Warrior in different times and places
The special exhibition Warrior takes us on an intense journey to different times and places and provides an insight into the objects, actions and rituals which create a warrior.
Introduction to Warrior by anthropologist Anders Emil Rasmussen
Moesgaard Museum’s special exhibition is an anthropological investigation of warriors across cultures and time:
”It is striking how much warriors and war not only take up of the today’s news, but also of human history. Our aim is for the exhibition here to provide an insight into and perspective on a theme which has become more pressing than we like to admit,” says Mads Kähler Holst, Director of Moesgaard Museum.
Samurai, legionary, Sepik warrior and soldier
In the exhibition you meet four different warriors: a Roman legionary from around AD 100, a Japanese samurai from 1600, a ritual warrior from the Sepik area of New Guinea in the early 20th century and a present-day Danish soldier. The four people have very different backgrounds, but have one vital thing in common: they are all on the way to becoming warriors and will now have to undergo tough physical and mental training.
We follow the warriors from their first selection to their targeted introduction into the world of war. We move with them onto the battlefield, where faith, magic and mental training help to give strength and courage. Protected by armour, good luck coins and gods of war, the warriors are all now confronted with death – either that of the enemy or their own.
Why is warrior relevant today? Video of Director, Mads Kähler Holst.
”In the exhibition, we highlight some of the common dilemmas, choices and conflicts that warriors face in different times. Every society has taboos and rules that are associated with the taking of human life, but we nevertheless train selected people to do just this. Warriors have to live with this duality. The exhibition here raises the fundamental question of what happens to a person when they become a warrior – before, during and after the battle,” says Anders Emil Rasmussen, anthropologist and content manager for ‘Warrior’.
Worth knowing before visiting the exhibition
There is no minimum age limit for the exhibition. But it deals with war and weapons, and can be a difficult experience for some children. It does not include photographs or moving images of war, only animated depictions. We recommend that that as a parent you make your own decision about what your child can tolerate experiencing – and that you support and talk to them about what they are seeing.
Military veterans suffering psychological after-effects of participation in war should be aware that the exhibition, for instance, places the guests in a battle scene involving gunfire, and this can seem like a violent experience. The exhibition is designed so that the sound of modern warfare can be avoided, as headphones have to be worn to hear this.
The exhibition can be experienced at Moesgaard until autumn 2025, after which in 2026 Warrior moves to the Danish War Museum in Copenhagen, where it will become part of the permanent exhibition.
The exhibition Warrior has received financial support from Augustinus Fonden, A.P. Møller Fonden and Aage og Johanne Louis-Hansens Fond. It is a collaboration between the National Museum of Denmark and Moesgaard Museum.
