Description: Each week, the Archives features a woman who has been a groundbreaker at the Smithsonian, past or present, in a series titled Wonderful Women Wednesday.
Description: [caption id="attachment_8083" align="aligncenter" width="336" caption="The mysterious cabinet of curiosities with assorted film cameras perched on top, 2010, by Michael Barnes, SIA."][/caption] Last fall a piece of furniture showed up in the Smithsonian Institution Archives (SIA) reception area. Aside from a few nicks, it is a large, handsome cabinet with drawers and double
Description: Let’s learn about the history of Smithsonian Gardens’ annual orchid exhibit with a little help from former director Barbara Faust through her 2011 oral history interview.
Description: In celebration of Preservation Week 2016, here’s a brief overview of surveys and their role in preservation, as well as a look into an audiovisual survey currently taking place right here at the Smithsonian.
Description: Providing suitable housing for collections can sometimes be cost-prohibitive. When the Archives received a large collection of oversized drawings, a cost-savings approach had to be employed while still achieving an appropriate housing strategy for long-term preservation.