Secrecy

Secrecy regulates who gets to know what and under what conditions, thus separating the insiders from the outsiders. At times the boundaries are clear, at others more vague, but by all means negotiable. The exhibition focuses on secrecy as an instrument of social order and how it is handled in different
cultural settings – a classic topic in anthropology that has recently received renewed attention under the impact of WikiLeaks and the extensive privacy debate.

The exhibited objects are bearers or markers of secrecy; they include, among others, masks belonging to so-called secret societies, documents written in secret codes, images of sacred mysteries, and chests equipped with hidden drawers. You get the chance to read secret love letters, hear about the thrills
and throes of secrecy, even entrust to a special box a secret of your own. Kids follow a hidden path in search of a safe for which, however, they need a secret code.