Description: The life of Betty J. Meggers, an Anthropologist, who speciailized in pottery identification, conducted extensive field work in Amazon Rainforest region of South America, and was associated with the Smithsonian for more than five decades.
Description: Readers of The Bigger Picture will be familiar with the Hungerford Deed, a 1787 property contract dividing a lucrative land inheritance between the mother and aunt of the Smithsonian’s founding donor, James Smithson. Over the last three years I have been able to take a deep dive into the content of the Deed and strengthen our understanding of Smithson’s choice to leave his