Archaeological Collections Access Announcement
ANNOUNCEMENT
ARCHAEOLOGICAL COLLECTIONS
OPEN ON A LIMITED BASIS
Construction of the Center for New Mexico Archaeology (CNMA), including a new repository for the archaeological collections of the Museum of Indian Arts & Culture/Laboratory of Anthropology, has been completed. A large portion of the bulk archaeological collections have been moved to the Archaeological Repository at the CNMA. More shelving modules will be installed in 2013, and the ARC staff will continue to rehouse and move the remainder of the bulk collections through 2014. The tasks of rehousing and moving the collections, as well as the purchase of new storage furniture at the CNMA, is being generously supported by grants and funding from a mixture of sources, including the New Mexico Department of Transportation, the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the Native Treasures Indian Art Festival, and the New Mexico State Legislature. The extra work-load for our staff associated with the collections move, coupled with the inevitability of portions of the collection being inaccessible during certain phases of the move, has significantly affected the ability of our staff to respond to research inquiries in a timely manner, and their ability to make items available for study.
Collections are now open on a limited basis. Access will be granted on a case-by-case basis. Please submit a completed “Request for Access to Archaeological Collections” form at least one month prior to the date you propose to visit collections to the Curator of Archaeological Research Collections, Julia Clifton, at julia.clifton@state.nm.us or P.O. Box 2087; Santa Fe, NM 87504. The Request form can be downloaded from this website in either an MS Word request or PDF request version. Submission of a request will not guarantee access, as some materials in the collections might not be available for extended periods of time due to re-housing efforts. Circumstances may arise that will force the Museum to close the collections to researchers again. If that need arises, we will circulate a notice to that effect as soon as feasible.
We regret that NO WALK-INS will be accommodated, and NO LOAN REQUESTS for archaeological materials will be considered until further notice.
For more information, contact Julia Clifton, Curator of Archaeological Research Collections, 505-476-1268 or julia.clifton@state.nm.us