r*152 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



Abrasives 



Petroleum samples 



Slate of different colors 



To the other exhibits prepared and installed by the state 

 paleontologist, the state botanist and the state entomologist 

 the following awards were given. 



Gold medal 

 Publications and exhibit of fossil sponges and Crustacea. 



Silver medals 

 Botanic collections 



Entomologic publications 



Forest insects 



In ethnology the museum received honorable mention for an 



exhibit of 20 Indian masks. 



MUSEUM BUILDING 



The extensive repairs and alterations in Geological hall, begun 

 in September 1900, on account of which it was necessary to close 

 the exhibition rooms to the public, were completed during the 

 past summer, and the museum is again open to visitors. 



During the time the building was closed, new hard pine floors 

 were laid over the old floors, which were very much worn, and 

 steel ceilings were put in to cover the old plaster ceilings. The 

 latter had been for years an eyesore and source of constant 

 danger to life and limb, as large pieces of plaster frequently 

 fell, and visitors at times narrowly escaped injury. The small 

 panes of glass in the front windows have been replaced by large 

 sheets of plate glass, which, from the outside, give the building 

 a much better appearance and also allow much more light to 

 penetrate to the exhibition rooms. The plumbing has been much 

 improved, and the old hot air furnaces, which were entirely 

 inadequate to heat the building thoroughly in winter, have been 

 replaced by a steam-heating plant. The entire building, both 

 inside and out, has received several coats of paint and presents 

 a more attractive appearance than ever before. 



