Ralph S. and Rose L. Solecki papers
name: label: Creator
content: Solecki, Ralph S.
label: Creator
content: Solecki, Rose L.
place: label: Place
content: Shanidar Cave (Iraq)
label: Place
content: Alaska -- Archaeology
topic: label: Occupation
content: Women archaeologists
label: Topic
content: Excavations (Archaeology)
label: Topic
content: Archaeology -- Iraq
label: Topic
content: Archaeologists
label: Topic
content: Early man -- Neanderthal
label: Topic
content: Human evolution
label: Topic
content: Archaeology
label: Topic
content: Archaeology -- United States
label: Topic
content: Excavations (Archaeology) -- Middle East
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: These papers were donated to the National Anthropological Archives by Ralph and Rose Solecki and their sons, John and William, in 2016, 2018, and 2019.
creator: label: Creator
content: Solecki, Ralph S.
label: Creator
content: Solecki, Rose L.
setName: label: See more items in
content: Ralph S. and Rose L. Solecki papers
abstract: label: Summary
content: The papers of Ralph S. and Rose L. Solecki, 1904-2017 (bulk 1951-1999) primarily document their archaeological excavations and subsequent analysis of sites in Southwest Asia including Shanidar Cave and Zawi Chemi Shanidar in northern Iraq; Yabroud, Syria; and Nahr Ibrahim and El Masloukh, Lebanon primarily during the 1950s-1980s. The papers also include their work at other sites throughout the Near East and North America and files relating to the professional careers at the Smithsonian Institution, Columbia University, and Texas A&M University. The collection consists of field notes, data and analysis, manuscript drafts, publications, correspondence, illustrations and maps, photographic prints, negatives, slides, and recorded film.
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: Ralph S. Solecki (1917-2019) and Rose L. Solecki (b. 1925) are archaeologists that worked in the Near East at Shanidar Cave and Zawi Chemi Shanidar in northern Iraq (1951-1960); Yabroud, Syria (1963-1965, 1981, 1987); and Nahr Ibrahim and El Masloukh in Lebanon (1969-1973). Ralph Solecki also conducted archaeological field work in North America at sites in Nebraska, Alaska, and New York as well as with the Smithsonian Institution's River Basin Surveys. From 1958-1988, Ralph Solecki was a professor of anthropology at Columbia University. The Soleckis became adjunct faculty at Texas A&M University. 

Stefan Ralph Solecki was born on October 15th, 1917 in Brooklyn, New York. After graduating from Newtown High School in 1936, he attended the City College of New York from 1936-1941 and received a B.S. in Geology in 1942. Solecki then served in the US Army and fought in World War II. He was discharged in 1945. In 1946, Solecki enrolled at Columbia University to study Anthropology, and he received a M.A. degree in 1950. During this time, Solecki worked for the River Basin Surveys at the Smithsonian Institution. He also accompanied a geological survey to northern Alaska in 1949 (and later in 1961). In 1951, he became an associate curator of archaeology at the Smithsonian Institution. In that same year, he traveled to Iraq to survey prehistoric sites and began Season I of excavation at Shanidar Cave. Solecki then received a Fulbright fellowship to return to Iraq in 1953-1954 to continue excavations at Shanidar Cave (Season II) and conduct research at the Iraq Museum in Baghdad. In 1958, he received his PhD in Anthropology from Columbia University and accepted a faculty position within the Department of Anthropology at Columbia University. Following the final two seasons of excavation at Shanidar Cave (see below for details on Season III and IV), Solecki led a number of Columbia University expeditions to various locations around the Middle East, Africa, and Europe. He also spent three seasons (1963-1964, 1981, 1987) surveying and excavating the site of Yabroud in Syria and three field seasons excavating the sites of Nahr Ibrahim (1969, 1970, 1973) and El Masloukh (1969) in Lebanon. Solecki retired from Columbia University in 1988.

Rose Muriel (née Lilien) Solecki was born on November 18th, 1925 in New York City, New York. She completed her undergraduate studies in Anthropology from Hunter College in 1945, and she went on to receive her M.A. and PhD degrees in Anthropology from Columbia University. While at Columbia, she joined the American Museum of Natural History's 2nd expedition to Afghanistan in 1950. She also studied under William Duncan Strong and joined Strong's excavations in Peru from 1952-1953. Rose Solecki acted as a research associate within the Department of Anthropology at Columbia University until Ralph Solecki's retirement in 1988.

Ralph and Rose met at Columbia University as students and married in 1955. In 1956-1957, both Ralph and Rose Solecki travelled to Iraq, where Ralph conducted a third season of excavation at Shanidar Cave and Rose excavated the nearby Zawi Chemi Shanidar village site. In 1960, the Soleckis returned for a fourth and final field season of excavation at Shanidar Cave and Zawi Chemi Shanidar, where they were accompanied by Smithsonian Institution curator of Physical Anthropology, T. Dale Stewart. Ralph and Rose Solecki both held positions at Columbia University until Ralph's retirement in 1988. In 1990, Ralph and Rose served as adjunct professors at Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas. In 2000, they left Texas A&M University and moved to South Orange, New Jersey. 

Ralph Solecki died in Livingston, New Jersey on March 20, 2019. 

Chronology of the Life of Ralph S. Solecki

1917 October 15 -- Born in Brooklyn, New York, USA 

1942 -- B.S. in Geology from City College of New York  

1942-1945 -- Served in the United States Army during World War II 

1948 -- Started working with the Smithsonian Institution's River Basin Surveys

1948-1949 -- Accompanied a United States Geological Survey party to the upper Kokpowruk and Kokolik rivers at the Brooks Range in northwestern Alaska

1950 -- M.A. in Anthropology from Columbia University 

1951 -- First field season at Shanidar Cave, Iraq

1953-1954 -- Fulbright fellowship to conduct fieldwork in Iraq  Second field season at Shanidar Cave, Iraq Shanidar Child skeleton discovered

1955 -- Married Rose M. Lilien

1956-1957 -- Third field season at Shanidar Cave, Iraq Shanidar I, II, and III skeletons discovered

1958 -- Appointed Associate Curator of Archaeology at the Smithsonian Institution PhD in Anthropology from Columbia University Accepted post at Columbia University as Associate Professor of Anthropology

1960 -- Fourth field season at Shanidar Cave  Shanidar IV, V, VI, VII (or IV-VII), and VIII skeletons discovered

1961-1962 -- Columbia University Nubian Expedition to Sudan

1963 -- Columbia University Near East (C.U.N.E.) Expedition to Seberde, Turkey and Yabroud, Syria

1964-1965 -- Columbia University Near East (C.U.N.E.) Expedition to Yabroud, Syria

1969-1973 -- Three field seasons at Nahr Ibrahim and El Masloukh, Lebanon 

1971 -- Authored Shanidar: The First Flower People 

1981 -- Archaeological survey at Yabroud, Syria

1987-1988 -- Field season at Yabroud, Syria

1988 -- Retired from Columbia University 

1990-2000 -- Served as Adjunct Professor of Anthropology at Texas A&M University 

2004 -- Coauthored The Proto-Neolithic Cemetery in Shanidar Cave with Rose L. Solecki and Anagnostis P. Agelarakis

2019 March 20 -- Died in Livingston, New Jersey

Chronology of the Life of Rose L. Solecki

1925 November 18 -- Born in New York City, New York

circa 1945 -- B.S. in Anthropology at Hunter College 

1946 -- Enrolled at Columbia University

1950  -- Joined the American Museum of Natural History's Second Archaeological Expedition to Afghanistan 

1952-1953 -- Field season in Peru under William Duncan Strong

1956 -- PhD from Columbia University

1956-1957 -- First field season at Zawi Chemi Shanidar, Iraq

1960 -- Second field season at Zawi Chemi Shanidar, Iraq

1990-2000 -- Served as Adjunct Professor of Anthropology at Texas A&M University 

2004 -- Coauthored The Proto-Neolithic Cemetery in Shanidar Cave with Ralph S. Solecki and Anagnostis P. Agelarakis
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 104 Linear feet
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1902-2020
label: Date
content: bulk 1951-1999
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: National Anthropological Archives
identifier: label: Identifier
content: NAA.2016-29
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: The Ralph S. and Rose L. Solecki papers are divided into 7 series:

•	Series 1: Shanidar Cave and Zawi Chemi Shanidar, Iraq, 1947-2017 (bulk 1951-1990)

•	Series 2: Yabroud, Syria and Other Localities, 1950-2017 (bulk 1964-1988)

•	Series 3: Nahr Ibrahim and El Masloukh, Lebanon, 1968-2008 (bulk 1969-1973)

•	Series 4: Other Expeditions and Projects, 1930-1986, 2006

•	Series 5: Research and Teaching Files, 1912-2012 (bulk 1950-2000)

•	Series 6: Correspondence and Administrative Files, 1937-2020 (bulk: 1950-2000)

•	Series 7: Personal Files, 1902-2014 (bulk: 1950-2000)
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: The collection arrived at the National Anthropological Archives in two primary deposits. The first accession was stored at the Soleckis' home in South Orange, NJ and at Columbia University and then tranfered to the NAA in 2016. These materials were primarily arranged by archaeological site or affiliated institution. The second accretion of materials was stored at the Soleckis' home, transfered in 2018, and were similarly arranged by site or institution in which the files were affiliated. The archivist has maintained this arrangment. Original folder titles have also been maintained. Weeding of materials was undertaken to remove duplicate material. Material was either tranferred to the John Wesley Powell Library of Anthropology or destroyed. In Series 5: Research and Teaching Files,  only the material that was annotated or rare/unpublished was retained.

Molly Kamph processed and encoded the collection from 2017-2022. From 2018-2019, a team of eleven volunteers and interns including fall 2018 interns: Matthew Capece, Sophia Carroll, and Tiffany Priest; 
winter break Intern Moni Islam; spring 2019 interns: Kayla Kubehl and Viridiana Garcia; summer 2019 interns: Sidney Ascher and Benjamin Norton; and volunteers: Michelle Fuentes, Kennis Pieper, and Taylor Reynolds aided in rehousing and digitizing part of the Solecki papers.

Manuscript collection numbers MS 4348, MS 4358, MS 4613, MS 7091, MS 92-10, and Photo Lot 77 have been relocated and incorporated into the Ralph S. and Rose L. Solecki papers. Photo Lot 92-35 remains a separate collection.

Oversized maps remain to be processed.
bibliography: label: Selected Bibliography
content: Shanidar: The first flower people. --  New York: A. Knopf, 1971. 

Shanidar: The humanity of Neanderthal man. --  New York: Penguin Press, 1972.

The proto-neolithic cemetery in Shanidar Cave.  -- College Station, TX: Texas A&M University Press, 2004.
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: The papers of Ralph S. and Rose L. Solecki document their archaeological excavations and subsequent analysis of sites in Southwest Asia including Shanidar Cave and Zawi Chemi Shanidar in northern Iraq; Yabroud, Syria; Nahr Ibrahim and El Masloukh, Lebanon primarily during the 1950s-1980s. The papers also reflect their academic careers as students and faculty at Columbia University, staff at the Smithsonian Institution, and adjunct faculty at Texas A&M University. 

The bulk of the collection consists of materials relating to the Soleckis' archaeological excavations at Shanidar Cave and Zawi Chemi Shanidar in northern Iraq (1951-1960); Yabroud, Syria and locations in Turkey as part of the Columbia University Near East expeditions (or C.U.N.E.) (1963-1965, 1981, 1987-1988); Nahr Ibrahim and El Masloukh, Lebanon (1969-1973). These materials include field notebooks, excavation catalogs, research notes, data analysis, manuscript drafts, publications, correspondence, illustrations, maps, photographs, slides, sound recordings, and film. Similar materials from other expeditions and projects include aerial photography projects in the 1950s-1960s; expeditions to Alaska in 1949 and 1961; expeditions to Sudan (as part of the Columbia University Nubian Expedition, also abbreviated C.U.N.E.) and Iran in the 1960s-1970s; Rose's work in Peru and Afghanistan in the 1950s; and various archaeological projects elsewhere in North America such as Ralph's work with the River Basin Surveys in the 1940s-1950s contain similar materials. 

The papers also contain research and teaching files in the form of annotated publications, course materials, student theses, and other files from their time as students and faculty at Columbia University, staff at the Smithsonian Institution, and adjunct faculty at Texas A&M University.  Correspondence and administrative files such as grant applications, daybooks, and departmental forms and files from their professional careers are also within the collection. Personal files, while sparse, are also represented. 

Please note that the collection contains images of human remains.
relatedmaterial: label: Related Materials
content: The Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History's Department of Anthropology contains archaeological and ethnological collections relating to the work of Ralph and Rose Solecki including accession numbers 187539,  187542, 189439, 202536, 209544, 217009, 220078, 220920, 224347, 224956, 228740, 232170, 242336, 249217, 356696. Accession 220078 contains archaeological and archaeobiological material excavated by Ralph and Rose Solecki at Shanidar Cave and Zawi Chemi Shanidar. An accretion transferred in 2016 was cataloged as part of the Ralph S. and Rose L. Solecki Papers and Artifacts Project (2017-2019) and cross-references excavation and artifact analysis within the Solecki papers. 

The NMNH Department of Anthropology's Collections also holds uncatalogued material from the Yabroud sites as well as material from Turkey potentially excavated during the 1963 field season; the Nahr Ibrahim and El Masloukh sitesin Lebanon in 1969, 1970, and 1973; Europe including material from France, Poland, England, Denmark, and Belgium in the 1960s; and from Sudan during the Columbia University Nubian Expedition (CUNE) to Sudan and Egypt in 1961.

The Iraq Museum in Baghdad holds archaeolgical material from the Shanidar Cave and Zawi Chemi Shanidar sites excavated by Ralph and Rose Solecki.

Archaeological material excavated by Ralph Solecki from the Yabroud sites in Syria is held at the National Museum of Damascus in Syria.

Texas A&M University's Anthropology Research Collections holds material excavated by the Soleckis from the Nahr Ibrahim and El Masloukh sites and possibly material from Shanidar Cave.

Records relating to the American Museum of Natural History's Expeditions to Afghanistan may be found in the Special Collections of the American Museum of Natural History's Research Library as well as a collection titled "Field diary, Second Afghan Expedition, American Museum of Natural History, 1950-08 - 1951-02" at the Harvard University Library.

Artifacts and archival material excavated and created by the Soleckis from the 1968 field season at the Tepe Seavan site in Iran can be found at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology.

Archaeological and archival material related to the Soleckis work in New York and surrounding localities are housed at the American Museum of Natural History and other local historical societies.
separatedmaterial: label: Separated Materials
content: Materials containing personally identifiable information (PII) and born digital materials have been separated, and research access is restricted. In some instances, documents have been copied and redacted; however, in other cases, the entire file has been restricted. Please contact the repository for more information about restricted materials. 

Photographs of anthropologists were also separated and added to Photo Lot 92-35.