Museum Archives

James Henry Breasted's Camera

The RB Cycle Graphic Camera owned by James Henry Breasted (D. 17490).

Artworks by E. F. Beaumont

A lithograph of the Damascus Gate in the The Lillian E. Beaumont Collection of Artworks by E. F. Beaumont (D. 16209).

Records from ISAC's Expedition at Tell Asmar

The discovery of a cache of Sumerian worshipper statues at Tell Asmar, January 1934 (P. 23290/N. 16367).

James Henry Breasted's Notebooks

A collation of the "Blessing of Ptah" text from Abu Simbel in the notebooks of James Henry Breasted (D. 17464).

The Lamassu in the Edgar and Deborah Jannotta Mesopotamian Gallery

Dr. Watson Boyes and a group of students in front of the human-headed winged bull (A7369; P. 21850).

Negative from the Oriental Institute Collection

M. Numa Patlagean, sculptor, and Dr. Breasted in the study in Haskell looking at the bust of the latter (N. 10955 / P. 18899).

The ISAC Museum Archives is the official repository for documentation related to the ISAC's administration, expeditions, photography, faculty, and staff. It is the mission of the Museum Archives to provide information and research services pertaining to these archival collections. These services include preservation and research access including provenance, information requests, and outreach. The Museum Archives primary collections consist of the following:

Correspondence of the Director's office beginning with James Henry Breasted
Papers of ISAC faculty and staff
Field records of ISAC's expeditions
Curatorial records and correspondence of the museum
Photographic records, comprised of over 100,000 negatives, prints, and slides

Further information can be found on the Photographic Archives page.

For research requests, begin your inquiry by searching the electronic records of the ISAC Museum Archives. These are available through the public Search Our Collections page, where the ongoing and growing catalog of the Museum Archives resides. This may assist in narrowing your request.

The archives are open Monday – Friday from 9:30 – 4:30pm. Please visit our Access the Collections page to arrange a Research Visit.