In 1815, the Evangelische Missionsgesellschaft (Basel Mission) was founded
in Basel. From 1828 onwards, it established mission stations in West Africa,
India, China and Indonesia. To showcase its success in the targeted expansion
of the Christian faith and to solicit donations, ethnographical objects from
the missionary territories were collected and exhibited in Basel. Decolonisation
after the Second World War brought with it altered perceptions of
missionary work. The previously paternalistic approach was replaced by
cooperation based on partnership with independent local churches.