United States Army Medical Museum composite photographs of skulls
odd: label: Local Call Number(s)
content: NAA Photo Lot 6A
name: label: Creator
content: Army Medical Museum (U.S.)
label: Names
content: Billings, John Shaw, 1838-1913
label: Names
content: Matthews, Washington, 1843-1905
index: label: Addl. KW Subj
content: Blackfoot

Sioux
topic: label: Topic
content: anthropometry
label: Topic
content: Skull
creator: label: Creator
content: Army Medical Museum (U.S.)
culture: label: Culture
content: Indians of North America -- Great Plains
label: Culture
content: Sioux
label: Culture
content: Niuam (Comanche)
label: Culture
content: Minitari (Hidatsa)
label: Culture
content: Eskimos
label: Culture
content: Apache
label: Culture
content: Arctic peoples
label: Culture
content: Tsitsistas/Suhtai (Cheyenne)
label: Culture
content: Inunaina (Arapaho)
label: Culture
content: Paiute
label: Culture
content: Indians of North America -- Great Basin
label: Culture
content: Indians of North America -- Subarctic
label: Culture
content: Hawaiians
label: Culture
content: African Americans
label: Culture
content: Unangax̂ (Aleut)
label: Culture
content: Pikuni Blackfeet (Piegan)
label: Culture
content: Indians of North America -- Southwest, New
label: Culture
content: Wichita
label: Culture
content: Ponca
setName: label: See more items in
content: United States Army Medical Museum composite photographs of skulls
bioghist: label: Biographical/Historical note
content: The United States Army Medical Museum (AMM, renamed the National Museum of Health and Medicine in 1989) was established by US Army Surgeon General William A. Hammond in 1862. Its initial focus was on collecting specimens of unusual pathology, mostly taken from victims of the American Civil War. By 1867, the museum had expanded to include medical, microsopical, anatomical, comparative anatomics, and other sections. The anatomical collection grew in part as a result of Circular No. 2 of 1867, which authorized military medical officers to collect cranial specimens from deceased Native Americans. Additionally, the AMM made an arrangement with the Smithsonian Institution, by which the Smithsonian transferred their collection of human remains in exchange for ethnological artifacts. AMM photographed and measured many of the specimens in its collection as part of the museum's anthropological research.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 78 Prints (circa, albumen)
unitdate: label: Date
content: circa 1884-1885
custodhist: label: Custodial History note
content: Photographs probably transferred by the Army Medical Museum.
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: National Anthropological Archives
identifier: label: Identifier
content: NAA.PhotoLot.6A
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Prints
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents note
content: Army Medical Museum photographs prepared under the supervision of John Shaw Billings and Washington Matthews, and created by superimposing images of several skulls for comparative purposes.  Each image has a caption that includes tribal or racial identification, number of skulls photographed, photograph number, negative number, and data on photographic technique.  

The collection represents of Aleut, Apache, Arapaho, Cheyenne, Comanche, Dakota, Eskimo, Hidatsa, Navajo, Oglala, Ojibwa, Paiute, Piegan, Ponca, Wichita, African American, Hawaiian, people, and people of San Miguel and San Nicholas Islands (California).
relatedmaterial: label: Location of Other Archival Materials
content: Additional Army Medical Museum photographs of skulls can be found in the National Anthropological Archives in Photo Lot 6B, Photo Lot 73-26C, Photo Lot 78-42, Photo Lot 83-41, and Photo Lot 97.
label: Location of Other Archival Materials
content: The National Anthropological Archives holds microfilm of the papers of Washington Matthews, circa 1864-1905, and records concerning skeletal material transferred to the Smithsonian Institution from the Army Medical Museum.
label: See others in
content: United States Army Medical Museum composite photographs of skulls, circa 1884-1885