Review: A Paean to an American Museum

ANTHROPOLOGY UNMASKED:
Museums, Science, and Politics in New York City
Vol. I: The Putnam-Boas Era, 600pp; Vol. II: The Wissler Years
By Stanley Freed
Published by Orange Frazer Press, Wilmington, OH; ©2012, 423 pp

Reviewed by Serena Nanda* and Joan Young**

Holden Caulfield, the dreamy, precocious protagonist of J.D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye, was terrified by the unpredictable challenges of his world. He treasured the American Museum of Natural History’s diorama of the Eskimo woman fishing through the ice as the place he wished he could live: “where nothing ever changes, where everything is simple, understandable and infinite.” But as author Stanley Freed describes in his rich history of the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), things never do remain the same. As curator of Anthropology for forty years (he is now curator emeritus), Freed’s insider knowledge, academic integrity, captivating anecdotes and droll asides transform the original documents, letters, and archives on which his history is based, into a fascinating narrative.

Freed unmasks the conflicts and reconciliations of the Museum’s multiple, and sometimes conflicting, purposes, from its origins in the late l9th century until 1970, when he became Chair of the Anthropology Department. In his generally chronological discussions of the museum’s projects, he illuminates rural life of late 19th and early 20th century America; the history of American museums; the growth of science, including anthropology; and academic and urban politics. He introduces us to a world of exotic locales, expeditions of derring-do, and fascinating personalities — and their wives.

The author sets the Museum’s activities in the context of international conflicts, including those with the Tsarist secret police and the new Soviet system; anti-Semitism; two World Wars; nationalistic sensitivities; the ethics of both collecting from and representing indigenous cultures; and the successes and failures of the Museum’s scientific projects.

Unmasked ends with Freed’s back story of Margaret Mead, the Museum’s senior woman par excellence and one of America’s best known commentators on American culture. His allusion to Mead’s romantic tryst with celebrated anthropologist Edward Sapir on the eve of her first journey to Samoa brings her to life, as does his account of Colin Turnbull, the empathetic anthropologist whose ethnography of the gentle Mbuti of the Ituri forest in central Africa, captivated the American public. Unmasked also unmasks Turnbull’s tenure at the Museum, where in addition to designing the controversial African exhibit, he raised hackles by frequently bringing his black, gay paramour to the Department offices.

The AMNH grew out of P.T. Barnum’s American Museum, an enterprise by the “Prince of Humbugs” that featured “freaks” and other human oddities, but also included a useful natural history collection. The elite patrons of the newer AMNH were loathe to identify their institution with that of the “huckster showman,” but in fact, had the same goals of entertainment and education. They also viewed their new institution as essential for New York City to outshine Boston and Philadelphia, and later Chicago, as the most cosmopolitan city in America.

Politicians supporting the AMNH hoped to attract the working classes, school children and immigrants, believing this would promote social stability and public order. Tammany Hall’s Boss Tweed, “honest” John Kelly and George Plunkitt all offered support, but only if the Museum would agree to Sunday openings, so that working people could visit. Boss Tweed characterized Tammany’s machinations on behalf of the new, expanded Museum as “honest graft” and Plunkitt himself hand carried the necessary documents to the state house. As Freed wryly notes, the Museum trustees took care not to oppose city politicians on a politically sensitive issue in the future.

The AMNH’s initial interest was to expand and dramatically exhibit their cultural and natural history collections. Under Morris Jesup, the AMNH’s third president, “the Heart, Brain, and Soul” of the Museum, scientific research, especially in paleontology and anthropology, joined entertainment and education as key goals. Jesup hoped the paleontological exhibits would promote the idea of evolution, a topic of great public interest. Unfortunately, the large “stuffed” animals at the core of these exhibits, which were temporarily stored in the basement, created “big smells” that emanated throughout the Museum building.

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Review: A Paean to an American Museum

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