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Welcome to the Penn Museum blog. First launched in January 2009, the Museum blog now has over 800 posts covering a range of topics in the categories of Museum, Collection, Exhibitions, Research, and By Location. Here you’ll hear directly from our staff and Penn students about their work, research, experiences, and discoveries. To explore the Museum's other digital content, visit The Digital Penn Museum.


Films of Sitio Conte as a primary source material

By: Kate Pourshariati

The Beneath the Surface exhibit has positioned the film records of the expedition to Sitio Conte prominently within the exhibit. We asked Clark Erickson, the lead curator of the exhibit, what the films mean to him as primary source materials in the history of archaeology, and especially of this site. The video advances my agenda […]

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Sitio Conte in Real Time: February 7, 1940

By: Lee Roueche

Wed. Feb. 7. Ash Wednesday. In spite of “Carnival” yesterday, all men at work by 7:10. Much [?] at this hour, calm & not hot. Got very hot during day. Lothrop had chicha party for men after work. Cook is apparently dissatisfied & threatens to leave frequently. Muse have good talk with him & settle […]

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Sitio Conte in Real Time: February 5, 1940

By: Lee Roueche

Mon. Feb 5. Warm, happy, rather clear. 9 diggers & foreman. Lothrop & I troweled on large area of broken pottery & [?] in w[est]. end of trench. Merrill surveying. Photo’d skeleton & cache in Tr I & [?] took up broken broken pottery. Corning washing & selecting sherds. John [?] [?] rolls of canvas […]

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Sitio Conte in Real Time: February 4, 1940

By: Lee Roueche

Sun. Feb. 4. Pleasant quiet warm day, first quiet day in ten days. Most of us up a half hour late. Merrill spent whole day on his drawings. Lothrops took a little trip up river to see Verrills site and found two new ones. The Cornings spent most of day straightening up equipment. John M. […]

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Sitio Conte in Real Time: February 3, 1940

By: Lee Roueche

-Robert Merrill, Field Notes, pg. 1, February 3, 1940 Today marks Robert Merrill’s first day on the job at Sitio Conte.  His meticulous field notebook contains–in exquisite detail–his notes, drawings, and photographs of the excavations. It is an invaluable tool for learning about the Cocle people and the burials at Sitio Conte. A retired civil engineer, Merrill worked with […]

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Sitio Conte in Real Time: February 2, 1940

By: Lee Roueche

Came down on a cache of a half dozen apparently complete vessels this afternoon which will be photo’d and taken out tomorrow. A few gold beads found by the workmen in the soil. Also today began to uncover a great mass of broken pottery. -J. Alden Mason to Horace Jayne, February 2, 1940 In his first […]

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Sitio Conte in Real Time: January 23, 1940

By: Lee Roueche

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Sitio Conte in Real Time: January 22, 1940

By: Lee Roueche

5 lbs onions $.30 10 tins Maxwell’s coffee 1# $6.00 6 paq. Salada tea $1.50 1 bag Flour Gold Medal 98# $3.25 25 lbs Chinese rice $1.50 Receipt from Compañia Kito Chen, S.A., January 22, 1940 On this day 75 years ago, J. Alden Mason went grocery shopping. So what do you feed a small […]

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Sitio Conte in Real Time: January 20, 1940

By: Lee Roueche

We are going up to the camp early this afternoon to get things started, find out the lay of the land, and get a better idea of what to buy. J. Alden Mason to John Corning, January 20, 1940 Finally in Panama after their “swanky” voyage on the Grace Line, Mason wrote to John Corning […]

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Sitio Conte in Real Time: January 17, 1940

By: Lee Roueche

Approaching Panama Canal after a lovely calm clear warm swanky trip. Pass thru canal tomorrow. Regards to all. J. Alden Mason, January 17, 1940

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