Harvard Classics Department Weighs Next Steps for Human Remains Discovered Last Year

Last spring, Classics Department Chair Naomi A. Weiss learned that her department possessed human skeletal remains — something few faculty had been aware of for decades. Nearly a year later, the University has yet to determine what should be done with them.

Curator Spotlights Nearly 400-Year-Old Chair At Harvard Art Museums Gallery Talk

The Harvard Art Museums held a gallery talk Wednesday centered on the oldest object in their American collection — a nearly 400-year-old chair that dates back to a 17th century Essex County household.

MFA Researcher Florence Dunn Friedman Examines Menkaure Statues in Egyptology Lecture

Boston Museum of Fine Arts researcher Florence D. Friedman offered new interpretations of Egyptian King Menkaure’s fourth dynasty statues during a lecture at the Harvard Museums of Science & Culture on Wednesday.

It Could Take Lifetimes To Catalog the Harvard Zoology Museum’s Collections Online. AI Tools Might Help.

The Museum of Comparative Zoology holds over 21 million specimens from its more than 150 year history, which could take lifetimes to catalogue manually, but researchers are considering the applications of artificial intelligence.

Harvard Art Museums Receive Bequest of 64 Edvard Munch Artworks

The Harvard Art Museums received a bequest of 62 prints and two paintings by Norwegian artist Edvard Munch, an addition that makes the museum’s collection of Munch’s work one of the largest in the United States.

New Harvard Art Museums Initiative Lets Students Touch Ancient Artifacts

Harvard Art Museums opened their doors for a hands-on display of ancient Egyptian artifacts Friday, the first in a series of “First/Hand Fridays” showcasing the museum’s private collection for Harvard students.

Harvard Will Not Remove Sackler Name From Art Museum and Campus Building

Harvard will not remove the Sackler name from one of three University art museums and another campus building, ending a yearslong campaign by student activists for Harvard to distance itself from the family and its role in the opioid epidemic.

Sarah Ganz Blythe To Serve as Director of Harvard Art Museums

Sarah Ganz Blythe, currently the deputy director for exhibitions, education, and programs at the Rhode Island School of Design, will serve as the next director of the Harvard Art Museums, the University announced Wednesday.

‘Largest Art Theft’: 50 Years of Searching for the Stolen Fogg Coins

On a December night in 1973, five armed men broke into Harvard’s Fogg Art Museum and stole more than 6,000 ancient Greek and Roman coins. Fifty years later, the museum is still working to get them back.

‘Sack the Sacklers’: Students Urge Harvard to Remove Sackler Name for a Class Assignment

Nine Harvard students protested Harvard’s ties to the infamous Sackler family, the former owners of Purdue Pharma, at the Harvard Art Museums for a final class assignment on Saturday.

Harvard Art Museums Director Martha Tedeschi to Step Down in June

Harvard Art Museums Director Martha Tedeschi will step down on June 30 after more than seven years in the role.

Admission to Harvard Art Museums Now Free for All

The Harvard Art Museums will now offer free admission to all visitors, the University announced Friday.

Business, Art Experts Discuss Role of Blockchain in Artist Compensation at Harvard Art Museums Event

Harvard Art Museums hosted New York University professors Kevin McCoy and Amy Whitaker for a Thursday evening discussion on the role of blockchain — a technology that allows for the secure distribution of data through a distributed ledger — in providing equality in the art market.

Student Activists Call on University to Dename Sackler Buildings at Harvard Art Museums ‘Die-In’

Harvard students and organizers staged a protest and “die-in” at the Harvard Art Museums Thursday to condemn the University’s connections to Arthur M. Sackler and his family, whom they charge with enabling and profiting from the opioid crisis.

Harvard Peabody Museum Transfers Ownership of Ancestral Kayak to Alutiiq Museum as Part of Ongoing Repatriation Efforts

The Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology recently transferred ownership of an ancestral Alutiiq, or Sugpiaq, kayak to the Alutiiq Museum, a cultural museum and tribal repository in Kodiak, Alaska.

Undergrads Submit Proposal to Remove Sackler Name From Campus Buildings

Members of the Harvard College Overdose Prevention and Education Students, a campus group dedicated to overdose awareness, urged the University to remove Arthur M. Sackler’s name from campus buildings in a proposal submitted Monday.

After Agreeing to Repatriate Ponca Tomahawk, Peabody Museum Awaits Visit from Tribal Leaders

The Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology removed a pipe tomahawk that once belonged to Ponca chief Standing Bear from its collections last September, after calls for the museum to return the tomahawk to the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska and the Ponca Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma garnered international attention.

Harvard Art Museums Implement 'ReFrame' Initiative

The Harvard Art Museums have made progress in implementing their “ReFrame” initiative, which was announced last fall. The initiative aims to bring previously unseen collections out of storage and reframe existing curations.

Affiliates Celebrate Reopening of Harvard Art Museums

The Harvard Art Museums welcomed back students and Cambridge art lovers in early September, nearly 18 months after shutting their doors in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Harvard Art Museums to Require Proof of Vaccination, Negative Covid Test

Martha Tedeschi, the Art Museums’ director, said in a press release the new policy prioritizes the safety of visitors and staff considering the state of the pandemic across the country.

Harvard Art Museums To Reopen in September, Pilot ‘Free Sunday’ Initiative

More than a year after their abrupt closing, Harvard Art Museums plan to reopen Sept. 4 at reduced capacity and offer free admission on Sundays.

23rd U.S. Poet Laureate Discusses Native American Identity and Poetry

Joy Harjo, the 23rd U.S. poet laureate and a member of the Mvskoke Nation, discussed Native American identity through poetry during a Monday webinar co-hosted by the Harvard University Native American Program and the Harvard Art Museums.

Native American Nonprofit Accuses Harvard of Violating Federal Graves Protection and Repatriation Act

The Association on American Indian Affairs sent a letter to University President Lawrence S. Bacow in February alleging that Harvard is in violation of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act.

Boston Museum of Fine Arts

‘Part of the Colonial Enterprise’: Scholars, Advocates React to Discovery of the Remains of Enslaved People in Peabody Museum Collections

In the wake of Harvard’s announcement that the Peabody Museum had found the remains of fifteen people who had possibly been enslaved in its collections, scholars and curation advocates reacted to the implications of the Museum’s discovery.