Quod licet Jovi non licet bovi, or double standards in action?

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has recently opened a War Trophy Park in Baku. In addition to military equipment taken from the enemy as war booty during the Patriotic War, it exhibits helmets of soldiers, as well as dummy models depicting Armenian military personnel. The park’s opening sparked discussions on social media and became an object of outrage for the losing side. Internet users were outraged by the inclusion of helmets of Armenian soldiers and dummy models of Armenian soldiers to the exposition in this museum.

But for some reason, outraged by such a sight, users didn’t take into account the fact that exhibits of this kind can be seen in many museums around the world. Here are the most striking examples of them:

Military Museum, Wroclaw City Museum (Warsaw)

Poland, which suffered greatly from the Second World War, created its own war museum, which displays various military artifacts. Curve-barrelled machine guns, UR anti-tank rifles, Mauser and Mosin guns, a flame-bladed sable and an impressive collection of helmets and military uniforms are just some of the highlights of the intriguing and original collections of Wroclaw’s Military Museum.

The museum has a collection of more than 500 helmets. Tin hats were in use already in the 18th century to protect soldiers against bullets and shrapnels and melee weapons while in battlefield. The overwhelming majority of the collection comprises helmets used by the Polish Army that were bequeathed by Jacek Kijak. The helmets come from a variety of military units, not exclusively Polish, but often refashioned with Polish markings on them. One such item is a German helmet with a coat of arms of Wroclaw.

Military Museum of Bragança (Portugal)

The keep of Bragança Castle within the historic walled citadel (Cidadela) of Bragança contains one of the best of Portugal's numerous military museums.

The museum's exhibits range from around the 12th century to World War I and Portugal's messy wars in its African colonies of Angola and Mozambique in the 1960s and 1970s. The latter conflict is represented also by African axes, clubs, masks, spears and other pieces brought back as souvenir trophies by serving soldiers from the Bragança and Trás-os-Montes region.

Weltmuseum Wien (World Museum Vienna)

Sometimes more sensational and "controversial" trophies can be found in museums of Europe. The Weltmuseum, which opened a few years ago in Vienna, has come under fire for an exhibition featuring a specific exhibit - a severed head from Brazil, a war trophy belonging to the Munduruku Indian tribe. The exposition then angered many experts.

Depicting opponents in the form of dummy models is also common, both in the museums of Europe and neighboring countries. Very often they can be found in museums dedicated to World War II and military history museums about the fight against fascism.

Imperial War Museum Duxford

Kaliningrad Regional Museum of History and Arts

Bunker Museum of General Lyash

The Belarusian Great Patriotic War Museum

The Latvian War Museum

Museum-Reserve "Breakthrough of the Siege of Leningrad"

For some reason, the historical exhibits of European museums do not cause such dissatisfaction, while the demonstration of the victory of the Azerbaijani people and the perpetuation of our history attracts criticism from certain circles.