CULTURAL COLLECTION
The Cultural Collections of the Marjorie Barrick Museum were launched in 1979 by a gift from Michael and Mannetta Braunstein. Today, the museum's holdings include a comprehensive collection of Pre-columbian objects from nearly every culture of Pre-columbian Latin America, with the best representations from West Mexico and the Maya region*. The museum also possesses a cohesive collection of Guatemalan costumes and an extensive collection of Mexican masks.
Native American materials from the Southwest are a significant part of the collection. Materials include representations of Navajo weaving, jewlery, and basketry; Hopi kachinas, pottery and basketry; Southern Paiute basketry and archaeological objects.
*What can be learned from these objects is considerable, but much information was lost when looters illicitly dug them up. Since pieces were not scientifically excavated, when they were manufactured or where they were found are unknown. The U.S. ratified the UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultual Property in 1983. Despite this, the antiquites market continues to drive the destruction of important archaeologial sites in Mexico and Central America today.
Inquiries should be addressed to:
Aurore Giguet
Marjorie Barrick Museum, UNLV
4505 Maryland Parkway Box 454012
Las Vegas, Nevada 89154-4012
Phone: (702) 895-1402
Fax: (702) 895-3094
E-Mail:aurore.giguet@unlv.edu