Report on the United States 

 National Museum 



Sir : I have the honor to submit the following report on the condition 

 and operations of the United States National Museum for the fiscal 

 year ended June 30, 1957 : 



COLLECTIONS 



During the year 647,750 specimens were added to the national col- 

 lections and distributed among the six departments as follows: 

 Anthropology, 14,004; zoology, 480,328; botany, 45,069; geology, 

 33,322 ; engineering and industries, 1,706 ; history, 73,321. Although 

 fewer specimens were received than during the previous year, the total 

 represents a normal annual accretion. Most of the specimens were 

 received as gifts from individuals or as transfers from Government 

 departments and agencies. The Annual Keport of the Museum, pub- 

 lished as a separate document, contains a detailed list of the year's 

 accessions, of which the more important are summarized below. Cata- 

 log entries in all departments now total 44,377,488. 



Anthropology. — An outstanding donation to the anthropological 

 collections received in the division of archeology is a wood and bronze 

 statuette of an ibis from the necropolis of Tuna-el-Gebel, Upper 

 Egypt, dated about 1800 B. C. This was given by General Mohammed 

 Naguib to President Dwight D. Eisenhower, who in turn presented it 

 to the Institution. A large miscellaneous collection assembled by the 

 late Monsignor John M. Cooper was donated by the Catholic Uni- 

 versity of America. This material consists of North American Indian, 

 Eskimo, African, Philippine, and Negrito cultural objects; Coptic 

 textiles ; and an embossed gold disk from Ecuador, and other Latin 

 American artifacts. 



Ethnological gifts include two large Fijian kava bowls donated 

 by the Government of New Zealand. Kava bowls are essential for the 

 Fijian ceremony of Yanggona, or formalized drinking of kava. An 

 antique type of Malay kris, or "Keris," was given by Ibrahim Izzudin 

 bin Yousoff, Kelantan, Federation of Malaya. The laminated blade of 

 this heirloom, a traditional Malay weapon, is made from meteoric iron 

 and copper. The hilt and sheath are decorated with gold overlay in 

 filigree with stone brilliants inset in bezels. 



In anticipation of period-room installations for the new Museum 

 of History and Technology, the following paneling and finish were 



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