256 DIRECTORY OF AMERICAN MUSEUMS 



The geographic exhibits shown at the present time are from Japan, 

 China, Indo-China, Siam, India, Ceylon, Siberia, the Philippines, 

 South Sea Islands, Hawaii, Egypt, Tunis, Algeria, Morocco, Soudan, 

 Senegal, Guinea, Liberia, Dahomey, Congo, Somaliland, German East 

 Africa, British Central Africa, Cape Colony, Madagascar, all the repub- 

 lics of South America, Central America, Mexico, and the West Indies. 



The monographic exhibits are classified as cereals, legumes and 

 food stuffs, beverages, spices, fibers, oil seeds, woods, gums and resins, 

 ores, economic minerals, skins, hides and leathers, silk, etc. The Phil- 

 ippine exhibit alone covers 14,000 square feet of floor space and is 

 typical of the geographic exhibits. It contains large series of Manila 

 hemp, rice, gutta percha, and other raw products, showing all the com- 

 mercial grades and varieties. Pina, maguey, cotton, and other fibers 

 are shown in great variety, with samples of the various textiles made 

 by the Filipinos. There is a large collection of Philippine woods, 

 ores, and economic minerals. More than half the exhibit might be 

 classified as ethnology for it contains everything that is necessary to 

 show the life and industries of the people. In includes house models, 

 life-size groups showing the people engaged in their customary occu- 

 pations, series of basketry, matting, household utensils, weapons, tools, 

 agricultural implements, etc. 



The geographic exhibits are especially rich in material from West 

 and Central Africa, 'China, Japan, and the Philippines. There are 

 now on exhibition 16 life-size figures. 



The number of specimens is hard to estimate, as it has not yet 

 been possible to catalog the collections. There are probably 50,000 

 ethnological specimens. Much of the material might be classed as 

 ethnology, economic botany, geology, zoology, industrial art, and com- 

 merce. Under art there is a series of paintings in oil by Japanese art- 

 ists of the modern school who have studied in Europe. Contrasting 

 with these is a series of paintings by foremost Japanese artists in the 

 old style. An exhibit showing the history of commerce covers 6000 

 square feet of floor space and includes a series of models accurately 

 made to one scale showing merchant vessels of the world in the types 

 used since earliest times. A series of maps indicates the changes of 

 national boundaries in their relation to the development of important 

 commerical highways and trade routes from the dawn of history. 

 Samples of the most important articles of commerce in each period 

 are shown with the maps. The exhibit is supplemented with a large 

 series of pictures showing typical means of transportation from the 

 most primitive to the most modern methods. 



