The Museum of Natural and Cultural History’s first major expansion since 1987, completed in August, brought Congressman Peter DeFazio to campus Friday to tour the new wing that he worked to fund.
“What is this?” DeFazio asked, pointing with wide eyes to a 7-foot-tall model of a face made of woven multicolored straw.
“Oh that’s a dance mask from New Guinea,” Museum of Natural and Cultural History Director Jon Erlandson said. “Their art is very large and dramatic and tends to take up a lot of space, so we have be very careful on what we accept from them.”
Erlandson won’t have to be too cautious in selecting art anymore. The museum finally moved its artifacts and exhibits into the new collections center and public galleria this fall.
DeFazio and University President Richard Lariviere took a behind-the-scenes tour last Friday to view the new collections wing and galleria.
The new wing will house more than 500,000 artifacts, most of which were uncovered by road and public works projects. A major federal highway-spending bill authorized by Congress in 2005 provided $2.17 million for the needed curatorial center; the uncovered artifacts and other specimens were previously stored in a variety of buildings around campus in what Erlandson considered less than optimal conditions.
DeFazio chairs the federal highways and transit subcommittee and requested the federal funds for the expansion.
“(The renovation) is a requirement by law, but the burden of money shouldn’t be put on the University of Oregon, as it has enough financial worries already,” DeFazio said.
Special features to the building include precision climate control and ultra-compact storage vaults with ample space to accommodate ongoing additions to the museum’s collections.
Since the 1970s, the museum has provided collaborative support with Oregon Department of Transportation, using the tools of archaeology to identify, interpret and preserve artifacts found during highway projects.
At the event, Erlandson thanked DeFazio and Lariviere for their support and contributions to the facility.
“We have had great support and funding from around the state and Peter (DeFazio) has led that act,” Erlandson said. “This is a $2.8-million expansion and is a crucial first step to our overall expansion project.”
DeFazio and Lariviere toured the West vault in the museum, where major storage improvements have been made to hold the hundreds of thousands of artifacts the museum owns. In the vault, large storage containers lie on top of tracks on the room’s floor that move with the turn of a wheel.
Erlandson offered DeFazio to take a “spin” and test the ease
of mobility.
“How does it handle?” Development Communications Director Melody Ward Leslie asked.
“Great. Better steering than my Dodge Dart,” DeFazio said.
“Better mileage too, I bet,” Lariviere said.
DeFazio and Lariviere also examined some of the many collections stored in the vaults, from 8,000-year-old Native American arrowheads found in Klamath Falls to 10,000-year-old sagebrush sandals from Fort Rock Cave.
The experience made an impact on Lariviere.
“I think (the museum) reinforces the notion that, as precious as the charge to preserve our history is, there is a greater charge to explain it as well,” Lariviere said. “An institution is charged to use the artifacts to explain our history, and I think they are doing
it superbly.”
He added, “The greatest story behind the museum has been with the wholly obsolete facilities it has had.”
DeFazio shared those sentiment.
“Anyone who saw the original repository would be blown away by what they had,” DeFazio said. “There were no atmosphere controls, or appropriate storage facilities, it was completely inaccessible.”
The museum also plans to add a new archaeological research wing, a $4.75 million project funded by both public and private sources. The expansion will bring the 50-member research staff scattered around campus together in a modern research facility.
To DeFazio, these improvements are nostalgic.
“When I was a student, most of these artifacts were housed in a basement somewhere in campus,” DeFazio said. “I am just impressed by how nice it was. This is a building vision and the vision will now be accessible to researchers and the public.”
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