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Extent:

1.4 linear feet (the collection is contained in 20 folders housed in four archival boxes with oversized plates placed in drawer 47-49 of the map case. the first box contains ten folders from expedition i and iii. box two has the remaining folders from expedition iii, and all of expedition iv, the 1951 northern tepehuan linguistic expedition, and the expedition v materials. photographs from expedition ii are contained in 21 folders in boxes three and four. )

Abstract:

The J.Alden Mason Linguistic Expeditions to Mexico consist of six trips to study the languages of the Northern and Southern Tepehuan Indians of the region around Durango and the Nevome of the lower Pima Bajo area. From 1912 to 1954, Mason gathered information on the languages, ceremonial activities, prayers, and botany of the Piman tribes of northern and southern Mexico. Mason took numerous photographs and his second expedition, financed by Percy C. Madeira who accompanied Mason, consisted entirely of aerial photographs of the area. The 1936 Durango Expedition with Robert M. Merrill produced photographs, plates and objects from archaeological sites like Chalchihuites and Zape in the Durango region. The photographs and plates were reproduced in a 1937 article, "Late Archaeological Sites in Durango Mexico." During this trip, Mason shot unedited film showing the indigenous people and the countryside around Durango. Two additional expeditions in 1951 and 1954 resulted in reports of the...(see more)

Held at: University of Pennsylvania: Penn Museum Archives [Contact Us]