“My Grandmother’s House”. A Collaborative Exhibition on the History of Whales in Atouguia da Baleia

Abstract

In Atouguia da Baleia, a former medieval port now 5 km from the sea, cetacean bones can be found with intriguing regularity in grandmothers’ houses. The exhibition “A Baleia em Atou­guia” rescued stories of the people of Peniche, and specifically the town of Atouguia, to the whale and whaling. The exhibi­tion was inaugurated in March 2023 at CIAB - Interpretive Center of Atouguia da Baleia (part of the Museum Network of the Municipality of Peniche), curated by the Municipality and CHAM – Centre for the Humanities (NOVA FCSH), with scientific support from the ERC 4-OCEANS. Participatory museum strategies and collaborative and interdisciplinary te­chniques were applied in a process that called on the communi­ty to act as a producer of knowledge and as an inventory-taker, contributing to more effective management of local heritage, fostering the recovery of collective memory and the safeguar­ding of cultural and natural heritage.