State of the art case encourages conversation and connections

Visitors to a Welsh National Trust property can view globally significant items closer than ever before from 14 February.

Due to funding from the Welsh Government’s Cultural Transformational Capital Programme, a grant of just over £60,000 has enabled important historical objects to take a more prominent place within the gallery at Powis Castle and Garden.

The four selected objects include the 18th century Tiger Head Finial (finial which was once part of Tipu Sultan’s throne), Tipu’s sword (which serves as both weapon and emblem), a ceramic jug and chess pieces.

This new display marks the beginning of a wider ambition to represent the museum’s South Asian collection.

Shane Logan, General Manager at Powis Castle and Garden said: “We’re excited to share a new chapter for the South Asian Collection—one that’s all about making it easier for everyone to explore, understand, and enjoy. Over time, we’ve been listening, learning, and working with academics, curators, and researchers to uncover the many layers of history behind these objects.

“This updated interpretation and new display case are part of that journey. They open the door to bigger conversations about how art, power, exchange, domination and resistance have shaped relationships between nations. These objects aren’t just things from the past—they continue to influence how we think about identity, history, and each other today.

“Most importantly, this isn’t something we’re doing alone. We’re collaborating with a wide range of voices to make sure the stories we share are richer, more honest, and more inclusive. We hope this space encourages you to pause, reflect, and maybe even see history from a new angle.”

Powis Castle is home to one of the world’s great collections of art and historical objects with over 13,500 items in its collection.

In the South Asian Collection, displayed in the Clive Museum, there are nearly 700 artefacts from South and East Asia, dating from about 1600 to the 1830s.

This internationally important collection was assembled by generations of the Clive family during the British colonisation of the Indian subcontinent and came to Powis Castle in the early 19th century.

Qamoos Bukhari, Lead Project Curator at National Trust said: “Clive Museum collections at Powis Castle are among the most significant, inspiring, and challenging in the UK.

“This exhibition moves away from traditional approaches to presenting pre modern art, offering new points of reference and multiple narratives that connect with future work plans for the castle to reinterpret how these collections are presented. It acknowledges that visitors’ experiences and expectations have changed over time.

“The curation draws on earlier displays and contemporary interpretations, as well as poetry and politics, to broaden and reframe the meanings these objects hold today.

“It highlights the journeys these artefacts have taken, using them to explore British and South Asian colonial histories and their links to resistance and global exchange — forces that can sometimes overshadow creativity, local traditions, and a sense of rootedness among artists.”

The funding also supports new digital equipment to deliver new visual and audio content as well as seating, lighting and support with Welsh and English interpretation.

Karen George, Property Curator at Powis Castle and Garden said: “By placing renewed focus on these remarkable objects, the project seeks to encourage dialogue and offer richer access to the complex histories of cultural significance.

“The trial of this new redisplay is part of the ongoing representation and experience planning work which focuses on the historic interiors of the castle as whole. We are always working to make our histories more accessible and invite visitors to explore complex themes such as artistic exchange cultural identity.

“This project to redisplay these objects provides us with an opportunity to test a new approach which will help inform how we display the wider collection in future.”

You can find out more about Powis Castle and Garden on The National Trust website.