The urgency to Decolonize: A student challenge to the colonial legacies in the Petrie Palestinian Collection at UCL’s Institute of Archaeology

A group of students at University College London’s (UCL) Institute of Archaeology critically examined the Petrie Palestinian Collection (PPC) to explore colonial legacies embedded in Western institutions. This paper reflects on our student-led initiative to decolonize the PPC and foregrounds Palestinian experiences with the collection. Motivated by the ongoing destruction of Palestinian heritage, we sought to challenge exclusionary institutional practices. We argue institutions like UCL have a scholarly and ethical responsibility to move beyond tokenistic gestures and actively engage with source communities. Despite UCL’s rhetoric promoting decolonization, our project faced significant institutional resistance, revealing the limits of current approaches. We critique the hypocrisy of institutions that continue to benefit from colonial-era collections while avoiding accountability. This study therefore calls for a radical rethinking of practices to center Palestinians in the stewardship of their cultural heritage, demanding reparative action from Western institutions.