News Articles

Stoneware jug

Little Brown Jug

Published December 19, 2024 | Exhibitions

In September 2024, the Arts Center of the Capital Region opened a juried pottery exhibition titled, Little Brown Jug. Ceramic artists were sent a historic slip for their contemporary pottery. These pieces won the exhibit’s best in show and showcase the diversity of this brown slip glaze...

Two mastodon teeth in the dirt

Complete Mastodon Jaw Unearthed in Orange County Marks Major Discovery in New York

Published December 17, 2024 | Vertebrate Paleontology

A remarkable discovery in Orange County, New York, has unearthed a complete mastodon jaw, marking the first such find in the state in over 11 years. This prehistoric treasure, along with additional bone fragments, was excavated by researchers from the New York State Museum and SUNY Orange from a...

double weave black ash basket

New Acquisition: Double Weave Basket by Artist Carrie Hill (Kanien’keha:ka, Akwesasne)

Published November 20, 2024 | Ethnography

“My Tsi:tsi Revisited” is an extraordinary double weave basket by Carrie Hill (Kanien’keha:ka, Akwesasne) that addresses the devastating impact of the invasive wood-boring beetle Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) on Haudenosaunee and Indigenous basketry. The beetle burrows into the Black Ash trees and the...

Excavation site with 1x1 meter hole

Unearthing History: Archaeologists Explore Ancient Genesee Overlook Site in New York

Published November 12, 2024 | CRSP

Archaeologists from the NYSM’s Cultural Resource Survey Program are in the field, excavating at the precontact Native American Genesee Overlook site in Western New York. The site was found during a survey in advance of road construction, when chipped stone artifacts were found across a broad...

Unearthing Ceramic Technology and Pottery Traditions at the Mohawk Garoga Site

Published October 23, 2024 | none

The Haudenosaunee (meaning “People of the Longhouse” or Iroquois) are famous for their pottery. In the 16th century, they produced thin walled, finely tempered pots of various sizes with well-defined collars decorated with incised geometric patterns. In every village, the Haudenosaunee used pots...

Sadako Sasaki and her origami crane

New Exhibition Feature: Sadako’s Crane

Published August 27, 2024 | Exhibitions

On view September 10, 2024, through October 6, 2024, in the World Trade Center: Rescue, Recovery, Response Gallery

Two-year old Sadako Sasaki lived with her mother and grandmother in Hiroshima, Japan. On August 6, 1945, the family was approximately one mile from ground zero...

Courtland Street Burial Button, drawing by Lexi DeCarlo

Hallowing This Ground: The Courtland Street Burials and Lake George Battlefield Park

Published July 9, 2024 | Bioarchaeology

On February 7, 2019, a housing development excavation destroyed numerous unmarked military graves on Courtland Street in Lake George village. Following reports of exposed human remains, Lisa Anderson, curator of bioarchaeology at the New York State Museum, and archaeologist Charles Vandrei of...

Declaration of Independence…1776…1876, ca. 1876

A Centennial Celebration of the Fourth of July

Published July 1, 2024 | Cultural History

A majestic American eagle clutches two 32-star flags and carries a pennant in its beak declaring "Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness." Overhead, sun rays and a laurel sprig shine down, while beneath, another laurel sprig sits over a shield celebrating the "Anniversary of the Nation's...

Canine Contrasts

Exhibit Feature: Canine Contrasts: Unraveling Wolves and Coyotes in New York

Published June 17, 2024 | Mammalogy

The New York State Museum's latest exhibit feature Canine Contrasts: Unraveling Wolves and Coyotes in New York introduces the fascinating world of wolves and coyotes as it tells the story of a wolf recently mistaken for a coyote and killed near Cherry Valley, NY. Along with a taxidermy...

Donate Eclipse Glasses

Donate Your Eclipse Glasses!

Published April 12, 2024 | Programs

Donate your eclipse glasses to help others safely enjoy eclipses in the future! Bring your gently used eclipse glasses to the New York State Museum until the end of April.

The nonprofit group Astronomers Without Borders (AWB) has partnered with libraries, schools, museums, businesses and...

Starks Knob and Lester Park graphic

New York State Geoparks Highlighted in New Videos

Published March 26, 2024 | Geology

Two videos on classic geologic sites in New York are available from the Geological Society of America “Geoheritage” program. The videos, made by Drs. Ed Landing (New York State Paleontologist, emeritus) and Alexander Bartholomew (SUNY-New Paltz, geology department) feature two sites in Saratoga...

Dr. Taza Schaming assist with research in the NYSM Ornithology Collections

From Field to Lab: Research Associate in Ornithology Connects Conservation with Museum Collections

Published February 5, 2024 | Ornithology

Locally-based Ornithologist Dr. Taza Schaming was appointed as a Research Associate in 2023, and has been assisting Dr. Jeremy Kirchman, NYSM Curator of Birds and Mammals, in our specimen preparation lab, turning salvaged birds into research specimens. Taza is a Wildlife Ecologist at Northern...

Powell House Foundation

NYSM Archaeologist Featured in the Times Union for Research Identifying 19th-Century African American Farms

Published February 5, 2024 | Historical Archaeology

NYSM Historical Archaeologist Michael Lucas and his team were recently featured in the Times Union for their fieldwork and research leading to the identification of Albany-area farms owned and operated by African Americans during the 1800s.

Discover how the study of the artifacts...

Trash Talk

NYSM Archaeologist Talks Trash with the New Amsterdam History Center

Published January 31, 2024 | Historical Archaeology

 

On Thursday, February 8 from 6-7:30pm, NYSM Historical Archaeologist Michael Lucas joins the New Amsterdam History Center for the online event, "Trash Talk: A Lively Discussion of 17th Century Refuse, Recycling, and the Reshaping of Manahatta's Shoreline." 

What was “trash” in...

Natasha Smoke-Santiago examines pottery rim sherds

Coupling Indigenous Artwork and Ancient Artifacts

Published January 22, 2024 | Native American Archaeology

The New York State Museum maintains its extensive material collections for the benefit of individuals and communities across the New York region and beyond. Increasingly, indigenous scholars, artists, and community members are accessing the NYSM's anthropology collections for insights into...

Objects from the NYSM Shaker Collection

From the Collections: Shakers and the New York State Museum 

Published January 17, 2024 | Social History

2024 marks the 250th anniversary of the Shakers coming to colonial America. The Shakers were a small sect of Quakers that started in Manchester, England in 1747. They were formally known as the United Society of Believers in Christ’s First and Second Appearing. Because of the zealous fervor...

Devonian of New York

New Publication on the Devonian Features Significant Contributions from NYSM Geologist

Published December 11, 2023 | Devonian Geology

 

The Devonian Period occurred between 419.2 million and 358.9 million years ago. Devonian-age rocks in New York State have been utilized by geologists, paleontologists, and educators to study the development of life, understand geological processes, and teach about the history of the...

Spiller Newspaper Weight Collection

Spiller Newspaper Paperweight Collection

Published December 7, 2023 | Cultural History

Mortimer Spiller was born in 1922 to Russian immigrants who settled in LeRoy, New York. Spiller’s college training in business and advertising was interrupted by service in World War II. After the war, he was eager to complete his education and put his degree into practice. In 1947, while...

Daniel Huntington (1816–1906) The Atlantic Cable Projectors, 1895

The Atlantic Cable Projectors (1895) returns to the New York State Museum

Published December 5, 2023 | Cultural History

Daniel Huntington (1816–1906)
The Atlantic Cable Projectors, 1895...

NYSM Logo

NYSM's State Survey Geologists join federal partners in collaborative Aerial Mapping Project in Northwestern, New York 

Published September 29, 2023 | Geologic Mapping

Geologists within the New York State Museum have been conducting geological mapping in partnership with the United States Geological Survey (USGS) for 40 years. This long-standing collaboration has helped the State Museum study and map the distribution of rocks and sediments across New York’s...

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