Colonial Legacies and Resistance at the Pardner Hand Exhibition, Bank of England Museum

 

Pardner Hand exhibition display, photo taken by author.

I visited the Pardner Hand exhibition at the Bank of England Museum, which is an odd and interesting space. The experience was thought-provoking, particularly as I viewed it through the lens of my NYU London Postcolonial Visual Culture class, but it also resonated with me on a deeper personal level.

Arriving at the museum was an experience in itself. The Bank of England building is grand and intimidating, a reflection of its significance and historical weight. Admission is met with airport-style security. I had to remove my bag, Apple Watch, and even my belt before passing through security arches, and my items were scanned. The museum isn’t large, but the space is considerable given that it is housed within the Bank of England. The exhibition, which was the purpose of my visit, was tucked into a corner of the foyer, occupying less than a quarter of the room’s exhibiting space—a notable contrast given the exhibition’s theme of marginalization.

 

Exhibition display explains how pardner hands work, photo taken by author.

The Pardner Hand system reflects the ingenuity of Caribbean immigrants who arrived in Britain from the 1940s through the 1970s, known as the Windrush generation. Unable to access traditional banking services due to racial discrimination and their status as new arrivals, they turned to a communal system to save money—signposted as a practice dating back hundreds of years to Africa, brought to the Caribbean by enslaved Africans. This system not only helped them navigate the precarious economic landscape of post-war Britain but also allowed them to maintain agency over their financial futures. It ensured that they could build enough financial stability to secure housing or send much-needed resources back to their families in the Caribbean.

 

Exhibition display highlighting the impact of pardner hands, photo taken by author.

What struck me most about the exhibition was its inclusion within the Bank of England Museum itself. This system operated entirely outside of the conventional banking structure, effectively excluding the banks from any profits. It felt ironic to see the Pardner Hand system featured in a museum that chronicles Britain's financial history, a history inextricably tied to empire, slavery, and exploitation. The Pardner Hand exhibition, if you follow the museum’s suggested route, comes at the end of the visit. Before you reach it, you will learn about the early history of the Bank of England, founded in 1694, including its competition with other financial companies and eventual monopoly, as well as the evolution of banknotes to the colourful and decorative currency we know today. 

 

Iron Chest, c.1700, photo taken by author.

 

Part of the static display which addressed the Bank's colonial history, photo taken by author.

 

Seeing the archival materials, such as 'the great Iron Chest' (a precursor to modern safes), alongside large accounting books and documents preserved from as far back as the 1700s, reminded me how much Britain’s narrative and institutional wealth was built on the backs of enslaved African people. There was a small display in the early history section titled “The Bank’s Forgotten Plantations”— who forgot, exactly? —and another, “Sugar and Slavery,” though these inclusions felt modest and overshadowed by more captivating displays of the bank’s narrative.

Before returning to the foyer, where the Pardner Hand exhibition is situated, the final stop of the tour is titled “The Bank Today.” The juxtaposition of this small, poignant exhibit at the end of the museum’s tour felt conspicuously out of place and time. However, it could also be seen as encouraging viewers to reflect on how Caribbean migrants resisted economic exploitation in more recent history and to reconsider the Bank of England's role in perpetuating systems of exclusion and disenfranchisement—since this wasn’t made obvious in the larger exhibition. It acted as a correction, positioned as an important counterpoint that addresses gaps in the broader museum narrative and serves as a poignant reminder of the ongoing legacies of colonialism and the ways in which marginalized communities continue to forge paths of resistance.

Had I not heard about this exhibition, I likely would have (happily) gone my whole life without ever visiting this space. While the Pardner Hand exhibition was disappointingly small, it is still very much worth the visit. The exhibition is a joint project with Museumand, the National Caribbean Heritage Museum, and it importantly spotlights how marginalized communities continually find ways to subvert the structures that seek to oppress them, creating alternative systems of care and resilience. It was both uplifting and sobering—a testament to the enduring power of collective action, even within the rigid confines of institutional exclusion.

 

The exhibition is free, doen't require booking, and runs until December 20, 2024. See exhibition details here.