University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology
Established	1887
Location	3260 South St. Year 1887 ( MDCCCLXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common , Philadelphia, Pennsylvania United States
Type	Anthropology and Archaeology
Director	Richard Hodges
Website	University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology website

The University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archeology and Anthropology is an archaeology and anthropology museum that is part of the University of Pennsylvania in University City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Philadelphia (ˌfɪləˈdɛlfiə The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania ( often colloquially referred to as PA (its abbreviation by natives and Northeasterners is a state located in the Northeastern The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Anthropology (/ˌænθɹəˈpɒlədʒi/ from Greek grc ἄνθρωπος anthrōpos, "human" -λογία -logia) is the study of Archaeology, archeology, or archæology (from Greek grc ἀρχαιολογία archaiologia – grc ἀρχαῖος archaīos Richard Hodges OBE FSA (born September 29, 1952) is a contemporary British archaeologist whose work primarily concerns Trade and Archaeology, archeology, or archæology (from Greek grc ἀρχαιολογία archaiologia – grc ἀρχαῖος archaīos Anthropology (/ˌænθɹəˈpɒlədʒi/ from Greek grc ἄνθρωπος anthrōpos, "human" -λογία -logia) is the study of The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn) is a private University located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. University City is the name given to an area of campuses and neighborhoods in West Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Philadelphia (ˌfɪləˈdɛlfiə

History

The Penn Museum or University Museum, as it is commonly known, was founded in 1887. Year 1887 ( MDCCCLXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common During the early 20th century, the UPM conducted some of the first and most important archaeological and anthropological expeditions to Egypt, Mesopotamia, Africa, East Asia and South America. The twentieth century of the Common Era began on The UPM's current collections reflect the successes of these early expeditions. The Museum's name has subtly shifted over time. Until the 1990s it was known cumbersomely as The University Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology of the University of Pennsylvania, and was generally referred to as The University Museum. ^[1]

The Warden Garden in front of the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology

The Building

The Museum is housed in a Beaux Arts building that is one of the landmarks of the University of Pennsylvania campus. Beaux Arts architecture denotes the academic classical Architectural style that was taught at the École des Beaux Arts in Paris. The existing original building (onto which have been grafted several later additions) is actually only approximately one-third of an ambitious design that would have created one of the largest museum buildings in the United States. Features of the extant building include a dramatic rotunda and gardens that include Egyptian papyrus. Papyrus (/pəˈpaɪrəs/ (Rhymes -aɪrəs)is a thick paper-like material produced from the Pith of the papyrus plant Cyperus papyrus The University Museum was designed by a team of Philadelphia architects, all of whom taught on the faculty of the University: Wilson Eyre, Cope & Stewardson and Frank Miles Day. Wilson Eyre Jr (October 30 1858 - Oct 23 1944 was an American Architect who practiced in the Philadelphia area Cope & Stewardson (1885-1912 was an architecture firm best known for its academic building and campus designs The first phase was completed in 1899 and housed the discoveries from an expedition sponsored by the University to the ancient site of Nippur. Nippur (URUENLIL; Sumerian: Nibru Akkadian: Nibbur) from the Sumerian for 'lord wind' (Enlil is modern ? in Afak Al Qadisyah In 1915, the rotunda, which houses the Harrison Auditorium in the basement was completed. Charles Klauder designed the Coxe Memorial Wing, which opened in 1926 to house the Museum's Egyptian collection. Charles Zeller Klauder (1872 - 1938 was an American Architect best known for his work on university buildings and campus designs especially his Cathedral The Sharpe Wing was completed in 1929. ^[2]

British architect David Chipperfield will head a redesign of the museum in 2006, plans include having the museum fully air conditioned. David Chipperfield CBE (born 1953 is an English architect born in London. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ^[3]

MASCA

MASCA is the scientific division of the University of Pennsylvania Museum. Its research focuses on the application of modern scientific techniques that will aid the interpretation of archaeological contexts and the materials recovered from those contexts, during both current excavations and past ones.

Collections

The UPM features a variety of comprehensive collections including galleries of artifacts from Egypt, China and Mesopotamia. This article is about the country of Egypt For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Egypt topics. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National Mesopotamia (from the Greek meaning "land between the rivers" is an area geographically located between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers largely corresponding Other highlights include a number of important Greco-Roman antiquities, Buddhist art, a small but choice collection of African art, and an impressive array of Mayan and other Pre-Columbian pieces. In modern Olympic and amateur Wrestling, Greco-Roman wrestling is a particular style and variation Buddhist art originated on the Indian subcontinent following the historical life of Gautama Buddha, 6th to 5th century BCE and thereafter evolved by contact with The pre-Columbian era incorporates all period subdivisions in the history and prehistory of the Americas before the appearance of significant European influences

Egypt

The museum's collection of Egyptian artifacts is considered one of the finest in the world. Ancient Egypt was an Ancient Civilization in eastern North Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now The UPM's Egyptian galleries house an extensive collection of statuary, mummies, and reliefs. Most notably, the museum houses a set of architectural elements, including large columns and a sphinx, from the palace of the Pharaoh Merenptah. Pharaoh is the title given in modern parlance to the ancient Egyptian kings of all periods Merneptah (or Merenptah) was the fourth ruler of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Ancient Egypt. These were excavated by a UPM expedition to Egypt in 1915.

China

Also of note is the UPM's large gallery of Chinese cultures. This gallery is impressive both for its collection and its location in the museum. The Chinese collection is housed in a spacious gallery underneath the museum's Harrison rotunda, which measures ninety feet across and ninety feet from the floor and is one of the largest unsupported masonry domes in the nation. This gallery houses large paintings and sculptures, as well as a perfectly spherical carved Chinese crystal which belonged to Empress Dowager Cixi — one of the finest in existence. In Materials science, a crystal is a Solid in which the constituent Atoms Molecules or Ions are packed in a regularly ordered repeating Empress Dowager Cixi 1 ( ( November 29 1835 – November 15 1908) popularly known in China as the ^[4] Along with an Egyptian status of Osiris, the crystal ball was stolen in 1988, and its elegant silver stand, a stylized ocean wave, was found in a culvert not far from the Museum. Osiris ( Greek language, also Usiris; the Egyptian language name is variously transliterated Asar, Aser, Ausar, Ausir The items were recovered in 1991 after a former museum staff member saw the statue in an area antique shop; the crystal ball was traced to a home in New Jersey and returned to the Museum. ^[5]

Mesopotamia

The museum's most important collection is arguably that of the Royal Tombs of Ur, which The University of Pennsylvania co–excavated with the British Museum in Iraq. Ur ( Sumerian:urim; Akkadian: ?) is modern Tell el-Mukayyar, Iraq, and was a city in ancient Sumer. The British Museum is a Museum of human history and culture in London. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Iraq topics. Ur was an important and wealthy city-state in ancient Sumer, and the artifacts from its royal tombs showcase the city's wealth. The collections consists of a variety of crowns, figures, and musical instruments, many of which have been inlaid with gold and precious stones. The often traveling collection includes a well known Bull-headed lyre. The lyre is a stringed musical instrument well known for its use in Classical Antiquity and later

Mesoamerica

The UPM conducted an excavation of the Mayan city of Tikal, Guatemala from 1956 to 1970. The Maya civilization is a Mesoamerican Civilization, noted for the only known fully developed written language of the Pre-Columbian Americas Tikal (or Tik’al, according to the more current orthography is the largest of the ancient ruined cities of the Mayan civilization. Guatemala (República de Guatemala) is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west the Pacific Ocean to the southwest Many important artifacts from this excavation are on view in the museum, along with several stelae from the contemporary cities of Caracol and Piedras Negras. A stele (from Greek:, stēlē, ˈstiːli plural stelae,, stēlai, ˈstiːlaɪ also found Latinised singular stela Caracol or El Caracol is the name given to a large ancient Maya archaeological site located in what is now the Cayo District of Belize. The gallery also displays many Aztecan, Oaxacan, and Teotihuacano artifacts.

Periodicals

Since 1958, the UPM publishes the magazine Expedition with 48 pages, current editor is James R. Mathieu, Ph. D. (ISSN 0014-4738) ^[6]

Rentals

The Penn Museum has come into popularity as a venue for events held by corporations, non-profits, and even private entities (weddings, bat/bar mitzvahs, etc). [11]

See also

• University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology is at coordinates 39°56′56″N 75°11′28″W / 39.9490, -75.1911 (University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology)Coordinates: 39°56′56″N 75°11′28″W / 39.9490, -75.1911 (University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology)

References

External links

• University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology website
• UPM Gallery Guide