said: “The University of Birmingham is grateful for the community’s trust and collaboration, as we together built an ambitious centre for Jain Studies, the Dharmanath Network, in honour of the 15th enlightened Jain teacher.

“By working together, we will make sure that the return of the manuscripts by Wellcome Collection to the Jain community has maximum impact for students, researchers, members of the community, and for the general public.”

Jain manuscript collection

Among the manuscript collection is a “unique and powerful” early example of the Indian independence movement’s ethical principles later made famous by Gandhi. The document critiques the ethical foundations of British rule in India.

Older manuscripts include a rare and magnificently illustrated, early 16th-century copy of an important Jain scripture, the Kalpasutra; and a slim, fragile and battered paper manuscript dating to 1688, which is possibly the earliest surviving copy of the first medical treatise in early Hindi, Nainsukh’s Vaidyamanotsav (A Celebration of Physicians), 1592.