Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Week 10: Final week
Wednesday 8/8
In the morning, I checked sites that I had sent to Pat the site Master last Friday. I only had to change one of the sites since I have been getting fairly good at finding sites with very little information. Many of the specimens I entered into the database were donated from New York historical society members. Most of the donors were not in the database so I had to create a simple parties records in order to associate them with the specimens. There were also two odd entries in the ledger. One was a plaster caster of a Neanderthal skull, which I thought was odd and did not fit with the rest of the non-paleolithic specimens in the ledger. The other was a plaster cast skull of remains from Bolivia. Also odd but less so than the Neanderthal skull. I completed about 30 records for the day.
At the end of the day, there was a small party at the CRC for the last week of the summer interns. We had cake and ice cream, which was delicious.
Thursday 8/9
On Thursday, I completed about 33 records. I also finished entering the regular, organized part of the ledger, which went up to number 717. My supervisors also took me and another intern in Collections Information out to lunch at IHOP as an appreciation for all of our hard work. I finished up the afternoon by going through the entered ledger records for editing.
Friday 8/10
On Friday, I put together all of my notes and documentation, a bone guide for the bone type abbreviations, and updated instructions for the ledger. I sent them to my supervisor so that she would have the information for future reference and for who ever else will be working on it after me.
I also started and finished the unorganized portion of the ledger. I called numbers 718 to 913 the "scribble pages." These pages it were an organized mess of writing on pieces of paper, which noted newer and/or possible acquisitions to the physical anthropology collection between the years of 1920-1930. These specimens were described in depth as the other part of ledger. Also most were from the same place and locality or missing due to unreceived specimens. For those reasons and a little help from the "ditto" function of Emu, I was able to get through the last section fairly quickly.
Well, this concludes my time as an intern at the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time working at the museum, experiencing museum life and events, and meeting a variety of people from all over the United States and even some from other countries such as the United Kingdom. I have also gained valuable experience working in Collections Information and getting to know how to use the KE-EMu collections database system in a large museum.
Sunday, August 5, 2012
Week 9: The Week of Tours
Wednesday 8/1
In the morning, I updated records with the sites that I had sent to Pat the Site Master last Friday and organized my notes to give to Kara on my last day, which is next week. Around 10:30am, Jill had arranged for all of the NMAI interns to go on a tour of the Museum Support Center (MSC) facility. The MSC houses the offices and the collections of the Smithsonian museums, the majority of them being from the Natural History Museum. The MSC facility is divided into 5 pods or storage areas and the collections are moved around according to available space.
The tour was great. We were taken to the open storage area where the large objects are kept such as boats, canoes, a cast of a colossal Olmec head, gemstones, and more. The group was also taken to the anthropology collections processing area, catalog room and cabinet storage area. I saw feather textiles from Peru, Eskimo and Aleutian fur and seal skin coats, samurai armor, Oldowan chopper, Acheulean handaxe, Northwest coast wood carving, and so much more. Lastly, upon request, we were taken to see the nitrogen storage area where they process and keep meteorites! Everything was tightly stored so we didn't get to see much of the actual meteors. After lunch, I finished up the day by completing about 30 records from the ledger.
Thursday 8/2
In the morning, I headed straight out to the Library of Congress for one of the Smithsonian intern tours. First we watched an introductory film and then the tour guide came to take us around. We were in the Jefferson Building, which is the main building of the library and the first one built. It is Congress' library and also the national library of the United States. It is the largest library in the world by shelves and number of books.
The library was originally housed in the Capital Building in the 1800s until the building and the book collection was burned in the War of 1812. Thomas Jefferson then donated his entire library in order to help restore the national library's collection. After the Civil War, a separate building was created to help store the increasing number of books coming into its collection. The library receives the majority of its collection through copyright provisions, which states at least two copies must be given to the library in order to receive rights to any piece of material such as books, poems, music, newspapers, etc.
On the tour, we were told the history of the library, an explanation of the internal architecture and decoration, and shown the main reading room. The group was also shown and told about the history of two famous books exhibited in the library. The Bible of Mains and the Gutenburg Bible. These two books were exhibited across from each other to give a contrast in the advancements in book manufacture. The Bible of Mains was hand written by a monk in Germany, which took about 15 months to copy one. On the other hand, the Gutenburg Bible was copied with the use of a movable type and took one day to make roughly 100 copies. It was the first major book produced on a printing press around the world. These two books show a movement into a major revolution in the way books were copied and produced around the world.
After the tour I stayed around to look at a few of the exhibit areas
also in the library. I went to the Exploring the Americas and Books that
Shaped America exhibits. Library of Congress Exhibits. For the rest of the afternoon on Thursday, I completed 20 records from the ledger.
In the morning, I updated records with the sites that I had sent to Pat the Site Master last Friday and organized my notes to give to Kara on my last day, which is next week. Around 10:30am, Jill had arranged for all of the NMAI interns to go on a tour of the Museum Support Center (MSC) facility. The MSC houses the offices and the collections of the Smithsonian museums, the majority of them being from the Natural History Museum. The MSC facility is divided into 5 pods or storage areas and the collections are moved around according to available space.
The tour was great. We were taken to the open storage area where the large objects are kept such as boats, canoes, a cast of a colossal Olmec head, gemstones, and more. The group was also taken to the anthropology collections processing area, catalog room and cabinet storage area. I saw feather textiles from Peru, Eskimo and Aleutian fur and seal skin coats, samurai armor, Oldowan chopper, Acheulean handaxe, Northwest coast wood carving, and so much more. Lastly, upon request, we were taken to see the nitrogen storage area where they process and keep meteorites! Everything was tightly stored so we didn't get to see much of the actual meteors. After lunch, I finished up the day by completing about 30 records from the ledger.
Thursday 8/2
In the morning, I headed straight out to the Library of Congress for one of the Smithsonian intern tours. First we watched an introductory film and then the tour guide came to take us around. We were in the Jefferson Building, which is the main building of the library and the first one built. It is Congress' library and also the national library of the United States. It is the largest library in the world by shelves and number of books.
The library was originally housed in the Capital Building in the 1800s until the building and the book collection was burned in the War of 1812. Thomas Jefferson then donated his entire library in order to help restore the national library's collection. After the Civil War, a separate building was created to help store the increasing number of books coming into its collection. The library receives the majority of its collection through copyright provisions, which states at least two copies must be given to the library in order to receive rights to any piece of material such as books, poems, music, newspapers, etc.
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| Great Hall |
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| Main Reading Room (Courtesy of Library of Congress) |
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| Minerva of Peace glass mosaic |
Friday 8/3
I did the usual record entering, sent the last sites e-mail to Pat the Site master, and grouped the completed records for the week. I am now up to record number 650!
Sunday, July 29, 2012
Week 8: Famous Archaeologists and a Peru Festival
Wednesday 7/25
On Wednesday, I started off the day as normal entering more data from the physical anthropology ledger. I started on record number 454, which continued with the Tibia bones from the site in Southern California. I finally got through all 200 records that were from the same site and moved on to specimens from different sites!
The majority of the human remains collection was received by Mark Raymond Harrington. He was a famous pioneer of Native American archaeology and traveled all over the United States and Cuba. Some of the sites he excavated were from the states of Arkansas, Tennessee, New Mexico, and Arizona. Harrington also did research on Native Americans for the Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation in New York. Mentioned in the ledger was one of his expeditions in Tennessee with Clarence B. Moore. Moore was also an archaeologist who studied and excavated Native American sites in the Southeastern U.S.
Here are a few sites with bios on both Harrington and Moore:
I also learned new word terms which were used to describe the condition of the skeleton: plagiocephaly and rachitic. Plagiocephaly literally means flathead syndrome. It is the asymmetrical flattening of one side of the skull often found at birth. Rachitic is used to describe a skeleton which appears to have been affected by rickets, the softening and weakening of bones caused by a lack in certain nutrients.
Thursday 7/26
On Thursday, I spent the morning entering more data into the records. I made it up to record number 500! Not too much more to go until I have completed all 717 entries. In the afternoon, I went with a few conservators at the CRC to check out the Kaypi Peru Festival at NMAI on the mall. When we arrived there was a music and dance performance that was starting. I watched the performance and also perused the vendors who were selling textiles, iconography, jewelry, pottery, clothing, and more. Check out the link above to learn more about it.
Friday 7/27
On Friday, I did the usual data entering. There were a few sites this week that needed clarification as to the proper site name so I made a list and sent it to Pat the Site Master. I also grouped the completed records for the week, which concluded with record number 553. At this point in the ledger a few entries I noticed also mentioned some not-so-famous archaeologists/collectors.
The first one was a man by the name of DeMoss Bowers, son of Stephen Bowers a famous California archaeologist. He made several expeditions to the Southern California Channel Islands for the Southwest Museum of the American Indian (SW Museum), now the Autry National Center. The Channel Islands were historically inhabited by the Chumash people. (Here linked is information on the Channel Islands and the history of the Chumash people)
Second, William Herman Golisch was another California archaeologist. He also led an expedition to the Southern California Channel Islands for the SW Museum.
Lastly, Ralph Glidden was an archaeologist who conducted research for the Heye Foundation in New York. I guess you can tell the trend by now... He also conducted research on the Channel Islands off the coast of California. Here is a link to a Missouri newspaper article from 1929, which talks briefly about Glidden's research into the origins of the American Indian and "his collection of skulls."
Well, looks like I have two more weeks left at the internship! Stay tuned for the exciting conclusion.
On Wednesday, I started off the day as normal entering more data from the physical anthropology ledger. I started on record number 454, which continued with the Tibia bones from the site in Southern California. I finally got through all 200 records that were from the same site and moved on to specimens from different sites!
The majority of the human remains collection was received by Mark Raymond Harrington. He was a famous pioneer of Native American archaeology and traveled all over the United States and Cuba. Some of the sites he excavated were from the states of Arkansas, Tennessee, New Mexico, and Arizona. Harrington also did research on Native Americans for the Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation in New York. Mentioned in the ledger was one of his expeditions in Tennessee with Clarence B. Moore. Moore was also an archaeologist who studied and excavated Native American sites in the Southeastern U.S.
Here are a few sites with bios on both Harrington and Moore:
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| Clarence B. Moore courtesy of Lighthouse Books |
I also learned new word terms which were used to describe the condition of the skeleton: plagiocephaly and rachitic. Plagiocephaly literally means flathead syndrome. It is the asymmetrical flattening of one side of the skull often found at birth. Rachitic is used to describe a skeleton which appears to have been affected by rickets, the softening and weakening of bones caused by a lack in certain nutrients.
Thursday 7/26
On Thursday, I spent the morning entering more data into the records. I made it up to record number 500! Not too much more to go until I have completed all 717 entries. In the afternoon, I went with a few conservators at the CRC to check out the Kaypi Peru Festival at NMAI on the mall. When we arrived there was a music and dance performance that was starting. I watched the performance and also perused the vendors who were selling textiles, iconography, jewelry, pottery, clothing, and more. Check out the link above to learn more about it.
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| Peruvian Mask used in the Diablada punena dance |
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| Village scene from part of a retablo or devotional painting |
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| Colorful textiles |
On Friday, I did the usual data entering. There were a few sites this week that needed clarification as to the proper site name so I made a list and sent it to Pat the Site Master. I also grouped the completed records for the week, which concluded with record number 553. At this point in the ledger a few entries I noticed also mentioned some not-so-famous archaeologists/collectors.
The first one was a man by the name of DeMoss Bowers, son of Stephen Bowers a famous California archaeologist. He made several expeditions to the Southern California Channel Islands for the Southwest Museum of the American Indian (SW Museum), now the Autry National Center. The Channel Islands were historically inhabited by the Chumash people. (Here linked is information on the Channel Islands and the history of the Chumash people)
Second, William Herman Golisch was another California archaeologist. He also led an expedition to the Southern California Channel Islands for the SW Museum.
Lastly, Ralph Glidden was an archaeologist who conducted research for the Heye Foundation in New York. I guess you can tell the trend by now... He also conducted research on the Channel Islands off the coast of California. Here is a link to a Missouri newspaper article from 1929, which talks briefly about Glidden's research into the origins of the American Indian and "his collection of skulls."
Well, looks like I have two more weeks left at the internship! Stay tuned for the exciting conclusion.
Sunday, July 22, 2012
Week 7: Crania and beyond
Wednesday 7/18
Well this was week was quite uneventful. I did the usual: sat in my medium sized cubicle and cataloged ledger records. Not so exciting. In order to pass the time, I listened to music on Pandora and occasionally browsed the internet for fun and amusing facts on whatever topic I am cataloging. On Wednesday, most of the records I cataloged were Crania or Calvaria. Calvarium/calvaria is a Latin word used to describe a skull that is missing the lower jaw or mandible. The records for the next 200 or so entries were pretty much from the same place, Channel Islands of Southern California. Seems as though all of the skeletal materials from this place were arranged in the ledger by part. I finished up the day by completing 43 records and moved onto the Mandibles.
Thursday 7/19 and Friday 7/20
On Thursday, I started on the Mandibles or Mandibula (Latin word form) records. There weren't too many Mandibles. I also cataloged the other bones such as the Humerus, Scapula, Clavicle, Unla, Radius, and Os coxae (pelvic bone). The individual bone entries were rather short so I was able to complete up to record 400!
On Friday, I cataloged Femur and Tibia bones. I completed 53 more entries, which left me at record number 453! I was also able to leave work early to go see The Dark Knight Rises in IMAX at the National Museum of Natural History!
Well this was week was quite uneventful. I did the usual: sat in my medium sized cubicle and cataloged ledger records. Not so exciting. In order to pass the time, I listened to music on Pandora and occasionally browsed the internet for fun and amusing facts on whatever topic I am cataloging. On Wednesday, most of the records I cataloged were Crania or Calvaria. Calvarium/calvaria is a Latin word used to describe a skull that is missing the lower jaw or mandible. The records for the next 200 or so entries were pretty much from the same place, Channel Islands of Southern California. Seems as though all of the skeletal materials from this place were arranged in the ledger by part. I finished up the day by completing 43 records and moved onto the Mandibles.
Thursday 7/19 and Friday 7/20
On Thursday, I started on the Mandibles or Mandibula (Latin word form) records. There weren't too many Mandibles. I also cataloged the other bones such as the Humerus, Scapula, Clavicle, Unla, Radius, and Os coxae (pelvic bone). The individual bone entries were rather short so I was able to complete up to record 400!
On Friday, I cataloged Femur and Tibia bones. I completed 53 more entries, which left me at record number 453! I was also able to leave work early to go see The Dark Knight Rises in IMAX at the National Museum of Natural History!
Sunday, July 15, 2012
Week 6: Cave or Village? The Cuba Site Problem
Jumping right into this last week...
Wednesday 7/11
Started off the day by organizing my notes and questions to go over with Kara. While I was waiting for her to get around to talking with me, I did a little research on the problem sites in Cuba. In the ledger there were two sites with related NMAI numbers that did not have the same sites. The ledger sites stated the locality was at a village site and the NMAI record stated the locality was in a cave. I asked Pat the Site Master for help and she recommended I look into Mark R. Harrington's publication "Cuba Before Columbus."
Wednesday 7/11
Started off the day by organizing my notes and questions to go over with Kara. While I was waiting for her to get around to talking with me, I did a little research on the problem sites in Cuba. In the ledger there were two sites with related NMAI numbers that did not have the same sites. The ledger sites stated the locality was at a village site and the NMAI record stated the locality was in a cave. I asked Pat the Site Master for help and she recommended I look into Mark R. Harrington's publication "Cuba Before Columbus."
After I looked through the book and the descriptions of the location of each site, I could not find anything that specified whether the specimens from Cuba were from a village or a cave. Instead, I left each locality as they were and noted the discrepancy between the conflicting information. I also had another problem with another site in Cuba and the Goat Island site in Jamaica from a few weeks ago. These sites were dealt with in the same way as the cave v. village site.
Next, I updated the records with the new sites that I had sent to Pat from the previous week. I finally got to meet with Kara after lunch to go over my notes that I had taken when she was gone. We went through each and updated the records as we went down the list. I finished up the day by entering 12 records.
Thursday 7/12 and Friday 7/13
On Thursday I entered the usual 40 records for the day. I also learned a new word: trephination or trephining as it was in the ledger. This word was used to described cut marks and a hole in the skull. The word is used to describe pre-modern or ancient surgery. Wikipedia describes it as the following: making a burr hole, is a surgical intervention in which a hole is drilled or scraped into the human skull, exposing the dura mater
to treat health problems related to intracranial diseases. It may also
refer to any "burr" hole created through other body surfaces, including
nail beds. It is often used to relieve pressure beneath a surface. A trephine is an instrument used for cutting out a round piece of skull bone.
I left work around 3:30pm on Thursday to go to one of the NMNH's SIMA program lecture series in Museum Anthropology. The lecture was by Dr. Marit Munson of Trent University. Her lecture was titled “Art & Artifact: Archaeological Approaches to Material Culture.” Here is the details of the lecture:
In anthropological collections, the divide between art and artifact is idiosyncratic and subjective, with a few select objects 'elevated' to the status of art-- and most relegated to mere artifact. This act of naming goes beyond philosophical debates, as it has practical consequences for the ways that we view, handle, and ask questions of objects. Drawing on examples from the US Southwest, I demonstrate how ideas of art vs. artifact have pushed research on rock art and kiva murals toward questions of iconography, symbolism, and meaning. By casting these objects as art, archaeologists have neglected the more material questions routinely asked of other artifacts, such as raw material sources, production sequences, and labor investment. I illustrate the differing insights that come from each line of inquiry, arguing that researchers need to consider objects' potential as artifacts and as art if we wish to more fully understand the past.
In anthropological collections, the divide between art and artifact is idiosyncratic and subjective, with a few select objects 'elevated' to the status of art-- and most relegated to mere artifact. This act of naming goes beyond philosophical debates, as it has practical consequences for the ways that we view, handle, and ask questions of objects. Drawing on examples from the US Southwest, I demonstrate how ideas of art vs. artifact have pushed research on rock art and kiva murals toward questions of iconography, symbolism, and meaning. By casting these objects as art, archaeologists have neglected the more material questions routinely asked of other artifacts, such as raw material sources, production sequences, and labor investment. I illustrate the differing insights that come from each line of inquiry, arguing that researchers need to consider objects' potential as artifacts and as art if we wish to more fully understand the past.
Friday was pretty low-key. I entered another 40 or so records and am now at record number 300!
Monday, July 9, 2012
Week 5: Halfway There!
This week I worked only on Thursday and Friday because the 4th of July was on Wednesday. Monday I got a free lunch at the Folklife festival for the Smithsonian staff picnic. I also bought Mayan made earrings and a Tibetan skull bracelet for only $6!
Wednesday I went to the Folklife festival with Derek (my boyfriend). For more information go here: http://www.festival.si.edu/ . It was a great event but it was so hot outside! I saw the AIDS quilt and the many booths/tents set up by colleges and universities across the U.S. They displayed a variety of topics from green houses and sustainability, traditional medicines, dairy farming, and fossils, to robotic technology, digitization, and aerial mapping. Then we went to see the concert and fireworks at the Capital.
Thursday and Friday 7/5 and 7/6
I started out Thursday by updating the sites from last week. Some of the sites for a few records needed a little more research since there was a discrepancy in the database as to where the specimens were actually found. I also completed over my usual number of records for the day. I got around 40 records completed on Thursday! Charging through this stuff at light speed....haha, I wish.
Friday, I completed a little over 40 records. I sent a very long list of site questions to Pat the Site Master for more explanation or just asking for recommendations on the best site to use. I also added the completed records to the group I created on the database to be checked later. This marks the halfway point in the internship!
Wednesday I went to the Folklife festival with Derek (my boyfriend). For more information go here: http://www.festival.si.edu/ . It was a great event but it was so hot outside! I saw the AIDS quilt and the many booths/tents set up by colleges and universities across the U.S. They displayed a variety of topics from green houses and sustainability, traditional medicines, dairy farming, and fossils, to robotic technology, digitization, and aerial mapping. Then we went to see the concert and fireworks at the Capital.
Thursday and Friday 7/5 and 7/6
I started out Thursday by updating the sites from last week. Some of the sites for a few records needed a little more research since there was a discrepancy in the database as to where the specimens were actually found. I also completed over my usual number of records for the day. I got around 40 records completed on Thursday! Charging through this stuff at light speed....haha, I wish.
Friday, I completed a little over 40 records. I sent a very long list of site questions to Pat the Site Master for more explanation or just asking for recommendations on the best site to use. I also added the completed records to the group I created on the database to be checked later. This marks the halfway point in the internship!
Friday, June 29, 2012
Week 4: "...in somewhat good condition."
This was a short week at the internship since I am now working three days at the Archives (my normal job where I get paid) and three days at NMAI. The reason being is they decided not to give me enough to live without pay for three months. Although it's kind of a let that I don't get as much time to work on the ledger project. Hopefully things will work out. Also I was completely on my own this week, as Kara went on a two week vacation but I have managed so far. She is going to have a laundry list of questions when she gets back!
Onward to Wednesday 6/27...
I started out the day by adding new sites to some of the records I had entered last week. The locality section of the ledger tells me where certain specimens were found or excavated and I have to put that information into the "Sites" section of the record. All of the sites are created by one person: the supreme site creator, now on known as Pat the Site Master. She is one of the Collections Manager at the CRC. Apparently, she knows everything about sites. Sometimes the location in the ledger has not been created in the database and I have to send her an e-mail to create that site. I also added the completed records into a group for easy access.
Since I had 50 new records created by the record maker (Heather, the record maker), I continued on my way deciphering old hand writing/spelling and entering the ledger information into the database. Some of the information is very tricky to figure out. Thanks to my amazing deduction skills, I've been doing fairly well so far. Found out that the Cibunez tribe, as it is spelled in the ledger, is actually the Ciboney tribe. They hail from the Caribbean. Eventually I did run out of records. I contacted the record maker to make more but she was in training. So I had to start on those pesky measurements again!
Thursday 6/28
Just when I thought all of the kinks were worked out. The record maker had to send in a curve ball. I tried to explain to her why I needed so many more records to be made but apparently she didn't understand the situation. Simply put I need more records when I have completed the ones I can and eventually go back to the ones that I am suppose to skip for now. This is sort of my job. Well no deal on that table and she was giving me a fuss. So I went to Ann the Curator, told her the situation, and she sorted the problem out. Now I get records in batches of 100 when requested!
I find some of the bone descriptions quite hysterical sometimes when I read them. Cranium - dirty yellowish, brownish...I'm trying to picture this color but all I get is weird poop brown images in my head. Next it will mention some parts of the face or skull that is "defective", broken, or gone. Even if half the skull was gone it will still be described as "in somewhat good condition" or "fairly well preserved." Not really sure what this information was used for because the descriptions are clearly subjective.
A new place I learned about is Jauco, Cuba, a small coastal village. New tribe names: Neutrals and Kwakiutl in Canada, Conestogans in Pennsylvania, and Taino-Arawak in the Caribbean.
Lastly, there was a potluck at the CRC on Thursday for someone who was leaving. That means free food! Someone had brought in a huge crock pot full of chili, which was amazing!
Friday 6/29
Continued entering ledger information into EMu. I was able to get to record #125 today! Most of the specimens I entered today were from the collection of Dr. Joseph L. Jones, a renowned physician from Louisiana. Also ran into other GWU interns at the Museum Support Center cafeteria at lunch today!
Next week, I look forward to going to the Folklife Festival and 4th of July festivities. Hopefully more pictures!
Onward to Wednesday 6/27...
I started out the day by adding new sites to some of the records I had entered last week. The locality section of the ledger tells me where certain specimens were found or excavated and I have to put that information into the "Sites" section of the record. All of the sites are created by one person: the supreme site creator, now on known as Pat the Site Master. She is one of the Collections Manager at the CRC. Apparently, she knows everything about sites. Sometimes the location in the ledger has not been created in the database and I have to send her an e-mail to create that site. I also added the completed records into a group for easy access.
Since I had 50 new records created by the record maker (Heather, the record maker), I continued on my way deciphering old hand writing/spelling and entering the ledger information into the database. Some of the information is very tricky to figure out. Thanks to my amazing deduction skills, I've been doing fairly well so far. Found out that the Cibunez tribe, as it is spelled in the ledger, is actually the Ciboney tribe. They hail from the Caribbean. Eventually I did run out of records. I contacted the record maker to make more but she was in training. So I had to start on those pesky measurements again!
Thursday 6/28
Just when I thought all of the kinks were worked out. The record maker had to send in a curve ball. I tried to explain to her why I needed so many more records to be made but apparently she didn't understand the situation. Simply put I need more records when I have completed the ones I can and eventually go back to the ones that I am suppose to skip for now. This is sort of my job. Well no deal on that table and she was giving me a fuss. So I went to Ann the Curator, told her the situation, and she sorted the problem out. Now I get records in batches of 100 when requested!
I find some of the bone descriptions quite hysterical sometimes when I read them. Cranium - dirty yellowish, brownish...I'm trying to picture this color but all I get is weird poop brown images in my head. Next it will mention some parts of the face or skull that is "defective", broken, or gone. Even if half the skull was gone it will still be described as "in somewhat good condition" or "fairly well preserved." Not really sure what this information was used for because the descriptions are clearly subjective.
A new place I learned about is Jauco, Cuba, a small coastal village. New tribe names: Neutrals and Kwakiutl in Canada, Conestogans in Pennsylvania, and Taino-Arawak in the Caribbean.
Lastly, there was a potluck at the CRC on Thursday for someone who was leaving. That means free food! Someone had brought in a huge crock pot full of chili, which was amazing!
Friday 6/29
Continued entering ledger information into EMu. I was able to get to record #125 today! Most of the specimens I entered today were from the collection of Dr. Joseph L. Jones, a renowned physician from Louisiana. Also ran into other GWU interns at the Museum Support Center cafeteria at lunch today!
Next week, I look forward to going to the Folklife Festival and 4th of July festivities. Hopefully more pictures!
Friday, June 22, 2012
Week 3: DPAL and Choctaw
Tuesday 6/18
The project I am taking on is inputting information about human remains specimens from a physical anthropology ledger book from 1915 - 1930. Here is some information about the ledger:
In the early days of the Museum of the American Indian, the founder and main collector, George Gustav Heye, created the Department of Physical Anthropology (DPAL) to hold human remain specimens. The specimens were given to the museum from prominent anthropological scholars for research. At that time many physical anthropologists and archaeologists excavated Native American mounds and burial sites and took the remains for "scholarly research." The remains given to the museum were recorded into a catalog ledger. Eventually the DPAL was closed from lack of use and the remains were transferred to other museums and universities. The majority of them went to the NYU School of Dentistry.
The records that were written in the ledger were photocopied and put into a notebook. The notebook is what I am now using to input the information into the NMAI collections database.
Last Friday I went through the notebook and tried to decipher what I would call the "bone code." I call it the bone code because for each specimen the name of the bone(s) are abbreviated with a number or the part of the bone (if in a series) proceeding the abbreviation.
On Tuesday, I organized the notes that I wrote down to make a key for the ledger bone code. For the rest of the day I worked on entering more South American collection measurements into the database. The objects were more textiles such as bark cloths, women's skirts, and dance outfits. Near the end of the day, I finally got the instructions for entering the project into the database. The instructions consisted mostly of the fields I would be using and the specific information to enter into those fields.
Wednesday 6/19
I went to the Choctaw Days event at NMAI. I had a good time. At the even I was able to get a small glimpse into the Choctaw culture. They had information tables on food, native tools, flutes, pottery, basket making, beadwork, the Choctaw school of language, stick ball, and so much more. The main theme of the event was to celebrate the Choctaw code talkers of World War I. I was also able to talk to a few people about how they made baskets! In the activity center, there were stations to make Choctaw crafts such as corn husk dolls and beaded choker or bracelet. I chose to make a bracelet. I also got a cute airbrushed turtle tattoo!
Above is a picture of some of the baskets at the event. The diamond pattern is important and prominent pattern in Choctaw crafts and clothing. They use this pattern to show respect to the rattlesnake.
In the afternoon, there were performances by a Choctaw flute player and dancers. Below is one of social dances they performed call the "Raccoon Dance."
Thursday and Friday 6/20-6/21
For the rest of the week I started working on ledger entries, testing the instructions, and making changes where necessary by noting any problems or concerns. I also numbered the copied ledger pages. I did about the first 20 specimens in the notebook because about 10 or so were crossed out and replaced, which is another problem we have to tackle later.
Afterwards, I cleaned up the records with the approved revisions from Kara and the revisions were added to the main entry instructions as well. For most of the day on Friday I went back to inputting those darn measurements again because I didn't have any records to enter information. (There is someone else who creates the record and I just put in the information. There were also only 20 records made for the week and the record maker was out of the office.) So more measurements!
Some of the textiles were from the Quechua peoples of Cuzco, Peru.
Link for more info on Quechua.
The project I am taking on is inputting information about human remains specimens from a physical anthropology ledger book from 1915 - 1930. Here is some information about the ledger:
In the early days of the Museum of the American Indian, the founder and main collector, George Gustav Heye, created the Department of Physical Anthropology (DPAL) to hold human remain specimens. The specimens were given to the museum from prominent anthropological scholars for research. At that time many physical anthropologists and archaeologists excavated Native American mounds and burial sites and took the remains for "scholarly research." The remains given to the museum were recorded into a catalog ledger. Eventually the DPAL was closed from lack of use and the remains were transferred to other museums and universities. The majority of them went to the NYU School of Dentistry.
The records that were written in the ledger were photocopied and put into a notebook. The notebook is what I am now using to input the information into the NMAI collections database.
Last Friday I went through the notebook and tried to decipher what I would call the "bone code." I call it the bone code because for each specimen the name of the bone(s) are abbreviated with a number or the part of the bone (if in a series) proceeding the abbreviation.
On Tuesday, I organized the notes that I wrote down to make a key for the ledger bone code. For the rest of the day I worked on entering more South American collection measurements into the database. The objects were more textiles such as bark cloths, women's skirts, and dance outfits. Near the end of the day, I finally got the instructions for entering the project into the database. The instructions consisted mostly of the fields I would be using and the specific information to enter into those fields.
Wednesday 6/19
I went to the Choctaw Days event at NMAI. I had a good time. At the even I was able to get a small glimpse into the Choctaw culture. They had information tables on food, native tools, flutes, pottery, basket making, beadwork, the Choctaw school of language, stick ball, and so much more. The main theme of the event was to celebrate the Choctaw code talkers of World War I. I was also able to talk to a few people about how they made baskets! In the activity center, there were stations to make Choctaw crafts such as corn husk dolls and beaded choker or bracelet. I chose to make a bracelet. I also got a cute airbrushed turtle tattoo!
In the afternoon, there were performances by a Choctaw flute player and dancers. Below is one of social dances they performed call the "Raccoon Dance."
Thursday and Friday 6/20-6/21
For the rest of the week I started working on ledger entries, testing the instructions, and making changes where necessary by noting any problems or concerns. I also numbered the copied ledger pages. I did about the first 20 specimens in the notebook because about 10 or so were crossed out and replaced, which is another problem we have to tackle later.
Afterwards, I cleaned up the records with the approved revisions from Kara and the revisions were added to the main entry instructions as well. For most of the day on Friday I went back to inputting those darn measurements again because I didn't have any records to enter information. (There is someone else who creates the record and I just put in the information. There were also only 20 records made for the week and the record maker was out of the office.) So more measurements!
Some of the textiles were from the Quechua peoples of Cuzco, Peru.
Link for more info on Quechua.
Friday, June 15, 2012
Week 2: Time to get to work!
For the remainder of the internship, I have decided to do weekly blog entries that captures the main points of the entire week. Unless something really amazing happens then I will post right away!
Tuesday 6/12
In the morning I restarted the Events entry that I was trying to start last Friday but failed. I was trying to put in sections of the exhibit but was not able to add them to the "Look up List" in EMu. Look up Lists are set list of words/terms, which can be added to if needed, and used for certain fields. Kara helped me create the exhibit sections for the event and all was well again. I was able to finish the entry without any other problems.
After lunch, I was given my next temporary task: a one inch binder full of old measurements to enter into EMu. The measurements were done prior to the Museum of the American Indian's big collection move from NY to DC in 1993. All of the measurements were done in 3-dimensions instead of 2-dimensions so I had ignore the height and go with the width and the depth. Most of the objects I was entering measurement for were textiles so I'm not sure why they were measured in 3-D. It's a mystery! Luckily the majority of the objects had catalog numbers that I could easily find in the database. For the rest of the day, I looked up the catalog number of the objects in the notebook and put in measurements where necessary.
Wednesday and Thursday 6/13-6/14
For the next two day I was working on the measurement notebook. Each section of the notebook was divided by "storage vault" name from the old MAI storage facility. I started working on the "Boatroom Vault." This section contained mostly woven plant/natural textiles such mats, rain capes, etc. from various cultures. The "Boatroom" was short and I finished in a few hours. The next section was the "South American Vault." This section contained mostly garment textiles such as shirts, whole and parts. There were also some pants, ceremonial outfits, and coconut fiber cloths just to name a few.
A large amount of the shirts and shirt parts were collected from the Kuna people indigenous to Panama and Colombia. The shirts are called molas and are the traditional garment worn by women. The shirts are made by sewing panels of fabric together. There were so many shirts and panels! They were fascinating to look at, very colorful and intricately made. Most had traditional designs and some had contemporary animal motifs. As I was going through the catalog and looking at the shirts, I realized I actually have a shirt panel made by the Kuna from Panama! I was fascinated to have discovered that I have something similar to what was in the museum. I almost feel like a collector!
Check out the links to learn more about molas and see the one that I have:
About Molas
More about Molas
My Kuna mola picture
At the end of the day on Thursday, I finally got the notebook to start my project!
Friday 6/15
Today was the day for a plethora of free coffee, doughnuts, and bagels! yum!
In the morning, I went to the beginning of a digitization mini-conference at NMAI then left for the intern/staff meet and greet, which was up on the next floor.
The mini-conference was called 15 Years Digitizing the Smithsonian: Projects Supported by the CIS IRM Pool. The CIS IRM Pool (Collections Information System - Integrated Resource Management) supports collections management and outreach by funding digitization efforts at the Smithsonian. The conference was put together by my supervisor Kara and I got to hear about different digitization projects from many of the Smithsonian museums such as the Natural History Museum, Air and Space and Freer/Sackler (Asian Collection). I also learned about Digital Asset Management Systems or DAMS and archival systems such as Archivist Toolkit, DACS and EAD.
The intern/staff meet and greet was nice. I got in late so not many people were left but I did get to hear a native drum song, which welcomed the interns to the museum. Then I talked to a few people and all of the interns had pictures taken.
Afterwards, I went back to mini-conference with fellow interns Kelly, who I work with in collections information, and Elliot, who works in archives to finish up the afternoon.
After lunch, I went back to the CRC to get a head start on Phase I of my project!
Next week: the exciting project details!
Tuesday 6/12
In the morning I restarted the Events entry that I was trying to start last Friday but failed. I was trying to put in sections of the exhibit but was not able to add them to the "Look up List" in EMu. Look up Lists are set list of words/terms, which can be added to if needed, and used for certain fields. Kara helped me create the exhibit sections for the event and all was well again. I was able to finish the entry without any other problems.
After lunch, I was given my next temporary task: a one inch binder full of old measurements to enter into EMu. The measurements were done prior to the Museum of the American Indian's big collection move from NY to DC in 1993. All of the measurements were done in 3-dimensions instead of 2-dimensions so I had ignore the height and go with the width and the depth. Most of the objects I was entering measurement for were textiles so I'm not sure why they were measured in 3-D. It's a mystery! Luckily the majority of the objects had catalog numbers that I could easily find in the database. For the rest of the day, I looked up the catalog number of the objects in the notebook and put in measurements where necessary.
Wednesday and Thursday 6/13-6/14
For the next two day I was working on the measurement notebook. Each section of the notebook was divided by "storage vault" name from the old MAI storage facility. I started working on the "Boatroom Vault." This section contained mostly woven plant/natural textiles such mats, rain capes, etc. from various cultures. The "Boatroom" was short and I finished in a few hours. The next section was the "South American Vault." This section contained mostly garment textiles such as shirts, whole and parts. There were also some pants, ceremonial outfits, and coconut fiber cloths just to name a few.
A large amount of the shirts and shirt parts were collected from the Kuna people indigenous to Panama and Colombia. The shirts are called molas and are the traditional garment worn by women. The shirts are made by sewing panels of fabric together. There were so many shirts and panels! They were fascinating to look at, very colorful and intricately made. Most had traditional designs and some had contemporary animal motifs. As I was going through the catalog and looking at the shirts, I realized I actually have a shirt panel made by the Kuna from Panama! I was fascinated to have discovered that I have something similar to what was in the museum. I almost feel like a collector!
Check out the links to learn more about molas and see the one that I have:
About Molas
More about Molas
My Kuna mola picture
At the end of the day on Thursday, I finally got the notebook to start my project!
Friday 6/15
Today was the day for a plethora of free coffee, doughnuts, and bagels! yum!
In the morning, I went to the beginning of a digitization mini-conference at NMAI then left for the intern/staff meet and greet, which was up on the next floor.
The mini-conference was called 15 Years Digitizing the Smithsonian: Projects Supported by the CIS IRM Pool. The CIS IRM Pool (Collections Information System - Integrated Resource Management) supports collections management and outreach by funding digitization efforts at the Smithsonian. The conference was put together by my supervisor Kara and I got to hear about different digitization projects from many of the Smithsonian museums such as the Natural History Museum, Air and Space and Freer/Sackler (Asian Collection). I also learned about Digital Asset Management Systems or DAMS and archival systems such as Archivist Toolkit, DACS and EAD.
The intern/staff meet and greet was nice. I got in late so not many people were left but I did get to hear a native drum song, which welcomed the interns to the museum. Then I talked to a few people and all of the interns had pictures taken.
Afterwards, I went back to mini-conference with fellow interns Kelly, who I work with in collections information, and Elliot, who works in archives to finish up the afternoon.
After lunch, I went back to the CRC to get a head start on Phase I of my project!
Next week: the exciting project details!
Friday, June 8, 2012
Day 4: Advanced Emus and Star Gods
I didn't do a whole lot today. So I will skip the boring details.
In the morning, I read two data standard guides. One on how to edit catalog information and the other about creating what they call "Parties" records. Parties records are used to link information about people, organizations, data sources, or delegations that are related to the objects. Really exciting stuff but important nonetheless.
Lunch...I like lunch. Plus I get to socialize with the other interns.
In the afternoon, I got a quick "advanced" training session from Kara. She basically showed me the records I would be editing and creating and the fields I would be using the most. For the human remains (HR) project, I will be creating all new records in the database and linking some to existing HR in the NMAI collection! I am a little bit nervous but hopefully after some practice I will go in with more confidence to not mess anything up.
After the training and with about half an hour left in the work day, I got my first small project. For this project I am entering a new "Event" record into the database and linking objects in the collection to the event. Events are things like past/current exhibits, publication, or anything where the collections were used for a specific purpose. The event that I am creating a record for is an exhibit that was set up at the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) in 1982 called the "Star Gods of the Ancient Americans." Collections of the NMAI were loaned for this exhibit and will be linked to the event. (added a link for more information)
I started the project but I guess the database didn't agree with the terms I was supposed to be using. That problem will have to wait until Tuesday.
About KE-EMu
In the morning, I read two data standard guides. One on how to edit catalog information and the other about creating what they call "Parties" records. Parties records are used to link information about people, organizations, data sources, or delegations that are related to the objects. Really exciting stuff but important nonetheless.
Lunch...I like lunch. Plus I get to socialize with the other interns.
In the afternoon, I got a quick "advanced" training session from Kara. She basically showed me the records I would be editing and creating and the fields I would be using the most. For the human remains (HR) project, I will be creating all new records in the database and linking some to existing HR in the NMAI collection! I am a little bit nervous but hopefully after some practice I will go in with more confidence to not mess anything up.
After the training and with about half an hour left in the work day, I got my first small project. For this project I am entering a new "Event" record into the database and linking objects in the collection to the event. Events are things like past/current exhibits, publication, or anything where the collections were used for a specific purpose. The event that I am creating a record for is an exhibit that was set up at the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) in 1982 called the "Star Gods of the Ancient Americans." Collections of the NMAI were loaned for this exhibit and will be linked to the event. (added a link for more information)
I started the project but I guess the database didn't agree with the terms I was supposed to be using. That problem will have to wait until Tuesday.
About KE-EMu
Thursday, June 7, 2012
Day 3: Training Emus?
Today I trained emus! What, emus? Where?
Nope. Sorry there weren't any real emus at work today.
Although, it was a very long and mentally exhausting day. I got in the CRC around 8:30am, which means my new wake-up time is 6:15am instead of 7am. Ugh! Luckily that means I get off work at 4:30pm!
I didn't have much to do until 10:30am, which was when the database training started. So I ended up killing time by doing the mandatory and oh-so exciting Computer Safety Awareness training and performing random searches on the database.
For the rest of the day I was trained on the KE-EMu collections database, which consisted mostly of me staring at a computer and listening to some guy talk about how to used the basic functionality of the system. Basically, how to log-in, what fields each module contains, how to perform searches using objects, culture names, people, etc, and how to create a report. Most of it I had already figured out but he went over some things again for the other people in the training session. The training was good, although not terribly exciting and stimulating, and the instructor was very thorough. Sometimes he was a little too thorough and went off on tangents.
I also got this neat Emu Ahead keychain for completing the training along with a lanyard and a pen!
Tomorrow looks like it's going to be another uneventful morning. How many ways can I look up Choctaw baskets in the database? More fiddling, I see. Then in the afternoon I will have advanced emu training!
Nope. Sorry there weren't any real emus at work today.
Although, it was a very long and mentally exhausting day. I got in the CRC around 8:30am, which means my new wake-up time is 6:15am instead of 7am. Ugh! Luckily that means I get off work at 4:30pm!
I didn't have much to do until 10:30am, which was when the database training started. So I ended up killing time by doing the mandatory and oh-so exciting Computer Safety Awareness training and performing random searches on the database.
For the rest of the day I was trained on the KE-EMu collections database, which consisted mostly of me staring at a computer and listening to some guy talk about how to used the basic functionality of the system. Basically, how to log-in, what fields each module contains, how to perform searches using objects, culture names, people, etc, and how to create a report. Most of it I had already figured out but he went over some things again for the other people in the training session. The training was good, although not terribly exciting and stimulating, and the instructor was very thorough. Sometimes he was a little too thorough and went off on tangents.
Tomorrow looks like it's going to be another uneventful morning. How many ways can I look up Choctaw baskets in the database? More fiddling, I see. Then in the afternoon I will have advanced emu training!
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
Day 2: I'm official now!
On the second day, I went to the Smithsonian security office to get my super cool intern ID. I can now enter any Smithsonian facility without going through bag check and I get a 20% discount on food and merchandise. Oh yeah!
Then I walked to the Museum shuttle pick up area to wait for the shuttle. Waiting feels like forever sometimes! The shuttle finally came to pick me up to go out to the CRC.
At the CRC, I met my supervior Kara. She showed me my desk, gave me some information about getting my e-mail and we worked out schedule. She also explained the project that I will be working on. The details for now: I am working in the Collections Information Systems department (CIS) and the Collections Research and Documentation unit. I will be entering data into the NMAI's collections database KE-EMu. From what Kara told me, I will be working in conjunction with the Repatriation department to research and help figure out how to input a collection of human remains into their database. I will explain in more about the project later when I start working on it.
For the rest of the day it was mostly making sure the technology was working like the phone, e-mail, and the database. I also went through the book of a training manual and played around with the database in order to get familiar with it. Well it's like I had anything better to do.
There will be no posts for Wednesday this week because I was working at the Archives. Thursday I will be back at CRC for KE-EMu database training!
Then I walked to the Museum shuttle pick up area to wait for the shuttle. Waiting feels like forever sometimes! The shuttle finally came to pick me up to go out to the CRC.
At the CRC, I met my supervior Kara. She showed me my desk, gave me some information about getting my e-mail and we worked out schedule. She also explained the project that I will be working on. The details for now: I am working in the Collections Information Systems department (CIS) and the Collections Research and Documentation unit. I will be entering data into the NMAI's collections database KE-EMu. From what Kara told me, I will be working in conjunction with the Repatriation department to research and help figure out how to input a collection of human remains into their database. I will explain in more about the project later when I start working on it.
For the rest of the day it was mostly making sure the technology was working like the phone, e-mail, and the database. I also went through the book of a training manual and played around with the database in order to get familiar with it. Well it's like I had anything better to do.
There will be no posts for Wednesday this week because I was working at the Archives. Thursday I will be back at CRC for KE-EMu database training!
Day 1: Orientation
I decided to do a blog to tell of my time as an intern at the National Museum of the American Indian. I hope you will follow along and enjoy finding out all of the neat and exciting experiences that may happen during my time at the Museum!
On the first day of my internship, I met the other National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) interns and the internship coordinator, Jill, outside of the Museum around 9 am. Once everyone was gathered and checked in at the security desk, we went to the conference room for an introduction to the Museum, events, and general things to expect during our time working in the Museum. We also had Dunkin Doughnuts!
Next we took the shuttle to NMAI's collection storage facility called the Cultural Resource Center (CRC). Here Jill lead the group around to the different departments at the CRC and introduced us to various intern supervisors. Some of the departments at the CRC are Collections Management, Research, Archives, and Repatriation. Then Jill gave us a tour of some of NMAI's collections from all over the world. The majority of the objects are from the private collection of George Gustav Heye.
After finishing up at the CRC, we took the shuttle back to the Museum for lunch. We ate in the NMAI's Mitsitam cafe. It's a little pricey there so it took a while to find something worth eating. I decided on the buffalo burger. It sounded good at the time and I was starving! Unfortunately the burger was a little on the mediocre and not-really-worth-my-money side but the guava agua fresca was amazing!
Lunch went by pretty fast. I mean, when you are having fun grossing people out (especially vegetarians) with weird food customs, you tend to loss track of time!
After lunch, Jill lead us around to other department at the Museum and introduced us to more intern supervisors.
Then to wrap up the busy day, Jill gave us a brief tour of the current Museum exhibits and explained the meaning behind each of them.
Although it was a very exhausting day, I enjoyed seeing the Museum facilities and meeting new people.
On the first day of my internship, I met the other National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) interns and the internship coordinator, Jill, outside of the Museum around 9 am. Once everyone was gathered and checked in at the security desk, we went to the conference room for an introduction to the Museum, events, and general things to expect during our time working in the Museum. We also had Dunkin Doughnuts!
Next we took the shuttle to NMAI's collection storage facility called the Cultural Resource Center (CRC). Here Jill lead the group around to the different departments at the CRC and introduced us to various intern supervisors. Some of the departments at the CRC are Collections Management, Research, Archives, and Repatriation. Then Jill gave us a tour of some of NMAI's collections from all over the world. The majority of the objects are from the private collection of George Gustav Heye.
After finishing up at the CRC, we took the shuttle back to the Museum for lunch. We ate in the NMAI's Mitsitam cafe. It's a little pricey there so it took a while to find something worth eating. I decided on the buffalo burger. It sounded good at the time and I was starving! Unfortunately the burger was a little on the mediocre and not-really-worth-my-money side but the guava agua fresca was amazing!
Lunch went by pretty fast. I mean, when you are having fun grossing people out (especially vegetarians) with weird food customs, you tend to loss track of time!
After lunch, Jill lead us around to other department at the Museum and introduced us to more intern supervisors.
Then to wrap up the busy day, Jill gave us a brief tour of the current Museum exhibits and explained the meaning behind each of them.
Although it was a very exhausting day, I enjoyed seeing the Museum facilities and meeting new people.
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