Shreyas and Mina Ajmera Gallery of
Africa, The Americas, and Asia-Pacific

A man looks at an object in a green case, in the foreground you can see masks.

Location

Level 3,
Africa, the Americas & Asia-Pacific

Admission

Included with admission View Membership
Book Tickets

Celebrating the diversity of humankind.

Sections of the Shreyas and Mina Ajmera Gallery of Africa, The Americas, and Asia-Pacific are temporarily closed while we refresh our galleries. Stay tuned for more information soon!

Rich with historical and present-day symbols of heritage and identity, the gallery comes alive through objects representing spiritual and domestic life, ritual, ceremony and day-to-day activities of the indigenous peoples of Africa, the Americas, Oceania and Asia. Featuring some of the Museum’s earliest collections, many on display for the first time.  Recent acquisitions and contemporary objects are rotated into the exhibits from time to time for conservation reasons, and to feature new research.

About the Gallery

What?

More than 1,400 artifacts reveal artistic and cultural traditions including aspects of spiritual and everyday life, clothing, commerce, sacred and secular ritual and art.

Where?

Indigenous cultures of Africa, the American continents (excluding Canada), Oceania and Asia Pacific are represented.

When?

Spanning nearly 2,000 years to the present.

Gallery Highlights

Dramatic objects, including this proverbial coffin from Ghana (in the shape of a fish), present a window to better understanding contemporary cultural traditions of Africa's peoples.
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The ROM's 'Diablada' dance mask (Thumbnail), Shreyas and Mina Ajmera Gallery of Africa, The Americas, and Asia-Pacific
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Oceania encompasses the linguistically and culturally diverse peoples of Polynesia, Papua New Guinea, New Zealand, and Australia. This section of the gallery includes some of the most fragile materials in the ROM's collections, such as fine examples of bark cloth and tapa.
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The ROM's Shreyas and Mina Ajmera Gallery of Africa, The Americas, and Asia-Pacific, The George Leslie Mackay collection came to the ROM in 1915 and is the earliest known material record of the Tayal and Plains Aboriginal cultures, two non-Chinese indigenous groups from northern Taiwan. Learn about these distinct cultures, and what influenced their customs and lifestyle
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Shreyas and Mina Ajmera Gallery of Africa, The Americas, and Asia-Pacific, The artistry in basketry from the south west region of North America is some of the most beautiful in the world. Basket design helps distinguish cultural origin, and some baskets were produced for special use, such as this ceremonial wedding basket from the Navajo culture, for use during the ceremony
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Shreyas and Mina Ajmera Gallery of Africa, The Americas, and Asia-Pacific, The Amazon Rainforest has been home to perhaps hundreds of distinct indigenous peoples for thousands of years. These people share a rich and elaborate ceremonial life. This feather headdress, made from parrot and macaw feathers and palm strips, is from the Kayapó culture of Mato Grosso, Brazil.
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