Cabinet of Curiosities: History from Philippine Artifacts

by Ambeth R. Ocampo

“Cabinet of Curiosities: History from Philippine Artifacts” by Ambeth Ocampo takes readers on a captivating journey through Philippine history by exploring a diverse array of 100 artifacts. This collection of essays, inspired by Ocampo’s acclaimed newspaper series, unveils the rich tapestry of the Filipino past through tangible objects that have played significant roles in shaping the nation’s identity.

From prehistoric relics to works of art by renowned Filipino artists, Ocampo’s meticulous research and engaging storytelling bring these artifacts to life, revealing the hidden stories and cultural nuances they carry. The book goes beyond traditional historical narratives, proving that history need not be confined to the written word, as even mute artifacts can provide profound insights into the Filipino experience.

“Cabinet of Curiosities” not only celebrates the Philippines’ cultural heritage but also challenges conventional historical perspectives, making it a must-read for history enthusiasts and those curious about the country’s fascinating past

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Reference

240 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2023

About the author

Lamberto R. Ocampo better known as Ambeth R. Ocampo (b. 1961) is Filipino historian, academic, journalist, cultural administrator and author best known for his writings about Philippines' national hero José Rizal, and for his bi-weekly editorial page column in the Philippine Daily Inquirer, "Looking Back." He became the Chairman of the National Historical Commission of the Philippines in 2002 until 2010, and was appointed as Chairman of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts in 2005 until 2007.

Reviews

[JM · Rating 3 out of 5]

While the book offers an engaging exploration of Philippine history, art, and culture, there's a noticeable inconsistency between the title's implied focus and the actual content. Despite its title suggesting a focus on tangible artifacts, many of the items discussed don't fit the definition of artifacts. According to Oxford English Dictionary, an artifact is any tangible object made by human beings, especially with a view to subsequent use. By this definition, about half of the items listed on the book (i.e., festivals, actual persons, buildings, bones, etc.) are technically not artifacts.

Nonetheless, Ocampo's accessible writing style and wealth of historical knowledge make "Cabinet of Curiosities" still an enjoyable and enlightening read. Each chapter is filled with fascinating tidbits and anecdotes that shed light on different aspects of Philippine culture and society.

Here are few interesting trivia that caught my attention:

1. Guillermo E. Tolentino (National Artist for Sculpture) was an espiritista;
2. Carlos "Botong" Francisco (National Artist for Painting) discovered the Angono Petroglyphs; and
3. The Bonifacio Monument in Monumento also features Emilio Jacinto, and the three martyred priests - GomBurZa.

Actual rating: 3.5

[Yanni P · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is mostly captivating, although brief - a quick, and easy way to get yourself into Philippine Archaeology. Sir Ambeth Ocampo's anecdotes are interesting, still, I prefer to take them with a grain of salt. It indeed made me more curious, and more inquisitive of the culture that surrounds me.

The pieces and ideas that intrigued, and charmed me (though not necessarily new to me) the most are:

The Calatagan pot with Baybayin characters incised on its shoulders, proof of our very own pre-colonial writing system,

The Homo Luzonesis "whose finger and toe bones were curved suggesting that they climbed a lot," and the remains of the rhinoceros with butcher marks on its bones suggesting existence of early humans in the Philippines over 700,000 years ago,

El Pacto de Sangre being a reminder that there was a time Spanish colonizers treated Filipino leaders as equals rather than slaves,

How Rizal's family acquired Mi Ultimo Adios from his lamparilla, and how it was eventually stolen by, none other than, Josephine Bracken,

Miago Church being built as fortresses, with a beautiful façade, and two bell towers that doubled as look out posts, because they were places of refuge during Moro raids

The entire possibility of singing a different national anthem had Bonifacio lived to become head of the revolutionary government,

Velarde-Bagay-Suarez map of the Philippines showing the long disputed territories, Spratleys and Scarborough shoal, within the Spanish Philippines territory,

The wacky photos of our national heroes, and;

The unconventional poems of Jose Garcia Villa.

[Annabelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Whether it's his articles for The Inquirer, his chapbooks on newsprint paper (the Looking Back series), or whole entire books dedicated to our national heroes, their exploits, and their foibles (Bonifacio's Bolo, Rizal Without the Overcoat), Dr Ambeth Ocampo, the history teacher every Filipino student should have had, is always a delight to read. Cabinet of Curiosities is no exception.

Written in his customary conversational fashion, Cabinet of Curiosities is Dr Ocampo's novel take on Philippine history using random artifacts, documents, festivals, and works of art, revealing some very interesting snippets and glimpses of our past. Best of all, and this is what makes his articles so captivating--he peppers these with an anecdotal story or three. But considering the Philippines' dramatic, colored history spanning a pre-colonial past to the shifting tides of foreign occupations of the last four centuries alone (I counted four: Spanish, American*, British, and Japanese), there remains a plethora of relics, history’s flotsam and jetsam to sift through. Which means this book begs for a sequel. Or three!

Three and a half stars.

* It's ironic how a considerable chunk of our documents and artifacts are permanently housed in museums abroad, particularly the United States. But I agree with Dr Ocampo: had these remained in the then volatile Philippines, some of these treasures, such as the mysterious Gold Tara of Agusan, would have been melted for its value in gold, or, like the lost illustrations of Juan Luna for the Noli Me Tangere, destroyed during the disastrous Battle of Manila in 1945.

[Cheeno · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is a fascinating experience to discover some of the artifacts that colors and expands the culture and history of our islands and our people. This book provides bits of facts and sometimes urban legends about the items and our history. It was mostly an overview but nevertheless captured my imagination and sense of nationalism, igniting the desire to visit the National Museums.

I'm particularly amazed at how our precolonial ancestors were already artistic, incredibly skilled, tough warriors, and very trustworthy. It painted a clearer picture of where we were in terms of civilization when the Spaniards landed on our shores and documented our lands and people in written form. How I wished our ancestors had a better means of writing so we could have preserved our elusive national identity.

Even post-colonial and after the Second World War, we were not as appreciative of art and culture as we'd like to be; certainly not at the level our Asian neighbors are. I understand now how the arts are a big element of a nation's identity— from the tribal dances, stories, and languages; the colonial house and the history and vintage artifacts hidden within them; the incredible Filipino artisans lost to history and modernity. The arts provide the people their heart and soul. Our skill and artistry were once venerated by the Spaniards to be the best in the world. I hope Filipinos will get to be more proud of our own and that Filipinos, thru talent and practice, get to be masterful again and reclaim our rightful place in the art world.

There's numerous memes about the British Museum's looting of artifacts from all over the world. It's funny learning that I could now relate to that meme. At the same time, it's sad to learn how much was looted from the British occupation in 1762 as well as those lost during the Battle of Manila in 1945.

[Vindow Malt · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great way to teach a history lesson for those/this generation with a short attention span than by doing it with pictures! You can’t not be interested in learning more about these artifacts when you see how cool they actually look like.

I was so sad to learn about how most of the Philippine pre-colonial gold have now been melted down and sold probably in the black market. But our ancestors knew how to be badass…wdym they infused gold into their teeth and some even had them designed like armor scales? And a pure gold sash too? Yeah we need to bring this back.

Also, why are some of our most important artifacts being kept and stored in “former” colonizer museums? It’s inherently racist to even people think about all the possible excuses. They’re not the most advanced nations to have the means to protect the items conditions. The Philippines isn’t a monolithic country. We’re able to preserve and maintain parts of OUR history. It also implies that the Filipino people have no interest or regard for our own artifacts when that’s not the case at all. Our museums are always packed with people and with the constant evolving minds of people, there will always be desire to learn more about our culture and our history.

P.S. Pakibalik yung Doctrina Christiana samin. Pati yung Lantaka na nasa Madrid. K thnx.

[Ceecee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Before picking up this book, I had a whole month where I was living and breathing the BBC's A History of the World in 100 Objects podcasts. I was HOOKED to the point where it was all I could talk about with my partner.

Imagine my delight when I found out that the same podcast inspired the publication of this book!

Having grown up semi-attached to the culture, I knew I needed to know more about my birth country's history (having been quizzed a few weeks before and finding out I know nothing). This was the perfect amount of story-telling and pictures that I needed.

By the end of my week-long vacation, it was read. I couldn't put it down. I've quoted it soooo many times when we visited Fort Santiago too.

Honestly such a piece of art and I'm glad to own a book like this. I honestly hold it so close to my heart and I'm lucky it was published around the time of my visit home.

[V, The Reading Turtle · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lot of entries in this book I wouldn’t exactly call artifacts, but they are still intriguing nonetheless. For me, the length of each object entry was just right; I don’t think I have the adequate attention span to read an entire transcribed lecture about one object.

It’s nice to learn from Dr. Ocampo, who brought me back centuries ago, showing me objects that tell captivating stories that shaped our identity as Filipinos. His writing style is still enjoyable and digestible, just like in his other books. However, his closing lines or paragraphs somehow lacked impact.

Being a book about objects, this one is highly visual and colorful and printed on glossy paper, so it has a premium feel.

I highly recommend this book for casual history readers like me. You’ll learn a lot.

[Shiandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful book that had me in awe of the rich and deep history of my country. A book that makes you think and, at times, reflect on the things that seem so mundane but actually holds so many stories. It goes deep but not too deep that the words are lost in translation. It is a great depiction of my country's history as told by the items the people have used everyday.

[Majuchan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A compilation of different museum worthy and other curiosities ranging from prehistoric Philippines to modern entries.

It felt like walking into a museum and Prof Ambeth tours you with his amusing narrations for each objects.

[pelickula · Rating 3 out of 5]

As fun as the entries were, it felt more like reading a shopping catalog due to the brief coverage and occasional anecdotes accompanying them. It's like each entry merited their own book or at least long form description.

[Eric Elegado · Rating 5 out of 5]

Worth my money. Thank you!

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short and interesting stories on various artifacts of Philippine history

[summer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love learning history that's outside of textbooks

[Daphney Justo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very informative! Gave me a lot of knowledge about Filipino History. I love Sir Ambeth Ocampo's books. They are well researched and studied by the author himself. Cabinet of Curiosities is a truly worthy read.

[Led · Rating 3 out of 5]

This separate review tells it. It is a catalogue of lesser known and unfamiliar Philippine historical objects, even personalities and practices, because arranging an actual museum was just out of the question. That this was published for a practical PHP 355~ apiece in decent material and full colour for the reader's maximum extent of appreciation for print on paper is worth praising.

[Pam Garcia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved learning from one artifact a day how rich my country’s history is. Hoping for Book 2 and a museum talk / tour combo from Prof. Ambeth and clearer photos ? If that is at all possible.
Top favorites : Boxer Codex and Wacky Photos!