Tag Archives: palace of the governors

We Pledge Allegiance to Our 47-Star Flag

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It took some very careful maneuvering to get it into place, but in honor of next year’s New Mexico Centennial, our 47-star flag was moved into its display case today. The fragile flag was secured to 5-by-9-foot board (by rough estimate) that had to be transported down two flights and through the lower-level Collections Storage Area to join our existing statehood exhibit.

(That’s Palace Press Printer Jame Bourland on the near end and Exhibition Preparator Doug Jewell on the other slooooowly moving it through, at left.)

We readily admit that the flag is unofficial, maybe even a tad illegal. By federal law, new stars could only be added to the U.S. flag once a year: on July 4th. But 39 days after New Mexico’s Jan. 6, 1912 admission, Arizona sneaked in, robbing us of the chance to have a flag with only our additional star. That didn’t stop manufacturers from churning out a few, including the three in our possession.

They’ll be rotated through display, a year at a time, to spare them from too much exposure to light. The first one up is the monster-sized version, 65×115¾”. It came to us via a donor in  Drexel City, Penn., who said her father had owned it. Getting it into condition to be displayed came courtesy of conservation work done by Rebecca Tinkham Hewett and Cindy Lee Scott.

Here’s a photographic journey of what went down (or is that up?) today:

The “before” wall, above. (This is at the bottom of the staircase from the mezzanine; the wall used to have a huge Depression-era photograph on it.)

Cindy checks the existing light levels to determine how much adjustment will be needed in their brightness to protect the flag.

Doug attaches a rail to what will be the top of the exhibition case.

At one point, he had to retreat and let Cindy fix part of the edging with that most trusty of any conservator’s tool: A Swiss Army knife.

After wrestling it out of the room, along the way managing to avoid any number of perilous obstructions, they laid it flat then lifted one end to a vertical position. (“It’s like Iwo Jima,” James said to appreciative laughter.) Then — one, two, three — they pushed it into its exhibition case:

We still have a few Centennial tricks up our sleeve, including a front-window display that will let you pose in a replica 1912 parade float, and a yearlong schedule of statehood-related Brainpower & Brownbags lectures. On Jan. 6, the United States Postal Service will join us for a First-Day-of-Issue event for the official Centennial stamp, designed by New Mexico artist Doug West. It’s all part of what we call 47 Stars, an installation supporting our main exhibition’s section about statehood.

In the meantime, we’re justifiably proud of all the staffers who worked hard to bring this once-depressing (or at least Depressioning) wall in our museum to life.

Come by and check it out, along with all the other pieces of the statehood story we have to tell.

 

A Museum Returns an Ancient Artifact…with Style

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At a ceremony today in Washington, D.C., the History Museum repatriated to the country of Peru an artifact that came from a likely illegal archaeological dig in that country’s Sipan region in the late 1980s. There’s more on that artifact and its history here, but we thought the words spoken by museum Director Frances Levine at the ceremony bore sharing. In situations such as these, the parties can be contentious or they can be diplomatic. We’re proud of Dr. Levine for choosing the latter route.

Her comments:

Muchisimas gracias a todos por la oportunidad de estar aquí con ustedes en este día tan historico y importante.

As a museum director and an archaeologist by training, I am pleased to be part of this ceremony to return this magnificent Moche treasure to the people of Peru.

In New Mexico we understand the process and the importance of repatriation.  We too have seen artifacts taken long ago from our ancient archaeological sites and from Pueblo Indian communities returned to the cultures from which they came. And we are grateful for their return.

While the Moche monkey head was appreciated by thousands of visitors when it was on display in the Palace of the Governors, I believe it can more fully tell its story when it is placed in the context of the culture and environment where it was created.  I believe that this treasure has its own stories and legends to tell to the people of Peru, and that it too will be enjoyed by thousands of your citizens when it returns to Peru.

The piece was collected at a time when the world was just becoming aware of the reasons that such contexts matter. Its return symbolizes the commitment of New Mexico’s museums to the recognition of many people’s stories that have told over many centuries.

In the last few decades, museums have changed how they regard artifacts such as these. At one time, it was important to bring the world to our visitors, and so we collected from many parts of the world and assembled those artifacts into exhibitions that attempted to tell stories to people who might never travel to these often exotic places. Today, we are choosing to focus on the stories that took place in our own patria, and on our own tierra, and to do so, in part, with artifacts and the oral histories, las memorias, of our own patrimony.

Since the New Mexico History Museum opened in 2009, joining the Palace of the Governors, we’ve charted a place for ourselves on the international stage of museums. We worked closely with Spain to host the U.S. premiere of –El Hilo de la Memoria-–The Threads of Memory exhibition in Santa Fe in 2010. We are working now with Mexico on a joint exhibition about santero artistic traditions that united the beliefs and cultures of our two countries. Perhaps, we will also find ourselves working with Peru to examine the colonial conditions of our shared histories, both colonies settled by pobladores who came to the New World from Spain.

Our museum is proud of its reputation for integrity, cultural sensitivity and cooperation, and with those qualities in mind our museum collections committees and the museums’ Board of Regents voted unanimously to repatriate this precious artifact. As we place this national treasure in your hands, we very much look forward to a future in which we will work toward even more opportunities for collaboration. Esperamos continuar trabjando juntos en el futuro.  Gracias.

 

History Museum to Return Peruvian Artifact on Thursday

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The New Mexico History Museum is preparing to repatriate an archaeological artifact to Peru, a move that signals the museum’s commitment to cultural diplomacy on the international stage. The exchange of the artifact, a gold pendant from the Moché Period (100-800 AD), will take place on Thursday, Dec. 8, in Washington, D.C.

Assisting in the return is the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore, where the item has been on long-term loan.

“Museums have changed how they regard artifacts from prehistoric peoples,” said Dr. Frances Levine, director of the History Museum. “The New Mexico History Museum and Palace of the Governors has also changed in how it chooses which stories to present and preserve. Our focus today is on the stories that played out on this soil. Artifacts from South America can be better used to help museums in Peru tell the stories of their people.

“We want to be an international player on the museum stage. We worked closely with Spain to host the U.S. premiere of The Threads of Memory exhibition in Santa Fe last year. We are working now with Mexico on a joint exhibition about santeros. A reputation for integrity, cultural sensitivity and cooperation are critical to us and foremost in our considerations regarding this request.”

Peruvian officials first raised the question of repatriating the artifact in 1998, when it was included in the exhibition Art of Ancient America at the Palace of the Governors. Citing the National Stolen Property Act, the FBI seized the monkey head, along with two artifacts on loan to the museum over allegations that they had been looted from an archaeological site in Sipán region of Peru. At the time, museum officials said they would return it if evidence proved that was true. Ultimately, the US Attorney’s Office in New Mexico declined to prosecute because of conflicting accounts about the item’s provenance. In 2000, the artifacts were returned to the Palace. Art of Ancient America closed in 2008.

Peruvian Ambassador Luis Valdivieso revived the repatriation request in May 2011. The conflicts over its provenance were resolved by an investigation by the US Attorney’s Office in the District of Delaware, and the History Museum immediately began its process of due diligence. In October, the Museum of New Mexico Board of Regents endorsed a recommendation to return the item.

“The Board of Regents never takes de-accessioning lightly,” said Karen Durkovich, president of the Museum of New Mexico Board of Regents. “We gave the matter our serious consideration and came to the conclusion that it’s appropriate to work collaboratively with the Peruvian government.”

As described in the Art of Ancient America catalog, the artifact is a “large bead finely modeled in the form of a monkey’s head. Turquoise and shell eyes, lapis nose and open mouth with traces of turquoise on (the) tongue.” The pendant measures 1¾” high by 2¼” wide and has a ball tucked inside of it that rattles when moved.

The item was given to the Palace of the Governors in 1995 by John Bourne, a Santa Fe collector. At the time of the donation, museum officials cautioned Bourne that it could be subject to repatriation, and they agreed it would be returned if a substantive claim emerged.

When the most recent effort emerged, the History Museum worked closely with Bourne and with the Walters Art Museum, and all parties agreed with the decision to return it.  “I’m glad that the artifact was available for many New Mexicans to see during the time it was on display here,” Bourne said, “and I support the process of due diligence that has led to it returning to Peru.”

Charles M. Oberly, III, United States Attorney for the District of Delaware, said: “This repatriation is the result of the joint efforts of this office, the FBI Art Crime Team, the Department of Justice Office of International Affairs, the New Mexico Attorney General’s Office, and the Museum of New Mexico.  I commend all parties for their efforts in producing this positive outcome.  In particular, I commend the Museum of New Mexico for its selfless and noble action in returning this invaluable artifact to Peru.”

 

The Holiday Classics

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Staff and volunteers have been in a whirl over the last week helping the Palace of the Governors (a National Historic Landmark) don its gay apparel. Here are some photos of the process and the product. We hope you’ll stop by during December for some of our holiday festivities, which include:

The First National Bank’s model train display. From Dec. 13-31, the train will chug over to our lobby because of the bank’s ongoing renovation project. This is a family-time holiday favorite.

A performance by Schola Cantorum and the monks of Christ in the Desert Monastery. At 2 pm on Sunday, December 4, in the Museum Auditorium, the Santa Fe-based sacred-music ensemble joins the monks for this event, tied to the exhibitions Illuminating the Word: The Saint John’s Bible and Contemplative Landscape. Expect to hear the sounds of Advent, the ancient pre-Christmas period with its roots in the seventh century. Free with admission; Sundays free to NM residents.

Christmas at the Palace. From 5:30-8 pm on Friday, December 9, enjoy an evening of hot cider, live music, piñatas for the children, and the annual visit of Mr. and Mrs. Claus, all in the legendary magic of the Palace of the Governors. A free, family event for all.

Las Posadas. From 5:30-7 pm on Sunday, December 11, join the community for this annual favorite. The candle-lit procession of Las Posadas travels around the Santa Fe Plaza and concludes in the Palace Courtyard. This version of an old Hispanic tradition recreates Mary and Joseph’s search for a place to give birth to the Baby Jesus – and throws in a few devils for good measure. Stay for carols in the Courtyard, along with cookies and refreshments. Free and open to the public.

Young Native Artists Show and Sale. On Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 17 and 18, children and grandchildren of the Palace Portal artisans will display their own creations in the museum’s John Gaw Meem Room. (Enter from Washington Avenue.) Pick up some nifty Christmas presents and support the next generation of Native American artisans.

To get our staff’s decoration day efforts started …

… Daniel Kosharek selected from a big bin of potential ornaments.

One of our newest employees, Mark Scharen, joined Daniel in reaching to new heights. (Mark and Daniel both work in the Photo Archives.)

Pretty much half the staff — (from left) Director Frances Levine, Finance Manager Judy Morse, Administration Angel Carla Ortiz, Librarian Patricia Hewitt (partly hidden), and Photo Archivist Daniel Kosharek — got busy decking the hallway outside of the exhibition Santa Fe Found.

In the Palace’s Architectural Room (the room to your right as you come in the building’s main entrance), we always have a tree with decorations donated to us by the late former First Lady Dee Johnson. The ornaments were made by New Mexico artists, and it feels good to remember Mrs. Johnson’s generosity to the museum.

Inside the Santa Fe Found exhibit is this tree, which was beautifully decorated by two of our most loyal Los Capitanes volunteers, Tay Balenovic and James Rivera. (How can a tree not look beautiful against window mouldings that fine?)

Curator Josef Diaz and Assistant Collections Manager Pennie McBride decorated this tree inside the Gov. Bradford Prince Room, which always has a Christmas-y feel with its ceiling garlands of greenery and roses.

Registrar Wanda Edwards and NEH Project Manager Patrick Cruz worked on this tree in the Mexican Governor’s Room, to the left as you walk in the main entrance. (That’s them in the blur of action at the top as well.)

After working on each of our doorways …

… they look like this.

The holidays in Santa Fe are a special time. The aroma of piñon smoke, the farolitos, fabulous shops, and terrific exhibitions at all of the state museums (but especially ours — hey, we’re allowed some parochialism here).

Stop on by. We’re open Tuesday-Sunday, 10 am to 5 pm, with free Fridays 5-8 pm. Sundays are free to NM residents, and children 16 and under are free every day. Come discover the child in you this holiday season.

 

 

 

From Mexico City to Santa Fe: How the Camino Real Changed the Santeros’ Craft

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Earlier this year, History Museum Director Frances Levine and Josef Diaz, curator of Southwest and Mexican Colonial Art and History Collections, were in Mexico City, talking to officials at the Museo Franz Mayer about their museum possibly exhibiting some of the retablos and bultos from our Treasures of Devotion/Tesoros de Devoción exhibition. At one point, Director Héctor Rivero Borrell brought out a few retablos he had recently purchased for the Franz Mayer.

“He asked what we thought of them,” Diaz recalls. “They were very similar to New Mexican pieces but were not New Mexican. I could tell they were not made in New Mexico.”

At that moment, the seed of a future exhibition took root.

In a grand partnership resembling the mash-up of three U.S. museums and a Spanish museum behind last year’s exhibition, The Threads of Memory: Spain and the United States, the History Museum is now partnering with the Franz Mayer, the Museum of Spanish Colonial Art in Santa Fe, and the San Antonio (Texas) Museum of Art for yet another bi-national exhibition. We recently received a $23,000 convening grant from the Terra Foundation for American Art in Chicago to lay the groundwork for a collaborative exhibition on the art of santos, one of the most definining art forms of this region.

(Santos are carved and painted images of saints. Santeros are the people who create them. Santos include bultos, three-dimensional figures, like the one above, and retablos, two-dimensional pieces painted on wood, like the one below. Both of these santos are from Treasures of Devotion.)

“ Images of saints that are manufactured like this are often treated like stepchildren in Mexico because they’re not done in the academic tradition,” Diaz said. “They’re a little naive in how they’re painted.”

When he and Levine saw the Franz Mayer pieces, Diaz recalls, “We thought maybe they were produced along the Camino Real corridor, outside of the academic center, where they didn’t have the formal schools but were aware of the academic training. Maybe they were a prelude to what was being made in New Mexico along the corridor.”

With the grant, the museums are looking at the larger picture of the art of santos and may revise historical interpretations of the  tradition from the mid-18th century to the first quarter of the 20th century in New Mexico, using works from the New Mexico History Museum/Palace of the Governors, Museum of Spanish Colonial Art, other museums and private collections.

The plan is to mount an exhibit that will illustrate how the art form developed as it moved beyond the academic center of Mexico City into the colonial “wilds” of northern New Spain. Were different native materials used? Did the long distance and relative isolation affect santeros’ artistic interpretations? By  juxtaposing Mexican and New Mexican devotional pieces, organizers hope to emphasize their connections in terms of style and religious conviction.

“Maybe these Mexican pieces can fill in the scholarly gap between Mexico City’s and northern New Mexico’s styles,” Diaz said. “We know that there was a strong artistic connection along the Camino Real, and this makes me think that these pieces are predecessors to what was eventually made in New Mexico.”

Anyone who’s visited Santa Fe during Spanish Market knows that this artistic tradition is still a vibrant part of the lives of Hispanic communities in New Mexico. To emphasize that, the exhibition will include a sampling of modern works.

The exhibit is anticipated to run from 2015 through 2016. It will first travel to Mexico City, then San Antonio, and finally to the Palace of the Governors.

In July, museum directors and scholars from Mexico, Texas, Colorado, and New Mexico gathered at the History Museum to begin their planning. Attendees brought their expertise on santos and Mexican religious craftsmanship. The group visited the Palace of the Governors, Museum of Spanish Colonial Art, and Museum of International Folk Art to begin assembling a collection for the exhibit. They also discussed conceptual material and a research plan to move the project forward.

Next step? The group reconvenes in Mexico City in October.

 

Is this a museum … or a cave?

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Judging by the comment cards that visitors leave at the front desk, the main drawbacks of the History Museum are that it’s too cold and too dark.

If you’ve shivered or squinted, you know what they mean. What’s up?

We talked with Associate Conservator Mina Thompson and Building Manager Emanuel Arnold to get the lowdown on our cave-like conditions.

Start with this: The temperature inside the museum is kept at a constant 72 degrees in the summer, 68 degrees in the winter— give or take a degree.

“Temperatures that are too hot will accelerate the degradation of organic material — plant fibers, like baskets, paper, wood, fabrics,” Thompson said. “Cooler is always better.”

Ideally, she said, artifacts like those in the current Home Lands: How Women Made the West exhibit (at left) would prefer 55 degrees, “but we have to keep a certain level of personal comfort.”

Kicking the temperature up even a notch can reduce the 35- to 40-percent humidity levels also needed to preserve the artifacts. “That’s much drier than other museums,” Thompson said. “Usually, they have 50-percent humidity. But that’s too hard on our mechanical system. And much of our material comes from New Mexico, so it’s not unusual for them to be in a drier climate.”

The wear and tear on the mechanical system was most apparent this summer when wildfire smoke kept Arnold busy.

“I monitored wind directions every day to make sure it didn’t get into the system,” he said. “All the units have smoke detectors and they can shut the whole building down. I had to change the filters several times when ash residue built up.”

Then came the monsoons, which, Arnold said, “kept us nice and juicy.” That’s not necessarily a good thing: Humidity can cause mold and mildew that also damages artifacts. Because of that, the system needed to take the humidity out of the museum, and the process ended up dropping the temperature a little more.

Even without fire and rain, the system works hard to maintain 3½ levels and 96,000 square feet. As it does so, it chews through dollars to pay for natural gas, electricity and water— another reason why Arnold must constantly monitor it for potential cost savings.

None of this applies to the Palace of the Governors, where historic preservation standards and exorbitant costs forbid installing a similar system. The temperature there, Arnold said, can range from 60 degrees in the morning to 90 degrees in the afternoon.

“But most of the stuff in the Palace is acclimated to the Southwest climate,” he said. “The artifacts in the newer building couldn’t handle that kind of temperature swing.”

As for lights, Thompson said, they pose a serious threat to the long-term health of color-sensitive artifacts – a significant concern when the museum hosted the precious documents featured in The Threads of Memory: Spain and the United States (at left). Most light doesn’t just illuminate an object, it also emits heat and ultraviolet rays that can make colors fade faster as well as change the molecular structure of things as precious as a signature on a historic document. “Once that happens,” she said, “you can’t get it back.”

Thompson and museum Director Frances Levine agree that it really isn’t quite as dark as visitors assume. It just seems so because the rest of the museum is so bright.

“Usually, an exhibit that needs to be quite dark will have a couple of transition areas before you get into it so your eyes can adjust,” Thompson said. “It’s very bright here in the lobbies, so it’s hard to get a good transition.”

The best answer to that is patience. Your eyes will eventually adjust to the dimmer light. Your internal temperature control, however, may never adjust to the cool air.

Bring a sweater and keep reminding yourself: It’s for the artifacts’ sake.

Palace Windows Get Technical Support

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You don’t have to be a winner of HGTV’s Design Star to see that the windows in the Palace of the Governors could use some help.

Hey – when you’re a National Historic Landmark with a 400-year-old history, some of your edges can tend to the ragged side of things. Wood gets old and porous. Water seeps past cracked plaster into adobe bricks. Foundations shift and settle.

But budgets are tight all over, and the cost of repairing a historic building can soar beyond a new screen door for your average bungalow. What was the New Mexico History Museum/Palace of the Governors to do?

Well, we turned to some of our most trusty and energetic supporters, the members of Los Compadres.  Building on their shared love for the Palace of the Governors,  Los Compadres’ members have for years given their volunteer all for the museum. During the warmer months, its members lead the Downtown Walking Tours that give tourists and locals alike a learned look at Santa Fe’s history. At the History Museum’s grand opening in May 2009, they stood in the heat for hours, scooping ice cream that they provided to a hot horde of first-time visitors. During last year’s Christmas at the Palace and Las Posadas, those bizcochitos you might have nibbled were provided by none other than Los Compadres.

Most important, they dove into fund-raising efforts to create the History Museum, beating the odds and ensuring we opened with a stunning array of exhibitions.

The majority of that work is done so quietly that you might be unaware of it. But their latest project – “Windows on History” – will soon appear before your very eyes.

Last year, Los Compadres adopted the Palace’s aging windows as a fund-raising cause, setting a goal of $40,000. They sold $5 raffle tickets, arranged a special showing of the Santa Fe Fiesta Melodrama, held private dinners with history experts as speakers, and offered 25 limited-edition prints of Jack McCarthy’s linoleum-cut version of a Palace window (left) as a premium. (The Palace Press stepped up by producing the prints, using handmade paper that included, fittingly, adobe mud.) The hustle caught the eye of the Santa Fe New Mexican, which wrote a lovely story that brought in a new wave of donations.

In the end, Los Compadres raised $54,000 – much of it in those highly cherished $5, $15, and $25-sized donations that show broad-based support for a fund-raising effort. With money in hand, the museum was able to look for a contractor, and soon as you know it, they’ll start replacing some of the most seriously impaired windows. (Just how many depends on what the contractors find once they open the building’s centuries-old walls.)

Los Compadres’ latest goal is to broaden its statewide reach, in part by creating a new category of supporters, the “Ambassadors.” Members want to reach beyond Santa Fe’s borders to carry the New Mexico History Museum/Palace of the Governors’ word to communities throughout the state and to welcome visitors from other historical societies to both the old and the new of our museum complex. Got an itch to devote some time to preserving New Mexico’s past? Interested in learning more? Contact the Museum of New Mexico Foundation at 982-6366.

 

New Perk for Museum Foundation Members Debuts

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History Museum Director Frances Levine talks about a portrait of Don Diego de Vargas.

On Monday morning, the History Museum was proud to serve as a launchpad. Thanks to a new summer program by the Museum of New Mexico Foundation, more than 70 foundation members gathered at the museum for the premiere of “Member Mondays.”

Besides pitchers of cool cucumber water, the members were treated to intimate talks and tours of museum exhibitions led by key members of the museum’s staff.

Dr. Frances Levine, director of the museum, led visitors into the History Museum’s main exhibition, Telling New Mexico: Stories from Then and Now,  with a focus on the the life and times of Gov. Don Diego de Vargas, leader of the 1692 reconquest of Santa Fe.

Participants rotated through two other tours:

Collections and Education Programs Manager René Harris explored highlights of the new exhibition, Home Lands: How Women Made the West.

And Josef Diaz, curator of Southwest and Mexican Colonial Art and History Collections, talked about the centuries-old bultos, retablos and crucifijos showcased in the exhibit Treasures of Devotion: Tesoros de Devoción inside the Palace of the Governors.

Plans for additional Member Mondays are in the works for the New Mexico History Museum/Palace of the Governors, as well as the other state museums in Santa Fe.  Tempted to give membership a try or learn more about Member Mondays? Contact Mariann Lovato at (505) 982-6366, ext. 117 or mariann@museumfoundation.org.

 

The Things They Gave (2010 Donations to the Museum)

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Behind a secure door in the lower level of the History Museum sits a cavernous storehouse reminiscent of that final warehouse scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark. The museum’s collections storage area boasts some of the most state-of-the-art qualities for preserving everything from ancient Pueblo artifacts to the recently honored Centennial license plate. Despite the bounty the museum already owns, we still actively collect items for future exhibitions, for researchers, and to ensure we have representative samples of every era of our history.

Thanks to our devoted fans, we came into quite a few “new” items in 2010, and thought you’d enjoy perusing the full list–everything from WPA chairs to a printing press to a commemorative bottle of Jim Beam liquor with, yes, the liquor still intact. (By the way, if you have something you think might be of interest, slip an e-mail to our Collections Manager and Registrar, Wanda Edward at wanda.edwards@state.nm.us.)

Drumroll, please:

National Park Service hat and original storage box.

Dress, early 1970s.

Three framed artworks by unknown artists from the Santa Fe Indian School.

Portfolio:  When the Two Came to Their Father,  Princeton University, 1943, Princeton, NJ.

These are 18 serigraph plates (18 x 24 inches) in a portfolio, based on original works that were executed in cornmeal and pollen on buckskin. They document a ceremony that was revived at the outset of WWII to prepare young Navajo men for military service. Jeff King was a tribal religious leader who revived the ceremonial and celebrated it for Navajo soldiers leaving for war. Text and paintings were recorded by Maud Oakes. Introduction is by Joseph Campbell.  This was the very first publication issued in the distinguished Bollingen series issued by Princeton University.  This rare first edition is not listed in any Museum of New Mexico library collections. This original edition became available after the purchase of  a reprint portfolio, and includes the accompanying book by Oakes and Campbell.

Polaroid prints taken in the 1970s.

Artist H. Joe Waldrum first began taking SX-70 Polaroid prints to capture details for his paintings.  Over time the Polaroid prints began to take on an art form of their own.  The result is this collection of almost 8,000 prints of churches, flowers, fruit, architecture and people.  This priceless collection documents many of the churches of New Mexico.  The Polaroid prints are the first of several planned donations from the estate of H. Joe Waldrum. (They were recently featured in the museum’s exhibit A Passionate Light.)

Museum of New Mexico Film and Video Collection and equipment. Transferred from Museum Resources to Photo Archives.

Priest’s cassock and sash.

Brown Franciscan robe with white knotted cord.

Thirty- eight 8 x 10 silver gelatin prints.

Two 1930s photographs of the Alamogordo Dam project.

Seven 16 x 20 photographs by Anne Noggle.

Women’s clothing.

The donor’s family has lived in New Mexico for several generations.  The donation includes a wedding crown, pink dress (1962), sheer navy dress (1930-1940s), navy and blue mantilla (1950s?) and 1 digital copy of the donor wearing the wedding crown for her wedding in 1972.  It was worn by donor’s grandmother for her 1912 wedding.  This will be the second wedding crown in the museum’s collections.

Boy’s clothing and toy.

The donor was born in Las Cruces on July 20, 1940.  He wore this suit for his first birthday.  The donation also includes his hand-knitted sailor hat and toy dog.  We have a digital photo of Dodson wearing the suit and standing in front of a marshmallow bunny cake.  This donation will broaden our collection of WWII era children’s’ clothing.

Silver and turquoise business card holder.

This silver holder with a piece of turquoise was given to the Director on the opening of NMHM by Ben Lujan, Speaker of the New Mexico House of Representatives.

Material associated with the issue of the Bill Mauldin stamp.

Bill Mauldin, well known cartoonist, was born in New Mexico.  The ceremony unveiling the stamp was held at the New Mexico History Museum.  Materials include first day of issue stamps and envelopes and a framed display of the stamps with Bill Mauldin’s image.

Four First day of Issue stamps on envelopes.

The stamps all relate to New Mexico: Georgia O’Keefe, Spanish Settlement, Palace of the Governors, and Dennis Chavez.   They will be added to the library’s growing collection of stamps honoring New Mexico.

Formed display of new Zia New Mexico Stamp.

The First Day of Issue ceremony was held at the New Mexico History Museum.

Uniforms.

The uniforms are from the New Mexico Military Institute and the National Park Service, Bandelier.  They were worn by the donor and date from 1996-98 and 2000 respectively.

Photographs by Dimitri Baltermants.

Scrapbook created by Fray Angélico Chávez relating to Chávez family.

Scrapbook relating to the Paul A. F. Walter Jr. family.

Walter, son of Santa Fe newspaperman Paul A. F. Walter Sr., was assistant director of the Museum of New Mexico and the School of American Research. He became the first director of the University of New Mexico Press and was the longtime editor of El Palacio magazine.

Papers relating to Olivia Tsosie.

The 9 boxes of materials pertain to the Santa Fe River Project, Agua Fria Village, Spanish horses, and family materials.

Papers and one dress belonging to Jesusita Acosta Morales.

Morales was New Mexico Secretary of State in 1928.  The donation consists of 4 boxes of newspaper clippings, photos, letters, embroidery art work and a flapper–style dress.

Small NM flag and paper ephemera associated with the commissioning of the USS New Mexico submarine in 2010.

Cap with insignia of USS New Mexico submarine.

CDs of interviews of 40 individuals who served in the battleship USS New Mexico during WW II.

Commemorative objects relating to the newly commissioned submarine USS New Mexico (SSN 779).

Cap, patch, poster, mug, and pin, all with the submarine’s logo.

Donation of two towels with the USS New Mexico (SSN 779) crest and two DVDs on the commissioning of the submarine.

Materials pertaining to John Stewart Harvey Sr. and the Fred Harvey Company.

Donation of papers associated with Fred Harvey and other family members.

Materials include date books, letter books, code books, clippings, photographs, and letters dating from the 1860s-1880s.

Donation of Fiesta clothing for men, women and children; also a black dress worn by Emma Dixon in the 1920s.

Book, Trail of an Artist Naturalist: the Autobiography of Ernest Thompson Seton.

Framed print of clay sparrow by Ernest Thompson Seton.

A framed letter from the director of the Office of Indian Affairs, dated February 24, 1923.

Four boxes of papers pertaining to La Herencia magazine; correspondence, essay drafts, photographs, and financial matters.

La Herencia began publication in 1994 in Santa Fe.  La Herencia, a quarterly publication, was founded by Santa Fe native Ana Pacheco, in response to the rapid decline of the Spanish language and Hispanic culture of New Mexico.   The magazine has ceased publication.

Papers pertaining to the Johnson family, collected by Dove Brown.

Abstract of Title, plat maps, legal and tax documents, correspondence, postcards, and miscellaneous documentary items for Colorado, Illinois and New Hampshire.

Three linear feet of papers from Tigges Planning Consultants.

Traffic, development and master plans.

Framed hand-painted photographs from the Ulibarri family in New Mexico; Ana Maria Montano and Jose Eluojio Ulibarri.

Four archival pigment prints of New Mexico scenes, 2006-2007.

Richard Wilder photograph of Laura Gilpin’s House, 1980.

Production photographs from the Santa Fe Opera, 1960-1980.

Commemorative Jim Beam bottle depicting the Palace of the Governors, 1610-1960.

Donation of 1960s clothing.

Donation of cap, photograph and La Fonda Hotel brochure dated 1954.

Two boxes of materials pertaining to the Santa Fe Historical Society, 1967-1990s.

Albuquerque aviation medal.

Materials related to Gustave Baumann.

Artwork, wood blocks, hand tools, books, personal items.

Eight Civil War era letters

Twenty six black and white glass slides of pre-revolutionary Mexico, mostly along the border.

Donation of two coins.

One coin is a Spanish silver 2 reales, minted 1775.  The other is an American copper one-cent coin, minted 1850.

Three silver 8 reales pieces.

Donation of papers from the 1960s pertaining to New Mexico and Arizona.

Materials include maps, Santa Fe Opera programs, and research materials on the Acequia Madre.

Donation  of 1960s clothing worn in New Mexico.

Donation of commemorative material associated with the 400th Anniversary of Santa Fe.

Items include drinking glasses, lapel pins, coins, CDs, books, and magazines.

Donation of memorabilia  associated with Governor and Mrs. Bill Richardson.

Items include invitations to the White House and the governor’s inaugurations, name tags and name plate, a scrapbook documenting the governors’ career from 1970-1980, a presentation piece from Mexico, and jackets and vests relating to the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, Rail Runner, and New Mexico Rodeo Council. Mrs. Richardson has donated the suit she wore to the swearing in ceremony and the gown she wore for the inaugural gala. Governor Richardson has donated the suit he wore for his inauguration.

Donation of furniture made in Mexico and New Mexico including a chest, table, mirror, two silver sconces and three New Mexican tin lamps.

Donation of a painted tin ex-voto of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Purchase of  a retablo with an image of Santa Barbara painted by Don Bernardo Miera y Pacheco (1714-1785).

Miera y Pacheco was one of the earliest Santeros in New Mexico to be known by name with documented works associated with him. The purchase was made possible through generous donations by Kay Harvey, Marilynn and Carl Thoma, Terra Foundation, Linda and Leroy Clark, and an anonymous donor.

Donation of a medallion commemorating Carlos V.

Presented to the director of the museum by SEACEX while she was in Spain.

Purchase of a Christmas ornament depicting the New Mexico Capitol Building.

Donation of  the Quentin Hulse Collection which includes books, artwork, photographs and personal items.

Quentin Hulse (1926-2002) was a well-known ranger, hunter, trapper, and guide who lived and worked at the bottom of Canyon Creek in the Gila River Wilderness for over 50 years.

Donation of a collection of books and periodicals on photography.

Donation of photographs of the mining town of Hagen, New Mexico.

Donation of photographs of New Mexico doors by Gustavo Castilla.

Donation of a collection of photographs including stereo views, cabinet cards, cyanotypes, and postcards of New Mexico scenes and pueblos.

Donation of a panorama photograph of Deming, New Mexico, 1917.

Donation of two home movies recording ceremonial dances at the Palace of the Governors with singing by Maria Martinez (1960s) and a Gallup Ceremonial.

Donation of a collection of photographs of the Santa Fe Opera, 1967-68.  Gift of Randall Bell.

Donation of a collection of photographs, papers from the Photographic Society of America and the Santa Fe Camera Club, 35mm slides, and cameras from the estate of Roy Elliott Barker (1911-2005).

Barker worked for the New Mexico Fish and Game Department from the 1930s until he retired in the 1960s.  He produced over 25, 000 slides of the Barker family in New Mexico, the vernacular architecture of the state, and scenes of landscapes and wild life.  His work was published in the New Mexico Magazine and Arizona Highways.

Donation of photographs of New Mexico, 1920s.

Donation of photographs of buildings in Santa Fe, 1918-1925.

Donation of photographs produced by Miguel Gandert and Anne Noggle.

Collection of clothing worn in New Mexico in the 1970s.

Donation of a Bobcat Press.

Gift of the Albuquerque/Bernalillo County Library System.

Donation of a rosary created by a prisoner in Central New Mexico Correctional Facility.

Donation of items from Diane Denish’s term as Lieutenant Governor.

Framed bill signed by her, 2 portraits, gavel, and a shovel used in the ground breaking for the Navajo Nation water project.

Donation of original and photocopied items pertaining to the history of the USS Santa Fe, 1940s-1990s.

Donation of 0.25 linear feet of materials pertaining to the St. James Hotel and Cimarron, NM, including photographs, scrapbook, and newspaper clippings

Donation of silver gelatin prints by Barbara Van Cleve.

Donation of original signed prints by Henry Tefft (12 binders, 3 boxes).

Donation of photographs taken between 1868 and 2008, including images produced by William Henry Jackson and Memphis Barbree.

Donation of bottle opener from the De Vargas Hotel (1920s).

Donation of materials pertaining to the SS Columbus (the German crew was held at Ft. Stanton during WW II).

Donation of silver gelatin prints (1930-1940) created by Jack Hull, editor of the Clovis Times and diaries (1941-1947) of Iretus D. Johnson, only dentist in Clovis at that time.

Donation of four chairs made by WPA artist Eliseo Rodriguez, circa 1938.

Donation of an iron hide scrapper and iron spoon.

Donation of 1970s iconic pins and badge

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Palace Elves

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WandaPatrickPennieHistory Museum staffers morphed into Santa’s elves this week to doll up the 400-year-old Palace of the Governors for this Friday’s Christmas at the Palace event. (That’s Collection Manager and Registrar Wanda Edwards and NEH Project Manager Patrick Cruz workin’ the lights on a tree, at left; and their coworker, Assistant Collection Manager Pennie McBride, at right.)

Over its 26 years as an annual event, Christmas at the Palace has become a community favorite in Santa Fe and, for many families, the true kick-off to the holiday season. The event begins with Native drummers beneath the Palace Portal, offering a welcome-to-the-Palace prayer. People gather to listen (and sometimes shiver as the snow falls) while awaiting the arrival of Mr. and Mrs. Claus and their clutch of real elves. Then everyone enters the Palace (no admission fees tonight!) to wander the exhibits, listen to local performers, sample bizcochitos and hot cider, and take a turn on Santa’s knee.

On Monday, workers pulled hay bales into the Palace Courtyard in preparation for Santa’s arrival. Garlands were hung over Palace doorways, trees were decorated, and more than a few trips up and down rather tall ladders were required.

CarlaDavidOne of the favorite parts of the holiday decor is what Palace volunteers and staff think of as “Dee Johnson’s tree.” Before her untimely death, the former first lady of New Mexico gave the museum a collection of tree ornaments hand-crafted by New Mexico artisans.

“It always makes us think of her when we see them,” said Museum Director Frances Levine. “Because she was so kind to the Museum staff — and so kind to donate these ornaments.”

Made of clay, tin, wood and fabric, they include Mimbres designs, Indian pots, bells, Zia symbols, stars and and more. In perhaps a nod to former Gov. Gary Johnson, a flying pig is included. (During particularly testy negotiations with the Democratic Legislature, the Republican governor once opened a news conference by playing with a remote-controlled flying-pig toy, as if to say, “When pigs fly…”)

Dee Johnson’s tree is in what we call “The Green Room” — the room to the east of the Palace’s main entrance where the architectural history of the building is detailed.

VictorianDollOrnamentOther trees in the Palace include lovely Victorian ornaments, parrots and doves, reindeer, and a cathedral or two.

Bundle up the family and head to the Palace after work this Friday. The doors open at 5:30, but you can start gathering and enjoying your neighbors before then. Performers range from talented children to inspiring adults, including:

5:30-6 pm: Epik Artists of the Santa Fe Concert Association; music by Bach and Gounod. (The Epik Trio: Eric Illick and Sarah Rogowski, violins; Shelley Armer, viola. The Epik Chorus: Genevieve Davis, Alex Viszolay, Zoe Unverwerth, Faye Mathey, Sarah Luiz;  Ezra Shcolnick, violin; Shelley Armer, viola; Logan Luiz and Eric Illick, soloists.)

5:30-6:30 pm: Coro de Agua Fria. Traditional Christmas carols in Spanish in the Palace Courtyard.

5:30-6:30 pm: Santa Fe Talent Education Suzuki Music Center. Classical and Christmas music by youth violinists and violists. (Uttam Khalsa, Auleeyah Archuleta, Bacilio Benelalija, Naya Anllo-Valdo, Madelyn Kingston, Sarah Sze, Julia Baca, Lila Baca, Ellie Bobchak. Margaret Carpenter, teacher.)

6:40-7:30 pm: The Eclectics. A cappella carols, medieval to modern. (Meg Acton, Laura Cowan and Scott Geister.)

6:40-7:30 pm: Schola Cantorum. Santa Fe’s sacred music ensemble.