91Èȱ¬

Ìý

So, this is it: after 10 months, 95 objects and 1,425 minutes of history on the radio, it’s the final week and our story has at last caught up with us.

But what a story… the past century has brought immense change - the way we live has been altered at an unprecedented speed in part due to new technologies, new materials, and consumption of material goods.

Over the last 100 years we’ve made more objects as a species than ever before - it has even been suggested that more objects have been made in the last 100 years, than in the preceding two million put together. For a vast archive of evidence just explore the objects you’ve uploaded to this site that were made in the last few decades.

For JD Hill, lead curator of the series, this has presented a great challenge:

Many listeners have asked how do we do justice to the last 100 years with five objects, especially, as this history is so well known to many. Should the objects be those associated with big events, or do you go for objects to do with underlying historical processes?

Although, in reality, choosing five objects to explore the last 100 years is not more difficult than choosing five to explore the second millennium BC. It has been about finding five objects that tell strong stories, unexpected stories and stories told through the things themselves.

So what objects have been chosen?

Our Russian plate explores how images and objects express the power of totalitarian regimes. In this case, the Bolshevik revolution in which propagandists painted over porcelain made by the previous imperial regime to make a statement about the communist future they were building towards.

A print by British artist David Hockney showing two men relaxing in bed together is used to discuss, sexuality and the rights of the individual to live as they choose.

In the Throne of Weapons we’re given an eloquent and poignant lesson in the horror of the wars played out in Africa, as Europe’s colonial empires came to an end. The cold war era weapons in the chair remind us that some of those African wars were in part fuelled, funded and facilitated by external forces. Many, many thousands have died, but another message in this seat is about reconciliation and the desire to begin building a future in peace.

Money has remained a constant through the series and a credit card speaks of our cashless world in which funds can change hands without being touched.

And, of course, our 100th and final object: the solar-powered lamp and charger. This object describes the challenges and ingenuity of today while also pointing to a possible future of renewable, non-polluting energy: kinder to our planet, and potentially liberating for the developing world.

So, without objects where would we be? Humans have always made, used and depended on things. They’ve been our ticket to the top of the food chain. They’ve enabled us to prosper in every single environment on the planet we occupy (even underwater!) not to mention beyond it.

So if there’s one message I’d like to sign-off with it’s that objects are powerful things - powerful because through them we can explore and understand ourselves.

• The photo of a junk shop in Kyoto is by and is used .

What do you think? Add a comment

Ìý