Museums
Ten Stories That Shaped 2022
In 2022, Harvard saw a multitude of transitions. The school finally lifted most of its last Covid-19 mandates and held in-person Commencement ceremonies for not one, not two, but three Harvard College classes. Across the top ranks of Harvard’s leadership, familiar faces exited the stage, including University President Lawrence S. Bacow, who will be succeeded by Claudine Gay, the first person of color and second woman to be named to Harvard’s top post. Here, The Crimson looks back at the 10 stories that shaped 2022 at Harvard.
Scientists, Artists Discuss Henry David Thoreau Plant Collection
A panel of artists and scientists involved in creating an exhibit on the plant collection of Henry Thoreau explored the intersection between art and botany as a means to inspire conversations about climate in a Harvard Museum of Natural History event on Thursday.
Harvard Pledges to Return Hundreds of Native American Hair Samples Housed at Peabody Museum
Harvard’s Peabody Museum on Thursday pledged to return hundreds of hair samples taken from Native American children who were enrolled in government-run schools in the 1930s and apologized for keeping the clippings in its collections.
Descendants Call for Immediate Return of Human Remains in Harvard Museum Collections, Criticize University Report
Harvard agreed to return the remains of 19 likely enslaved individuals to their descendants in a report published last week. But some descendants of enslaved individuals and Native American scholars voiced concerns about Harvard’s lack of specificity on repatriation timelines.
Harvard Pledges to Return Human Remains of Enslaved People to Descendents
Harvard University agreed on Thursday to return the human remains of 19 individuals who were likely enslaved to their descendants, accepting recommendations from a committee tasked with examining how the school should treat human remains in its museum collections.
‘It’s Meant Everything’: Tomahawk of Chief Standing Bear Returned from Harvard’s Peabody Museum to Ponca Tribe
On June 3, after pandemic-induced delays, a delegation of Ponca Tribe representatives traveled to Cambridge for a repatriation ceremony for Ponca Tribe chief Standing Bear’s pipe tomahawk.
Mass. Supreme Court Allows Emotional Distress Claim Against Harvard to Proceed in Suit Over Photos of Enslaved People
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court overturned a lower court’s dismissal of Tamara K. Lanier’s emotional distress claim against Harvard, according to a decision released Thursday morning, allowing Lanier to continue to seek damages from the University.
Cambridge City Council Calls On Harvard to Return Human Remains of Enslaved People, Native Americans
Following reports last week that Harvard University holds the human remains of at least 19 individuals who were likely enslaved and nearly 7,000 Native Americans, the Cambridge City Council adopted a policy order urging the University to relinquish the remains to their descendants during a Monday meeting.
Harvard Holds Human Remains of 19 Likely Enslaved Individuals, Thousands of Native Americans, Draft Report Says
Harvard University holds the human remains of at least 19 individuals who were likely enslaved and almost 7,000 Native Americans — collections that represent “the University’s engagement and complicity” with slavery and colonialism, according to a draft University report obtained by The Crimson.
After Agreeing to Repatriate Ponca Tomahawk, Peabody Museum Awaits Visit from Tribal Leaders
The Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology removed a pipe tomahawk that once belonged to Ponca chief Standing Bear from its collections last September, after calls for the museum to return the tomahawk to the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska and the Ponca Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma garnered international attention.
Harvard Art Museums Implement 'ReFrame' Initiative
The Harvard Art Museums have made progress in implementing their “ReFrame” initiative, which was announced last fall. The initiative aims to bring previously unseen collections out of storage and reframe existing curations.
HMSC Museum Opening
Beginning on November 26th, visitors were allowed back inside the HMSC Museums with a timed ticket reservation, for the first time since March 2020.
Visitors Laud Science and Culture Museums’ Public Reopening
After an extended shutdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the Harvard Museums of Science and Culture and its programs reopened to both Harvard affiliates and the general public last week.
Mass. Supreme Court Hears Oral Arguments Over Harvard’s Possession of Photos Depicting Enslaved People
In the opening salvo of their effort to appeal the March dismissal of Lanier v. Harvard, lawyers for Tamara K. Lanier and Harvard argued before the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court about whether the University unlawfully possesses and profits from historic photos Lanier says depict her enslaved ancestors.
