Online Collections

Explore Penn Museum collections information, images, archival films, and more.

Notice for Collections Content

These records describe cultural and historical items that may be culturally sensitive. Some records may document human remains; others may contain names, images, or recordings of deceased individuals or include information or language that is outdated, offensive, or incorrect. These are based on past collecting practices and interpretations, which may not reflect current views and values of the Penn Museum.

We update records and images regularly and encourage and welcome members of descendant communities, scholars, and others to contact us with feedback, questions, or concerns.

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Highlighted Objects

Crystal Ball

It is the fourth largest crystal sphere in the world, the origins of the crystal sphere are a mystery.
Stela 14

This and other stelae from Piedras Negras played a key role in the decipherment of Maya history.
Ram in the Thicket

Sir Leonard Woolley dubbed this statuette the "ram caught in a thicket" as an allusion to the biblical story of Abraham sacrificing a ram.

Great Revolutionaries

2021-2022 Lecture Series

Throughout history, there have been outstanding leaders and change-makers that have guided societies through times of great difficulty and triumph. Explore the stories behind a diverse mix of revolutionaries who brought dramatic change to their societies from ancient times to today.

Watch Series

Nippur, Iraq

Located in the marshes of southern Mesopotamia, in modern-day Iraq, Nippur was one of the most sacred cities in the ancient Middle East. Between 1889 and 1900, the University of Pennsylvania was the first American institution to carry out archaeological excavations in this region. It revealed a multi-layer site with a long and complicated history, and, most significantly, a library of inscribed cuneiform tablets that have formed the basis of our understanding of the first literate society in the world, the Sumerians.

Hokkaido, Japan

In 1901, Hiram M. Hiller Jr. traveled to the northernmost island of Japan, Hokkaido, on behalf of the Penn Museum. The expedition produced over 250 artifacts as well as three journals of notes and numerous lantern slides, providing the Penn Museum with one of the best-documented Ainu collections in the US. Hiller also collected a small sample of pottery from the ancient Jomon culture which dates as far as back 12,000 BCE, some of the oldest known in the world.

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