18 ANNUAL REPOET SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1911. 



The accessions received by the Museum during the year include 

 more than 200,000 specimens of animals and plants, besides 6,600 

 specimens relating to geology and paleontology, and about 17,000 

 anthropological objects. To the National Gallery of Art were added 

 94 paintings and engravings. In addition, about 1,600 objects of 

 art and anthropology were accepted by the Museum as loans for ex- 

 hibition. Among important accessions that merit special mention 

 was a collection of 3,400 ancient crania, 6,000 bones, and 1,500 archeo- 

 logical objects, gathered chiefly in Peru by Dr. Hrdlicka, as men- 

 tioned on another page. Other interesting archeological objects were 

 received from the ancient pueblos of Arizona and New Mexico, be- 

 sides a valuable series of skulls and skeletons from Arkansas and 

 Mississippi. About 50,000 specimens of mollusks, collected in Alaska 

 by Dr. William H. Dall between the years 1871 and 1899, were re- 

 ceived during the year, together with many thousands of Japanese 

 mollusks from the Imperial University of Japan. 



Many other interesting accessions of objects of zoology, botany, 

 geology, and anthropology are referred to by the Assistant Secre- 

 tary in his report. 



The paintings of the National Gallery of Art, exhibited in the 

 middle hall of the new building, continue to attract much public 

 attention. Mr. William T. Evans has added 13 canvases to his 

 notable gift, which now comprises 127 pictures, representing 90 

 contemporary American painters. 



Mr. Charles L. Freer has also added a large number of objects of 

 oriental art to his most important gift to the Nation, the entire collec- 

 tion remaining, however, in his keeping at Detroit, Mich. 



The great exhibition halls of the new building will afford op- 

 portunity for the proper display of the national collections illustra- 

 tive of natural history, and especially such large and striking objects 

 as groups of mammals, skeletons of fossil vertebrate animals, and 

 groups representing the habits and customs of the races of mankind. 

 The collections pertaining to the ethnology of America had increased 

 year by year so rapidly in extent that they long ago outgrew the 

 space that could be allotted to them in the old building. In the new 

 structure they are installed with adequate regard to their size and 

 importance. 



The loan collection of laces and other art textiles has been largely 

 increased numerically and in variety of contents under the able 

 supervision of Mrs. James W. Pinchot, who initiated the movement. 



The Museum has continued the distribution of collections of dupli- 

 cate specimens to schools and colleges throughout the country. About 

 3,000 specimens, chiefly recent and fossil animals, were thus dis- 

 tributed during the year, and about 23,500 duplicate specimens were 

 used in making exchanges. 



