The Section of Archaeology is proud to care for a small annex of the Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission library pertaining specifically to published Anthropological and Archaeological materials. This serves as an invaluable resource for both researchers and staff, providing current information in the form of scientific journals and the cumulative information of a collection of books spanning several hundred years of human thought and knowledge.
We frequently overlook the books that are part of our collection for the seemingly more interesting artifacts discussed in former blog posts, but in truth there are some amazing specimens in our library. A recent project has provided the opportunity to sort through some of our rare books in an effort to house and support the older and frailer books of our collection.
As you can see, individual boxes are being constructed to the exact size of the book, allowing them to be completely supported horizontally. The boxes are custom constructed with semi-open ends to allow the books to ‘breathe’; and these are kept in our climate controlled library.
Over the course of this project we have come across some truly rare gems.
One such gem is a book titled Travels Through the United States of North America the Country of the Iroquois and Canada in the Years 1795, 1796, and 1797 With an Authentic Account of Lower Canada written by the Duke De La Rochefoucault Liancourt, published in 1799.
This is a firsthand account of the French nobleman’s observations and adventures traveling from Philadelphia through Pennsylvania, New York and beyond after being exiled from France for his involvement in the Insurrection of 10 August 1792 (a significant battle of the French Revolution). It is invaluable as an early account of the people and lands encountered, but it is also an artifact, and object of material culture held and treasured by many over the past 217 years. Another such treasure is a very old copy of Seneca's Morals of a Happy Life, Benefits, Anger and Clemancy written by the statesman and philosopher Lucius Annaeus Seneca and purportedly published in 1678.
Again the importance of both the information retained in the text but also an example of early printing practices, paper and ink, a precious resource.
There are also a number of books bearing significant signatures. The Traditional History and Characteristic Sketches of the Ojibway Nation was written by George Copway and published in 1850.
While this copy is technically signed by the author it’s done in a friendly and humorous way:
“Presented
to
Mr. Green /
from his Most
Obliged friend
The Author
-----* Nov 9th 1850
She was a pioneer in the work of ethnography during anthropology’s infancy. The last example of a signature discussed in this blog is the Catalogue of the Antiquities of Stone, Earthen and Vegetable Materials in the Museum of the Royal Irish Academy by W. R. Wilde, Secretary of Foreign Correspondence to the Academy and published in 1857.
It is signed:
“David Ferguson Esq.
from
William S. O’Brien
-----------*
March 6, 1858
With best wishes”
William S. O’Brien was an Irish Nationalist and descendent of the eleventh century Ard Ri (High King of Ireland). He was a founding member of the Ossianic Society, interested in promoting the Irish Language and is immortalized by a large statue in the middle of O’Connell Street in Dublin. Unfortunately, David Ferguson Esquire remains a bit of a mystery.
These are just a few examples of these wonderful resources in our library that are an essential tool for our archaeological and anthropological research. It is an ever growing collection as current archaeological journals are coming in, new books are purchased and donations are received. One such donation is from the personal library of a friend and colleague, Dr. Jeff Graybill. Among the more than 80 books graciously donated by his family was a copy of The McKenney-Hall Portrait Gallery of American Indians by James D. Horan and published in 1972.
The McKenney-Hall portraits were commissioned by Thomas McKenney, Superintendent of the Indian Trade Bureau until 1822 when he became the head of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. It was in these capacities that he was able to meet with various Native Chiefs and dignitaries where they were painted by Charles Bird King. Fortunately, lithographs were made of these important and accurate depictions of various native groups because all of the originals were destroyed by a fire at the Smithsonian. The State Museum of Pennsylvania was able to acquire a nearly complete set of these lithographs in 1960 and now thanks to a generous donation, we have the book that explains their story and significance.
The library of the Section of Archaeology holds many treasures indeed… We hope you have enjoyed this glimpse inside our doors and the undertakings of this department. Our preservation efforts go beyond the material remains recovered during our archaeological investigations, they are only objects if we can not research and analyze them to complete the “picture” of our past. We hope we have inspired others to take a look in their own personal libraries or your local public library to enjoy these treasures from the past.
----* used in place of indecipherable words
For more information, visit PAarchaeology.state.pa.us or the Hall of Anthropology and Archaeology at The State Museum of Pennsylvania .
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