Did you know that the Peabody curates ancient poop?
Coprolites are the fossilized remnants of excrement – animal or human. While it may sound gross, curating these materials is invaluable for the archaeological community. You may be asking yourself ‘what could you possibly learn from poop?!’ and while I understand your incredulity, allow me to share the incredibly fascinating information that you can learn.
A coprolite from an unknown site in Arizona.
Coprolites are the snapshot of one day of one individual’s life thousands of years ago. They can reveal what that person ate – whether or not that food was cooked first, was that food local to the area or the product of trade, what time of year that food would be available. Is there evidence of disease or illness? Did different individuals from the same site have radically different diets? If so, what does that say about social status? Coprolites are also viable sources of ancient DNA!
The Peabody curates only a couple dozen coprolites in the collection. And we are always thrilled when researchers come to get the scoop on the poop!
When you think of the binary search algorithm you immediately think an archaeology museum is the perfect place for students to get a hands on example. Right?
Well it certainly was not what students in Nick Zufelt’s Computer Science 500 class expected when they showed up at the museum. To many of the students who had been to the Peabody with their history or science class to look at objects, it was a bit perplexing how they could be combining archaeology with computer science.
What many do not know is that the Peabody has many other resources that PA faculty can tap into. Mr. Zufelt discovered something that Peabody Museum still had that no other place on campus (not even the OWHL!) still had: our card catalog.
The card catalog at the Peabody Museum
When Nick first came up with the idea to use our card catalog in an interactive lab activity for his students, we were ecstatic. We love when Peabody resources are utilized for learning in such out of the box ways. The card catalog was a perfect hands on example for students to understand the binary search algorithm.
To those who are not familiar with this concept (and I was certainly one of them!) Nick began the class with this simple introduction:
When you look up a word in the dictionary, do you start at page 1, look for the word, then move onto page 2, etc.? No, of course not. You have a more sophisticated way of searching through the massive list of words. This activity hones in on the algorithm underlying this process: the binary search algorithm. The basic idea is: chop in half, go to the half that will have your item in it; repeat.
Nick Zufelt, computer science faculty, explaining the project to the students
Each student was then given a page listing 23 different cards from our card catalog system and told to pick one of them. Then they had to find the card and write down the process of how they found it, but in a manner that a computer could follow.
At this point, you might be saying to yourself, “wow that seems like a pretty easy project….” WRONG!
While this activity may strike us as simple, it actually turned into a battle of the wills for many students as they struggled throughout the period to create a very simple process that was also accurate. And when some students had a friend try their process, they often found that what they had devised was incorrect (Arrrgggg!!! The FRUSTRATION!!!!)
This type of learning helps to make abstract concepts more accessible for students as they begin learning something that forces them to think in a completely new and different manner.
Mr. Zufelt has already talked about bringing future students back for the activity and we look forward to working with him and his students on this and other computer science adventures at the Peabody!
NOTE: Despite still having a card catalog, the Peabody library is completely cataloged in the system used by the Oliver Wendell Holmes Library. Our librarian Mary Beth Clack is currently updating records to make monographic series more accessible.
Most of the Peabody staff recently traveled to Vancouver, British Columbia to take part in the 82nd annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology (SAA). While at the conference, we each had our own role. In addition to helping to staff the Peabody table in the exhibitor hall, collections assistant Samantha Hixson and I had the privilege of a collections tour at the Museum of Anthropology (MOA) and the Laboratory of Archaeology (LOA) at the University of British Columbia.
The MOA is a unique institution that houses ethnographic objects from around the world, with an emphasis on material from the Pacific Northwest. The vast majority of these pieces are on display in open storage. That means the galleries are essentially storage spaces with thousands of objects presented to the visitor with little interpretative text.
Basketry display at the MOA
Totem poles at the MOA
Display of a fish mask at the MOA
Collections storage at the MOA is impressive and elaborate. Each object has its own individually crafted mount and locations are tracked with barcodes. The Laboratory of Archaeology on the other hand has very little to no exhibition space. They carefully photograph every object for inclusion in their online catalog and individually bag and label each artifact. Their storage is no less impressive as artifacts are arrayed on compacting storage shelves with room for growth. This is the type of collections storage that I aspire to – but we have a long way to go!
Example of individual object storage at the MOA
Example of individual object storage at the LOA
Collections storage at the MOA
Touring the storage spaces at these institutions was incredibly helpful as Samantha and I brainstorm to reimagine collections storage at the Peabody. We are very grateful for the time spent and information shared with us – well worth the trip!
Last week, the Peabody had the pleasure of hosting Dr. Paulette Steeves as she examined portions of the MacNeish collection. Dr. Steeves is currently a Lecturer of Indigenous archaeology and anthropology and the Interim Director of the certificate program in Native American Studies at UMass Amherst. Her research focuses on the peopling of the Western hemisphere, but not through the traditional Bering Strait theory.
Dr. Steeves uses indigenous theory and methodology to explore sites in the Americas that date back as far as 60,000 years ago. This is actually a big deal and an anti-establishment approach to the subject. Dr. Steeves is looking into the materials collected by Scotty MacNeish during his work in the 1960s in Peru and Mexico for additional evidence. MacNeish was also a proponent of the idea of early colonization and much of his collection has remained unanalyzed for decades.
Dr. Steeves was thrilled to see the collection and to meet MacNeish himself on her visit. We look forward to hosting her again for many research visits to come!
The bulk of the Peabody’s collection is stored in the basement. It has been challenging over the years to control the temperature and humidity in the basement – an essential factor in maintaining an artifact collection. A small fluctuation of both temperature and humidity is normal and expected as seasons change. However, extreme variation lead to damage – bone can become fragile, ceramics can develop weak-points, and even stone tools can become brittle.
For the past four years, I have been tracking the environment throughout Peabody and noticed these strong fluctuations. By taking readings of the temperature and humidity in all our storage spaces once an hour (through the use of a datalogger), I determined that the influx of outdoor air through these poorly sealed windows is large contributing factor. There is only one way to fix this.
In collaboration with the Office of Physical Plant on campus, we are implementing a plan to mitigate some of this fluctuation. Contractors are working to seal the windows in the basement to stop outside air from sneaking into the storage.
This will stabilize the environment and lead to fewer changes in both temperature and humidity. The first step on the road to environmental control!
Thanks to Catherine Hunter, Peabody Museum research associate, our full basketry collection of 329 is inventoried and described. In September, Catherine turned over 7 binders of material including research into known artists, glossaries, information on weaving techniques, and a basic description of each basket. This massive project took Catherine nearly a year!
The next phase is to photograph each of these gorgeous baskets and improve their storage and accessibility. Last week, Marla Taylor, Samantha Hixson, and Catherine took a trip to the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology at Harvard University to examine their basketry storage. The visit was full of inspiration and incredibly helpful as we continue to work on this project.
Keep your eyes peeled for the inclusion of these amazing baskets in our online collection database!
Catherine Hunter with some of the Peabody’s baskets
Catherine Hunter, Samantha Hixson, and Marla Taylor visit the Harvard Peabody basketry collection.
My name is Samantha Hixson and I am the new collections assistant here at the Peabody. I come to you from New Mexico where the weather is warm and has left me completely unprepared for New England winters (although Marla and Lindsay promise that they’ll get me through it).
I have previously worked at the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture in Santa Fe, New Mexico as well as the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, DC. It’s these places that got me excited to work within museums, focusing specifically on Native American collections. So you can imagine how excited I was when I was hired to work at the Peabody, it’s the perfect job for me! I’ve also had some other very interesting archaeological/ethnographic experiences, but those are for other posts.
I’ve started getting my feet wet in a couple projects already (with the promise of a lot more to come) and am most excited about the re-housing of the collection as well the Adopt A Drawer program. I think it’s great that these collections are getting new homes and more personal interactions, however brief.
If you’re in the neighborhood of the museum, come stop by; I’d love to meet you!
The new Peabody Collections Assistant, Samantha Hixson
Students enrolled in Human Origins (SCIE 470) this fall will come face to face with our distant human ancestors as well as contemporary issues like race and scientific racism that are part and parcel of paleoanthropology’s legacy. Between reading and discussion on a variety of topics, ranging from the so-called “Hobbit” fossil—Homofloresiensis to the debate over multiregionalism, students will do some experimental archaeology, including flint knapping, fire making, and throwing a dart with an atlatl. We also will be visiting “The Nest”—the makerspace at the Oliver Wendell Holmes Library, where we will be 3D printing casts of the newest fossil discovery from South Africa—Homo naledi and comparing them to traditional plaster casts and resin models of other fossil hominins. Other hands-on projects will include looking for clues to human evolution in the bones of a modern human, bone flute making, and creating our own Mesolithic symbol system, akin to the painted pebbles found in Mas d’Azil cave in the French Pyrenees. Throughout the course students will explore some of the most recent discoveries and newest ideas about human evolution and the scientific discourse and debate that ensue. Students will be challenged to develop their critical thinking skills as we evaluate these new discoveries in light of broader discourse on race and the scientific method.
Biology instructor Jerry Hagler looks on as students in Human Origins make bone flutes using bow drills, spring 2016.
Human Origins is an interdisciplinary science course developed collaboratively by biology instructor Jerry Hagler and personnel at the Peabody Museum and was first taught in 2007. Since then it has been offered most years as a senior elective. The pace of new discoveries—like Svante Pääbo’s work on the introgression of Neanderthal DNA into the modern human genome in 2011—means that the curriculum is constantly shifting, making for an exciting and lively class. Dr. Hagler is on sabbatical this year so Dr. Wheeler–Peabody Museum director–is leading the course.
Ben is business development analyst and developer at Dispel, a New York based technology start-up specializing in online security. He is a graduate of Yale University. Ben aided with collections organization during his Phillips Academy work duty service at the Peabody. Ben says of his experiences, “the Peabody Museum was a source of endless adventure during my time at Andover. I am happy to have spent countless hours there through work duty, various classes, and through one of the Peabody’s sponsored trips (BALAM-Bilingual Archaeological Learning Adventure in Mesoamerica). I am pleased to have the opportunity to make sure the Peabody remains a welcoming place for students and to help grow that mission of inclusion, education, and exploration.”
Jenny Elkus ’92
Jenny Elkus is an architect at Elkus Manfredi Architects in Boston. She is a graduate of Harvard University and Harvard’s Graduate School of Design. Jenny has fond memories of using the Peabody’s library as a senior at Phillips Academy in the early 1990s—she notes that it was much quieter at the Peabody then!
Agnes Hsu-Tang
Agnes Hsu-Tang received her PhD in Chinese art and archaeology from the University of Pennsylvania in 2004. Agnes is an accomplished scholar, cultural heritage policy advisor, and is well-known as the host of several award-winning TV documentaries, including the History Channel’s Mankind: The Story of All of Us. Dr. Hsu-Tang serves on a number of boards, including the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology & Anthropology and the Institute for the Study of the Ancient World at NYU. Along with her scholarly achievements, Dr. Hsu-Tang is an accomplished musician and serves as a managing director of the Metropolitan Opera. She is adjunct associate research scholar in the Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures at Columbia University.
Margot Steiner ’17
Margot is a three year upper from New York City. She especially likes working with textiles and rearranging artifacts during her volunteer time at the Peabody. Although she only started working at the Peabody this year Margot had always enjoyed coming as a lower and junior. Her weaving class last year really pushed her to start volunteering after seeing the Peruvian burial shawl. Outside of the Peabody Margot can be found in Silent Study tackling her work in order to get her much needed 8 hours of sleep!
Katherine Hall ’17
Katherine is a three year upper from Andover, Mass. She began working at the Peabody Museum in the fall of 2014, and she has enjoyed working on various research, cataloging, and creative projects during her time here. Outside of her life at the Peabody, Katherine is active in local theater, enjoys rock climbing, and tutors other students in math. She is excited to be a part of the advisory committee!
Please join us for a special evening with award-winning Pueblo potters Dominique Toya, Maxine Toya, Nancy Youngblood, and Joseph Youngblood Lugo.
Learn about contemporary Pueblo pottery making with these gifted artists while they visit Andover to work with Thayer Zaeder’s studio pottery classes. Dominique and Nancy have collaborated to create pieces that meld their unique approaches to traditional pottery construction, bringing together swirl melon bowls, glistening micaceous slips, carved designs, and blackware firing techniques. Maxine makes delightful figurines that draw on deep Pueblo traditions. Joseph Youngblood Lugo continues the Santa Clara tradition of carved blackware pottery, adding contemporary themes and motifs. These artists are passionate about their work and will share how they have melded traditional and innovative materials and methods to create contemporary works of art.
7-9pm, Wednesday, May 25, 2016
Hors d’oeuvres, beer, and wine
$20.00 per person
Please RSVP – contact Crystal McGuire – Office of Alumni Engagement at cmcguire@andover.edu or 978-749-4282
Benjamin Burke ’11
Agnes Hsu-Tang
Katherine Hall ’17
The Peabody 