2014–2015 ANNUAL REPORT 2014–2015 ANNUAL REPORT INSIDE 3 EXECUTIVE MESSAGE 5 A STRATEGIC VISION 7 THE YEAR IN REVIEW 8 PENN MUSEUM 2014–2015: BY THE MONTH 20 PENN MUSEUM 2014–2015: BY THE NUMBERS 25 PENN MUSEUM 2014–2015: BY THE GEOGRAPHY 25 Teaching and Research: Student, Curator, and Consulting Scholar Field Projects 27 Smith Creek Archaeological Project (Mississippi, United States) 28 On the Wampum Trail: Restorative Research in North American Museums (North America) 29 Understanding Pueblo Cloth in Context (North America) 30 Silver Reef Project (Utah, United States) 31 The Caste War of the Yucatan: The Tihosuco Heritage Preservation and Community Development Project (Mexico) 32 Early Hunters at Cuncaicha (Peru) 33 The La Florida Archaeology Project: Exploring an Ancient Maya River Port (Guatemala) 34 Gordion Archaeological Project (Turkey) — Historical Landscape Preservation at Gordion — Gordion Jewelry Project — Gordion Cultural Heritage Program 38 Kani Shaie Archaeological Project (Iraqi Kurdistan) 39 La Ferrassie (France) 40 The Georgia Genetic History Project (Georgia) 42 Excavations at the Mortuary Complex of Pharaoh Senwosret III at Abydos (Egypt) 44 The Borders of Chinese Architecture (China and Mongolia) 45 Middle Mekong Archaeological Project (Laos) 46 Collections: New Acquisitions 50 Collections: Outgoing Loans and Traveling Exhibitions 53 SUPPORTING THE MISSION 54 Leadership Supporters Objects on the cover, inside cover, and at right 58 The Loren Eiseley Society and Expedition Circles were featured in the special 62 Corporate, Foundation, and Government exhibition Beneath the Agency Supporters Surface: Life, Death, and 63 Sara Yorke Stevenson Legacy Circle Gold in Ancient Panama, from February 7, 2015 through 65 THE GIFT OF TIME November 1, 2015. Cover: 66 Penn Museum Volunteers Cast gold figurine. UPM object #40-13-28. Right: 68 Women’s Committee Painted ceramic vessel. UPM 68 Young Friends of the Penn Museum object #40-16-75. More 69 Board of Overseers information on all of these 69 Director’s Council objects can be found at www.penn.museum/ 70 Penn Museum Advisory Board exhibitions/past-exhibitions. 71 In Memoriam All photos by Penn Museum 72 Curatorial Sections and Museum Centers unless otherwise stated. 74 Penn Museum Department Staff 2 3 EXECUTIVE MESSAGE FOR MORE THAN 127 YEARS, the Penn Museum has been one sands of seventh grade students visiting through Unpacking the of the leading museums of archaeology and anthropology in the Past, a partnership program with the School District of Phila- world, with a collection of more than one million objects that we delphia and KIPP and Mastery Charter Schools lead funded by have largely excavated ourselves. As this report on our activities the GRoW Annenberg Foundation, which brings our collections for 2014–2015 documents, our influence is felt far beyond our in ancient Egypt and ancient Rome to life. During the first full walls by means of loans to leading museums everywhere, through year of Unpacking the Past, over 100 teachers attended four our excavations around the world, and through scholarly and professional development events, and our GRoW Annenberg popular publications that are read widely. educators reached every corner of Philadelphia through out- So it was no surprise when, in February 2014, the British reach lessons, teaching in 183 classrooms in 65 different schools publisher Dorling Kindersley, in collaboration with the Smithsonian spread evenly throughout the City. The team reached a total of Institution, approached us about photographing our objects for 4,318 7th grade students in its first year, including 152 in Autistic a new book—History of the World in 1,000 Objects. But even we Support and Life Skills Support classrooms who rarely, if ever, were not quite prepared for the fact that in the final fall 2014 participate in comparable opportunities. A total of more than publication, 200 of the entries are from our collection, including 3,500 students came with their classrooms for on-site visits. All the famed Bull’s Head of the Great Lyre of Ur in a magnificent participating students were given free family memberships to double spread on the title pages, and a detail from one of our the Penn Museum, 63 of which were activated through the end beautifully illuminated Persian manuscripts in another double of the school year. For support of this high impact program, we spread on the foreword pages. are deeply grateful to the GRoW Annenberg Foundation and the This invaluable testimonial was a timely reminder of many individual, foundation, government agency, and corporate the responsibility that comes with stewardship of such an donors who made generous matching gifts in 2014–2015, partic- extraordinary collection, just as we embark on a comprehensive ularly our Overseer Diane von Schlegell Levy with her husband renovation of many of the galleries and storage areas that Robert M. Levy. house it. 2014–2015 saw significant advances in planning The highlights above show different ways our remarkable that renovation of our Harrison and Coxe (Egyptian) Wings, archaeological collection can be used to transform understanding as well as the completion—in September 2014—of a similarly of our human experience; a fourth is, of course, exhibitions. In comprehensive project on the West Wing of the original 1899 our own galleries, Beneath the Surface: Life, Death, and Gold in portion of our building. Ancient Panama offered new insights into the excavation that Left: In the new The final phase of that West Wing renovation was a stunning uncovered a spectacular burial not far from Panama City in the Conservation Lab transformation, designed by Samuel Anderson Architects, of 1940s, and Corn: From Ancient Crop to Soda Pop was our first opened in September 2014, conservators a now-beautiful set of conservation and teaching labs, with exhibition with curatorial development and design entirely by Julia Lawson ancillary spaces including a classroom, seminar room, and offices, students. Loans and collaborations increased the reach of Penn (foreground) and in perfect time for the launch of the Center for the Analysis of Museum collections through a wide range of exhibitions beyond Nina Owczarek Archaeological Materials (CAAM)—our Museum’s joint initiative our own walls; of special mention must be our partnership prepare objects for with Penn Arts & Sciences—in October 2014. Three courses were with NYU’s Institute for the Study of the Ancient World in the the February 2015 exhibition Beneath offered through CAAM in each of the fall and spring semesters, at exhibition From Ancient to Modern: Archaeology and Aesthetics, the Surface: Life, levels ranging from undergraduate freshman seminar to graduate; which gave New York audiences a chance to see a selection Death, and Gold in all had enrollment beyond inaugural year projections. Several of our objects and archival materials from the great ancient Ancient Panama. other classes visited CAAM for specific sessions to interact with Mesopotamian site of Ur, including the headdress, jewelry, and teaching specialists, or see its spaces and collections. In addition, cape of Queen Puabi. the labs were used for mentoring by teaching specialists, and For all of the many contributions of time, talent, and financial for individual research projects conducted by undergraduates, resources that made these highlights and the myriad other graduate students, and post-docs. In sum, this implementation research, teaching, conservation, and public programming of one of the major new initiatives of our strategic plan just initiatives possible, we are, of course, deeply appreciative. 18 months after its endorsement by our Board of Overseers exceeded our highest hopes and expectations. We owe a debt of gratitude to the donors who provided funding for both the lab renovation and the new CAAM teaching positions, and to our Faculty Steering Committee led by CAAM Director Steve Tinney, with Lab Coordinator Marie-Claude Boileau, for extraordinary Michael J. Kowalski, W74 Julian Siggers, Ph.D. work in planning and implementation. Chairman Williams Director As the West Wing of our Museum came alive with under- graduates energized by their classes, the Kress Entrance and classrooms on the eastern side were similarly animated by thou- 4 5 Penn Museum Annual Report 2014–2015 A STRATEGIC VISION AS OUR PENN MUSEUM SAW, in 2014–2015, the launch of the Our vision for this significant project—a true building trans- Center for the Analysis of Archaeological Materials, the Un- formation—includes that: packing the Past partnership program with the School District • Our Museum audiences will encounter an engaging environ- of Philadelphia, and the completion of a full renovation of the ment, filled with new ideas and experiences, as comfortable galleries, labs, and lecture room in the West Wing of our original as it is beautiful. Many become Museum members to return 1899 building, we now stand poised to initiate the 3rd major goal for unlimited, deeper exploration of the galleries. of our 2013–2020 Strategic Plan: the complete redevelopment and reinstallation of the Upper and Lower Egyptian Galleries, the • Visitors of all ages will appreciate the universal accessibility iconic Rotunda, and the Near East Galleries. These spaces con- in all areas and new amenities. Their number and diversity tain some of our strongest collections, originating from many of will grow, from families with children in strollers enjoying the Museum’s important excavations. They also contain several the interior and garden spaces, to senior groups engaged in of our iconic art objects, pertaining to subject matter of great daytime tours and lectures. public appeal. • Our Penn Museum reputation, and with it the University of Our remarkable collections, when used to full dramatic effect, Pennsylvania’s, will grow internationally with the new world- have the potential to tell compelling narratives. And, opened in class galleries. Penn will be seen more than ever as a gener- 1915 and 1926 respectively, the Harrison and Coxe Wings offer ator of knowledge in the cultural and scientific worlds.