Penn Museum

Akhenaten Temple Project records: The Akhenaten Temple Project was the first computer project assumed by the University of Pennsylvania Museum. It was proposed in 1965 by Ray Winfeild Smith, and in 1966 he began the project with the aid of IBM’s nascent computer technology. The IBM computer was abandoned in 1976. This collection spans Ray Winfield Smith’s entire involvement as director of the project 1968-1971, and begins the career of Dr. Donald B. Redford who acted as a consultant in 1971 and has been director since 1972. The records contain papers and photographs relating to the foundation of the Akhenaten Temple Project, and are divided into five series: Financial; Correspondence and Reports; Project Negatives; Photographs; Misc.
Antigua, Guatemala expedition records: The Antiguas Guatemala expeditions were conducted in 1969 and 1970 by Dr. Ruben Reina. Originally from Argentina, Dr. Reina received his B.A. at the University of Michigan and his M.A. at Michigan State University. He completed his Ph.D. at the University of North Carolina followed by a Research Assistantship at the Institute for Research in the Social Sciences, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Dr. Reina began his career at the University of Pennsylvania after teaching at the University of Puerto Rico. He became a Professor in the Anthropology Department in 1967 and assumed the position of Curator of Latin American Ethnology, American Section of the Penn Museum. Dr. Reina spent 34 years at the University, becoming Professor Emeritus in 1990. The expeditions to Guatemala yielded three boxes of field notes and drawings, a catalogue of findings, extensive information on native ceramic pottery, and photographs. In addition, Dr. Reina's trips produced a file of five-by-eight catalogue and excavation unit cards and an additional photograph catalogue file of three-by-five cards. Both of the card files are housed separately in smaller archival boxes.
Arthur L. Frothingham records from the Etruscan tomb groups excavation: Although classical, including Etruscan, collections had been donated to the University of Pennsylvania Museum since the early 1890s it was in 1896 that the Museum formally authorized excavations in Italy and the acquisition of Etruscan tomb groups, as well as individual objects, for the Museum. Professor Arthur L. Frothingham of Princeton, then Secretary of the American School of Classical Studies in Rome, was commissioned to represent the Museum in Italy. Most of the tomb groups which Frothingham obtained are from Narce and Vulci, although there are objects from many other sites including Cerveteri, Orvieto, and Civita Castellana. The textual records from the excavations in Italy consist of one linear foot of correspondence, notes, financial accounts, and photographs related to the excavation of Etruscan tombs through which the Museum obtained the majority of its Etruscan collections.
Benque Viejo, Cahal Pech British Honduras (Belize) expeditions: The Benque Viejo (Xunantunich), Cahal Pech expedition, conducted by Dr. Linton Satterthwaite, was an extension of his expedition to Caracol, British Honduras (Belize). It was conceived as a "Housemound Project" and continued for two seasons from 1950 to 1953. The area of Benque Viejo, Cahal Pech contained seventeen structures and five stelae for investigation. Much of the collection relates to the Ball Court and East Plaza sites, as well as Structure A6 first and A6 second. The expedition produced objects and numerous photographs of the area. The Benque Viejo, Cahal Pech expedition records consist of twenty-nine folders in three archival boxes. Materials relate to the proposal for the expedition, preliminary data, budget and financial records, maps, notebooks, field notes, diaries, bag study sheets, progress and summary reports, press and publication materials, and photographs.
Bet Sh'ean, Israel expedition records: From 1921 to 1933, the Palestine Expedition of the University of Pennsylvania Museum conducted excavations at Bet Sh'ean, a site located 12 miles south of the Sea of Galilee in Israel. The expedition was intended to be an extensive research effort in Syria-Palestine, but this goal was never fully achieved due to financial stringencies imposed during the Depression of the 1930s. Clarence S. Fisher, Curator of the Egyptian Section of the University Museum, directed the first three seasons of work at Bet Sh'ean. Alan Rowe and Gerald M. FitzGerald directed the subsequent seven field seasons. Nine major occupation levels were described, the earliest dating to the Late Neolithic, and the latest from the Arab/Crusader periods. Records describing the excavations at Bet Sh'ean consist of forty linear feet of records, including diaries, a card catalog, plans, photographic material, field notes, correspondence, financial records, notes, and publication drafts, as well as dozens of maps, drawings, and paintings.
Bet Shemesh, Israel excavation records: Located approximately 12 miles west of Jerusalem, this site was originally excavated in 1911 and 1912 by Duncan Mackenzie for the Palestine Exploration Fund. Under the sponsorship of Haverford College, Haverford professor Elihu Grant undertook excavation at this mound from 1928 to 1931 and again in 1933. When the Bet Shemesh (Ain Shems) artifacts, known as the Haverford Collection, were purchased by the University Museum in 1962, the field notes, notes on pottery, drawings, photographs, and correspondence relating to these finds were also acquired.
Caracol, Belize expedition records: Linton Satterthwaite, a professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania and Curator of the American Section of the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, conducted three trips to Caracol, Belize in the 1950s to investigate a previously unknown site of Maya culture. While his primary interest was in Maya inscriptions and chronology, his journeys to Caracol yielded artifacts for the Museum, including twenty-six vessels of the early classic period, nine vessels of the late period, Stela 11, a new "giant glyph" altar, and the bottom portion of Stela 3. The Caracol expedition collection consists of 16 boxes of correspondence, field notes and notes on individual stela, altars, and stones, glyph decipherment and chronology data, information for publication, and photographs and drawings including contact sheets and photographs from Caracol, Benque Viejo, and Cayo X. Satterthwaite organized and catalogued the photographs according to the type of film used, field numbers, and monument number. The collection also contains three file boxes of card notes to the photographs and a few pieces of oversized material. Satterthwaite's "The Monuments and Inscriptions of Caracol, Belize" with co-author Carl Beetz, was published after his death. The publication materials relate to his instructions and notes for publication and Beetz' collection of Satterthwaite's monument notes for the book.
Chalchuapa, El Salvador excavation records: The records of the excavations at Chalchuapa, El Salvador include correspondence, administrative records, field notes, photographs, manuscripts and reports. The bulk of these materials originate from the 1954 excavation by William R. Coe and the 1966 analysis by Robert J. Sharer, as well as the 1969-1970 re-excavations.
Daniel Garrison Brinton Mexico collection: Daniel Garrison Brinton is considered one of the founders of modern American Anthropology. He was also the first to hold a professorship in Archaeology in the United States. His library, which includes the Carl Hermann Berendt collection of manuscripts in the indigenous languages of Mexico and Central America, is considered the core of the University of Pennsylvania Anthropology Library. Among the collection are 4515 items; rare illustrations, contemporary photographs, portraits of individual authors, and texts in Spanish, French, Italian, and German. Brinton gathered his information from archival and library studies and did not participate in any archaeological expeditions. This small collection, attributed to Brinton by J. Alden Mason of the University Museum, consists of four folders. Two contain linguistic notes on the Maya languages. The remaining two, contain drawings of pottery, objects, sites, and maps of Maya regions, primarily in Mexico. Some of the drawings are believed to be those of Carl Hermann Berendt, purchased by Daniel Brinton for the library at the University. The collection is in fragile condition and many of the items are in need of conservation assessment, particularly the Berendt drawings.
Dinkha Tepe expedition records: Dr. Robert H. Dyson, Jr., Director of the University of Pennsylvania Museum 1982-1994, directed excavations in 1966 and 1968 at Dinkha Tepe in the Ushnu Valley, west Azerbaijan, northwestern Iran. This expedition formed part of the Hasanlu Project. The papers documenting these excavations are for the most part primary reference materials and were deposited as a closed collection in The University of Pennsylvania Museum Archives for safekeeping until publication research begins within the next several years. Records were kept in their original order. The textual records of Dinkha Tepe consist of 2.66 linear feet of excavation notebooks, indexes and catalogues, photographic material, manuscripts, and drawings, maps and plans.
Elin Danien collection of Robert Burkitt papers: The Elin Danien Collection of Robert Burkitt Papers was discovered by Danien on her trip to Guatemala in 1985. Consisting of notebooks on the languages of the native Indians in the Guatemalan Highlands, the collection was found on the property of a family with whom Robert Burkitt stayed while working for the Penn Museum in Guatemala. Previously thought to be destroyed, the works are from the early portion of Burkitt's time in Central America, 1903 to 1913, before he formally began to collect and catalogue artifacts for the Museum. The collection consists of four linguistic notebooks, a comparative chart of the languages with a word list, a Spanish-Kekchi dictionary created by Burkitt, a portion of Burkitt's Dresden Manuscript, an Index to a linguistic notebook that is not a part of the collection, and loose papers from other notebooks. A purchased Espanol-Quecchi dictionary from Coban, 1890, is also a part of the collection.
Erich F. Schmidt excavation records from Tepe Hissar, Iran: From 1931-1933, The University Museum sponsored Erich Schmidt's excavations and survey at Tepe Hissar and sites around the city Damghan, both in Northwestern Iran, near the Caspian sea. These sites were unique because they were the first American excavations in Iran, but more particuarly because of the long time span represented in the archaeological record. Remains from the Bronze Age to the Islamic era were collected, but Schmidt focused his investigation on the Bronze Age and Sassanian eras.
Fara, Iraq expedition records: Excavation at Fara, initiated by German excavators between 1902 and 1903, was resumed in 1931 by Erich Schmidt, an archaeologist working under the aegis of the University Museum. Since the Museum’s participation was limited to one season which took place between February 15 and May 19, the records pertaining to this excavation are not numerous. The textual records at Fara include general correspondence, field notes, indexes and catalogues, and publications. Where possible, a chronological order was imposed on the records.
Furness, Harrison and Hiller expedition records: Between 1895 and 1901, William Furness, III., Alfred C. Harrison, Jr., and Hiram M. Hiller made a series of extended trips to Oceania, South and Southeast Asia, and East Asia. Furness, Harrison, and Hiller all donated or sold substantial collections of ethnographic, archaeological, and skeletal material acquired on the voyages to the Penn Museum. The Furness, Harrison, and Hiller collections, particularly those from Oceania, are extensive and reasonably well-documented for their time.
George Byron Gordon Central America expedition records: George Byron Gordon led expeditions to Copan at the end of the nineteenth century and, with his brother MacLaren Gordon, to Alaska in 1905 and 1907. As Professor at the University of Pennsylvania and as Director of the Museum, Gordon was first to conduct regular lectures to undergraduate and graduate students in Anthropology and oversaw one of the the largest periods of Museum growth. The G.B. Gordon Central America collection includes diaries, surveying notes, reports and stories from the Copan Expeditions and the Yucatan Expedition in 1910, original stories, articles, and book reviews written by Dr. Gordon, communication with The British Museum about Maya site excavation, Gordon's introductions composed for speakers for the Saturday Afternoon Lecture Series, speeches to professional organizations, and class lectures.
Gibeon expedition records: James Pritchard, first Curator of Biblical Archaeology, Professor of Religious Thought, Associate Director (1967-1976), and Director (1976-1977) at the University of Pennsylvania Museum, conducted his primary fieldwork in three sites in the Near East Of these, locating the site of Ancient Gibeon (El-Jib) in Jordan was perhaps Pritchard’s most notable accomplishment. He and his team conducted five seasons of fieldwork here, discovering three prominent architectural features: a tunnel, pool, and the city wall. The archival records for these excavations consist six linear feet of field notes, reports, a field diary, correspondence, object catalogues, drawings, photographs and a photographic catalogue, an annotated map, publication notes, and financial records.
Gorgas Mill Complex records: This collection, the Gorgas Mill Complex records, includes documents from the Monastery archaeological site, on the Wissahickon Creek in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The excavation site was an 18th-century mill site which later became part of Fairmount Park. It was excavated in 1974 by the field school of the Penn Museum under the direction of Jeff Kenyon. This collection was divided into four series based on subject: administrative records, historical research, field notes and visual materials.
Gournia, Crete expedition records: The textual records from the excavations of Gournia and the papers of Harriet Boyd Hawes consist of one linear foot of correspondence, financial records, field notes and drawings, drafts of lectures and materials for publication, and research notes. The records have been compiled from several sources, none of which contributed a significant original order. Sources of the records include the files of the American Exploration Society, the records of University of Pennsylvania Museum Mediterranean Section Curator Sara Yorke Stevenson, and the papers of Harriet Boyd Hawes, contributed to the Archives on two occasions (in 1973, by her son Alexander Hawes, and in 1993 by her daughter Mrs. Mary Allsebrook via researcher Dr. Vasso Fotou.
Henry L. Smith collection of Augustus Le Plongeon correspondence: The Henry L. Smith collection of Augustus Le Plongeon correspondence documents the letters received by Henry L. Smith from the photographer, antiquarian, and amateur archaeologist, Augustus Le Plongeon in 1906 and 1907. Le Plongeon is most noted for his photographs in the Northern Yucatan during travels with his wife, Alice Dixon Le Plongeon, during a thirteen year period from 1873 to 1885. These photographs depict ancient ruins and inscriptions some of which were later damaged or destroyed. The collection consists of one folder of thirteen letters from Le Plongeon, and two additional pieces of information sent to Henry L. Smith, an article from Appleton's Booklovers Magazine and a brochure from the Lowell Institute. H. L. Smith's signature is found on a label for the letters.
J. Alden Mason linguistic expeditions to Mexico records: The J.Alden Mason Linguistic Expeditions to Mexico consist of six trips to study the languages of the Northern and Southern Tepehuan Indians of the region around Durango and the Nevome of the lower Pima Bajo area. From 1912 to 1954, Mason gathered information on the languages, ceremonial activities, prayers, and botany of the Piman tribes of northern and southern Mexico. Mason took numerous photographs and his second expedition, financed by Percy C. Madeira who accompanied Mason, consisted entirely of aerial photographs of the area. The 1936 Durango Expedition with Robert M. Merrill produced photographs, plates and objects from archaeological sites like Chalchihuites and Zape in the Durango region. The photographs and plates were reproduced in a 1937 article, "Late Archaeological Sites in Durango Mexico." During this trip, Mason shot unedited film showing the indigenous people and the countryside around Durango. Two additional expeditions in 1951 and 1954 resulted in reports of the Northern Tepehuan and Nevome languages and cultures.
J. Alden Mason Puerto Rican survey records: J. Alden Mason, noted archaeological anthropologist and linguist and curator of the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, conducted ethnographic and archaeological research in Puerto Rico from 1914 to 1915. Holdings include field notebooks, most notably phonetic recordings of Puerto Rican folklore from Utuado, San German, Loiza, Copa, and Coamo. Notable items include a draft of the manuscript "Painted Cave Petroglyphs in Puerto Rico" from 1939 and correspondence regarding wax cylinder recordings. Included also are letters from Mason to his daughter, Kathy, and several translated tales sent to her.
Khafajah and Kara Tepe, Iraq expedition records: Excavation at Khafajah was initially directed by Henry Frankfurt and Pinhas Delougaz of the Oriental Institute; the Joint American Expedition, under the field direction of E. A. Speiser, continued excavation in conjunction with the work in progress since 1931 at Tepe Gawra (700 miles north of Khafajah). During the second season, 1937-1938, P. Delougaz was the field director. Excavation did not occur at Khafajah in 1938 because of political conditions. Karatepe is mentioned only briefly in the General Correspondence. The Penn Museum was involved with this site during the 1930s.
Louis Shotridge collection: The papers of Louis Shotridge are one of the most extensive groups in the Arctic research collections of the University of Pennsylvania Museum Archives. Shotridge, a Tlingit Indian, was intermittently employed by the museum to make ethnographic collections of Northwest Coast materials between 1903 and 1912. The archives has papers concerning his original research, arranged topically, manuscripts for articles published in The Museum Journal, oral histories, Tlingit language notes, and general ethnographic notes on the Tlingit and other Northwest Coast groups.
M. Henry Kerr Cameroon expedition papers: Henry Kerr (1869-1935), a Presbyterian minister, worked in several villiages in Cameroon, West Africa from 1892-1899. The Presbyterian Mission League tasked him with expanding the mission locations, translating hymns and the four Gospels, teaching, and promoting industry. Contained in the collection are his own photos and correspondence, both letters sent and replies. The bulk of the collection is in the format of a scrapbook compiled by Kerr.
Margaret Matches Newman papers: The Margaret Matches Newman collection documents Newman's travels to Papua New Guinea and subsequent career as an author, most notably of the book . Materials include some correspondence, a diary, personal snapshots, and memorabilia.
Mary Owen Guatemalan folktales collection: The Mary Owen Guatemalan Folktale collection consists of two folders of folktales gathered by Mary Owen at the request of her friend George Byron Gordon, Director of the Free Museum of Science and Art, later the Penn Museum. Mary Owens transcribed seventeen folktales with notes and explanations from her valuable years of experience living in the Alta Verapaz region. Mary Owen's folktales were published in 1938 as a children's book co-authored by Marie Hendrick Jessup and Leslie Bird Simpson. Her work is also recognized in the book, "Maya Folktales from the Alta Verapaz", edited by Elin C. Danien.
Montroville Wilson Dickeson collection: The Montroville W. Dickeson Collection is a record of Dickeson's expedition to the Mississippi and Ohio Valleys to investigate the origins and archaeology of the North American mound builders. Interested in collecting from an early age, Dickeson left his medical residency and traveled in the South from 1837 to 1844 pioneering in the use of trenches in excavation and strata and cross-sections in description. The collection consists of catalogues, maps, drawings, renderings, photographs, cross-section drawings, and advertising material. Dickeson displayed his collection on his return to Philadelphia and commissioned the Mississippi Panorama painted by John J. Egan, an itinerant Irish artist. Dickeson's collection and the panorama were displayed at his own museum, in subscription lectures, and at the Centennial Exhibition in 1876 in Philadelphia. Dickeson engaged in ceaseless self promotion but mostly published in local venues and in serialized format. His advanced archaeological techniques and the catalogues of artifacts from Southern sites no longer in existence, though praised, are not well known.
Nippur, Iraq expedition records: In 1887, the University of Pennsylvania agreed to sponsor an expedition to the Near East. The idea was conceived by Reverend John Punnett Peters, University of Pennsylvania Professor of Hebrew. Nippur was a pre-Biblical city-state located in the region between the Tigris and Euphrates, the area believed to be the "cradle of civilization." The museum conducted four expeditions between 1889 and 1898. The textual records for Nippur consist of 20 linear feet of files are arranged by Expedition (I, II, III, IV), as well as publications, maps and drawings. The documents for each expedition are separated according to type: Field Notes, Reports and Narratives, Correspondence, Financial Records.
Nuzi, Iraq expedition records: The Harvard-Baghdad School Expedition (American Schools of Oriental Research, A.S.O.R) was sent to Excavate Nuzi near Kirkuk in Iraq. The expedition members consisted of staff from the Fogg Museum of Art, the Harvard Semitic Museum, and A.S.O.R., Baghad. Excavations commenced in 1927-1928. From 1929 to 1931, the University Museum extended financial aid and the services of a helper, C.Bache, in return for his field training. Very few records pertaining to this excavation are available in the Museum’s Archives, probably reflecting the Museum’s limited participation. Where possible, a chronological order was imposed on the Near East records.
Piedras Negras, Guatemala expedition records: Piedras Negras is a Maya site in Guatemala particularly noted for the beautifully sculpted stelae and hieroglyphic inscriptions it has yielded. Between 1931 and 1939 the University of Pennsylvania Museum conducted extensive excavations at this site. John Allen Mason led the first two seasons of work at the site (1931–1932), and Linton Satterthwaite directed the remaining six seasons (1933–1939, excluding 1938). Most of the monuments at the Museum borrowed from Guatemala were returned in 1947; only Stela 14 and one leg from Altar 4 remain on display in the Museum today. The textual records from the excavations of Piedras Negras consist of 11 linear feet of correspondence, financial records, field notes and diaries, catalogs, and reports and publication materials. The arrangement of the records reflects the original order insofar as could be detected, and portions that had been separated over time were re-integrated into this scheme.
Porticello shipwreck expedition records: In July of 1970, in the straits of Messina about 100 meters from the village of Porticello, underwater excavation of a vessel subsequently determined to be 5th century B.C. Roman, commenced under the direction of David I. Owen, assistant curator of the Underwater Archaeology Section of the University of Pennsylvania Museum. The Porticello Shipwreck spans the period from 1969 - 88 and primarily contains letters, field notes, object descriptions, drawings and photographs (prints, slides, and negatives) of objects and under water excavations relating to the project. The collection is divided into six series: Correspondence; Field Notes; Catalogues; Publications; Drawings; Photographs.
Robert Burkitt excavation records: Robert Burkitt lived and worked in Guatemala for most of his life. A graduate of Harvard University, he first traveled to Central America in 1894 with George Gordon as Gordon's assistant on the Fourth Coban Expedition. Burkitt became enamored with the culture and language of the Maya and never returned to North America. He traveled the countryside, corresponding with Gordon, and collecting items for the Museum under a loosely binding agreement with Gordon and later Horace Jayne. Burkitt's letters and catalogues are rich documents depicting the cultural, linguistic, topological, and historical features of the Guatemala Highlands. Burkitt wrote and worked from the areas of Chama, Chipal, Coban, Senahu, Chiantla, Chocola, and other areas of the Alta Verapaz region. He produced a detailed catalogue of his discoveries accompanied by photgraphs and drawings. Among Burkitt's discoveries is the Ratinixul Vase unearthed in 1923. His work was published in the Museum Journal in 1924 and 1930. Burkitt also wrote about the languages of the Maya, leaving an unfinished grammar and dictionary of the Kekchi language at his death in 1945.
Schuyler V. R. Cammann papers: The collection of Schuyler Van Rensselaer Cammann’s papers, member of the Department of Oriental Studies at the University of Pennsylvania 1948-1982 and Associate Curator of the East Asian Collections 1948-1955, consist of 13 linear feet of correspondence; published and unpublished papers and book reviews; lectures; research notes; unpublished fiction; photographs; drawings; employment history at the University of Pennsylvania; teaching materials; and travels and tours. Professor Cammann wrote, lectured, taught, and consulted in several geographic areas (including China, Tibet, Mongolia, Japan) on such topics as textiles, carpets, art, ivory, snuff bottles, Magic Squares, and symbolism. He authored four books and hundreds of articles and reviews, and presented considerable number of lectures to various meetings, organizations and conferences.
Sitio Conte, Panama expedition records: At the turn of the century, the Río Grande de Coclé changed course, revealing the site of a pre-Columbian cemetery when pottery and gold ornaments were washed out of the river banks. In 1940 the University of Pennsylvania Museum began to excavate Sitio Conte, which belonged to a private landowner, located in the province of Coclé. A very small portion of the pre-Columbian cemetery, estimated to cover four or five acres in its entirety, was selected for excavation. The expedition yielded 6,600 pounds of pottery and stone. The textual records consist of 1.5 linear feet of field notes, diaries, and object cards; correspondence; administrative records concerning contracts, expenses, transportation, and equipment; and unpublished and published reports and articles concerning findings. The arrangement of the records became apparent after some research, for the original order had been lost. Most of the original folder titles, however, have been maintained.
Stewart Culin Cuban expedition records: In 1901, Stewart Culin, Curator Section of American and Prehistoric Archaeolgy at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology traveled to Cuba to investigate the existence of a wild tribe in the mountains of Eastern Cuba. Culin's journey, which lasted a few weeks, took him to Havana and points in Eastern Cuba including El Caney, Mata, Yara, Yateras, Jara, Punta Maisi, Pueblo Viejo, El Caney, El Cobre, Daiquiri, Santiago de Cuba and Guantanamo. The collection consists of 0.1 linear feet including correspondence, field notes, financial records, and photographs. The field notes contain some drawings of musical instruments and utensils with notes on Spanish vocabulary and pronunciation. The photographs depict the harbor and buildings of Havana as well as the native population of Eastern Cuba playing musical instruments and photos of Jose Almenares Arguello, age 112, and his home.
Stewart Culin game collection records: Stewart Culin had a passion for the study of games from around the world and became a pioneer in the field of comparative game studies, amassing an extensive collection of games. The material in this collection is divided into three series: correspondence, collection data, and miscellaneous.
Tell Billa, Iraq expedition records: Tell Billa is located eight miles east of Tepe Gawra and was excavated by the same staff. Because Tell Billa and Tepe Gawra were excavated simultaneosly, records from the excavations are somewhat mixed and should be used together. Although it is difficult to determine amounts of time spent at Tell Billa, emphasis shifted after the third season to the prehistoric layers at Tepe Gawra. When other order is lacking, a chronological order was imposed on the general correspondence according to field season. Related material may be found in correspondence from the Directors Office, Jayne (1929-1940) in the files for Dorothy Cross, George A. Barton, A.S.O.R., and Paul Beidler.
Tepe Gawra, Iraq expedition records: Tepe Gawra is an ancient Mesopotamian settlement in northern Iraq, near the ancient site of Nineveh and fifteen miles northeast of the modern city of Mosul. It was excavated by archaeologists from the University of Pennsylvania, led by E.A. Speiser, who first discovered the site in 1927, and later, C. Bache. The excavations showed that the Tepe Gawra site was occupied from approximately 5000 B.C. to 1500 B.C. The textual records from Tepe Gawra consist of 11.85 linear feet of General Correspondence, Field Notes, Indexes and Catalogues, Field Registers, and Publications, plus Maps and Drawings. Where possible, a chronological order was imposed on the Near East records.
Theodoor de Booy Sierra de Perija expedition records: Theodoor deBooy, a native of the Netherlands, immigrated to the United States in 1906, becoming a citizen in 1916. Trained neither as an archaeologist nor anthropologist, he nevertheless traveled independently to the Bahamas in 1911 to study the Caicos group of islands and, in 1912, published his "Lucayan Remains on the Caicos Islands." From that time on, de Booy dedicated himself to the field of archaeology. The collection includes correspondence with George Byron Gordon, Director of the Penn Museum, a catalog of artifacts, photographs, a bibliography of the region, and lists of his lantern slides, how they should be colored, and how used in publication by the Museum.
Tureng Tepe, Iran expedition records: Tureng Tepe, a site dating from approximately 3100-2900 B.C. through 1900 B.C. in northeast Iran was excavated by Frederick R. Wulsin during two short field seasons in 1931. Although the expedition was directed by Wulsin, a University of Pennsylvania Museum staff member who was a curator of Anthropology during 1930-1932, the expedition was sponsored by the Atkins Museum of Fine Arts in Kansas City, Missouri. Records relating to the excavation at Tureng Tepe are limited, and consist of 2.3 linear feet of correspondence, field notes, and indexes and catalogues.
University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, Mediterranean section curatorial records: The curatorial files encompass the period from the Section's inauguration by Museum President William Pepper in 1894 to the 1970s. While the material in the Mediterranean curatorial files dates from 1895 to 1979, the bulk of the collection dates to the earlier years (1895-1949) and within that period, the majority relate to Edith Hall Dohan.
Ur, Iraq expedition records: Sir Leonard Woolley directed the excavations at Ur in southern Iraq from 1922 to 1934 for the Joint Expedition of the British Museum and the University of Pennsylvania Museum. As part of this involvement, the University of Pennsylvania Museum sent Leon Legrain, Curator of the Babylonian Section, during the 1924–1925 and 1925–1926 seasons. Most of the records of the Ur expedition are located at the British Museum. The Museum Archives hold only a few records. The records consist of general correspondence, indexes and catalogs, publications, and Legrain research. Where possible, a chronological order was imposed on the Near East records.
Vincenzo Petrullo expedition records: Vincenzo M. Petrullo was born in Italy in 1906, entered the United States in 1913, and eventually became a citizen in 1930. Petrullo represented the Penn Museum as the anthropologist for the Matto Grosso Expedition from late 1930 until 1931. Petrullo did archaeological excavations at the expedition headquarters at Descalvados, while waiting five months for governmental permission to conduct research in the Brazilian interior. In 1933 Petrullo returned to South America, his purpose to establish a Latin American Research Institute in Venezuela, with support from that government and the University of Pennsylvania Museum. Petrullo visited South America once again in 1935 in a joint Columbia University-University of Pennsylvania Museum expedition.
Vladimir Fewkes papers: Vladimir Jaroslav Fewkes was born in Czechoslovakia on March 23, 1901. He arrived in Philadelphia in 1921. In 1926 the Wharton School awarded Fewkes a B.S. degree; he then went on to achieve a M.A. in 1928 and a Ph.D. in 1930. During most of his graduate study, he was an Instructor in the Anthropology department, and a research associate in the University Museum. He has conducted field work in Prague, the Danube Valley and Yugoslavia. The textual records from the personal papers of Vladimir J. Fewkes consist of 1.5 linear feet of correspondence, fieldwork and research notes and catalogues, published and unpublished writings, and school notes.
Watson Kintner papers: Watson Kintner, a University of Pennsylvania graduate and a man of means, traveled to more than 30 nations between 1933 until 1969. On his travels Kintner avoided tourist destinations, instead recording the daily life among the peoples visited, as well as sites of archaeological interest. Kintner took photography very seriously, and in the late 1960s and 1970s funded weekend seminars for University of Pennsylvania Museum graduate students. Upon his death, Kintner left an endowment towards various Museum activities and programs. Kintner’s travel records consist of three linear feet of journals, film notes, bills, correspondence, and preparatory notes on the culture, geography and history of the countries he visited (and some that he didn’t) between 1951 and 1969.
William H. Davenport papers: The William H. Davenport collection includes records from field research in the Santa Cruz Islands, Guadalcanal and San Cristobal Islands, and other Solomon Islands; the Moluccas and Sulawesi in Indonesia; and Sarawak in Malaysia, among other locations. Materials span the period from 1952-2002 and contain records primarily related to Davenport's field research, professional activities, student mentoring, and articles and publications.
Zelia Nuttall papers: In 1896 the University of Pennsylvania Museum sponsored its first expedition to Russia. The Museum sent Zelia Nuttall (now remembered mainly for her work in the area of Mexican studies) as its representative on a trip to establish cordial relations and a system of exchanges and cooperation, and to obtain archaeological and ethnological specimens by gift or exchange. Nuttall traveled to Moscow, Kiev, Troitzkoi, Rostov, Nijni-Novgorod, and Riga. She also attended ceremonies for the coronation of Nicholas II and there acquired commemorative prints which she donated to the Museum and to Mrs. Hearst. The collection consists mainly of correspondence from Nuttall to William Pepper and Sara Yorke Stevenson, inventories of objects acquired, and images collected at the Pan-Russian Industrial and Art Exhibition at Nijni-Novgorod (modern Gorki).

Finding Aids

Although we don't yet have all of our finding aids online, many are available through the Penn Libraries' site