As the homeland of the Fon culture, the Dahomey kingdom was located in the southern part of what is today the country of Benin. The Dahomey kingdom is well-known historically for the Agojie, the elite female “amazon” military unit that guarded the king, as well as for the participation of the Fon in the African slave trade. The Dahomey kingdom came to an end after they were … [Read more...] about The Dahomey Kings Quilt: Researched by Mckenna O’Connor
“Whimsies” are small beaded items that were created by Native American artisans to sell to tourists. At the turn of the 20th century, the Niagara Falls region experienced a great boom in tourism, and visitors proved eager to buy handmade goods as souvenirs. Native cultures of this region were well-known for making skilled floral beadwork that appealed greatly to the aesthetics … [Read more...] about Beaded Bags: Researched and Conserved by Cassidy Hale
Maple Park Cemetery in Springfield, Missouri, is a rural cemetery established in the 19th century as part of a movement to create burial grounds with a focus on nature. Rural cemeteries are designed not only to be tranquil resting places for the dead, but attractive landscapes where people could both honor their loved ones and spend their free time enjoying the park-like … [Read more...] about Infant Gravestones in Maple Park Cemetery: Researched, Conserved, and Reconstructed by Madison Baker
Dolls in many different sizes and made of many different materials have been popular toys since ancient times, and they provide both entertainment and education for children to learn child care through play. “China dolls” are made of porcelain, a type of ceramic composed of fine clay along with ground quartz and feldspar. This formula was developed in China in 7th century, but … [Read more...] about China Dolls: Researched and Conserved by McKenna O’Connor
While the craftsmanship of these two chairs is of high quality, the small size of the chairs and the thin caning indicates that they were not meant to serve as actual chairs for children; instead, these were meant to be toy chairs for use as accessories for dolls. Each chair has a wooden frame that consists of machine-turned, solid wooden pieces that form the legs, … [Read more...] about Doll Chairs: Researched and Conserved by Malena Hemenway