October 8 



Exhibition: The Arthur M. Sackler Gallery's first acquisition of Japanese art, a 

 spectacular late eighteenth- to early nineteenth-century ceremonial palanquin, 

 was placed on public display, along with the gallery's first acquisition of 

 Japanese paintings, a pair of seventeenth-century six-panel screens. 



October 13 



Exhibition: "Portraits of the American Law," the first exhibition of the history 

 of the American political system through portraits, opened at the National 

 Portrait Gallery. 



October 14-29 



International Tour: The Cooper-Hewitt Museum conducted an architectural study 

 tour to historic and contemporary landmarks in Hungary, Austria, Czechoslovakia, 

 and Germany, providing an in-depth survey of Central European contributions in 

 architecture and design. 



October 18 



Acquisition: The Zoo's Conservation and Research Center in Front Royal, 

 Virginia, received three male and three female black-footed ferrets. The center 

 was one of two picked by the Wyoming Game and Fish Department to receive the 

 nearly extinct ferrets for the purpose of starting a breeding program. 



October 24 



Appointment: After a wide-ranging search, Dr. Milo C Beach was named director 

 of the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery and the Freer Gallery of Art. Dr. Beach, a 

 distinguished scholar of the painting of India, was acting director of both 

 museums for a year prior to the appointment. He served as assistant director of 

 the Sackler Gallery from 1984 to 1987. 



October 25 



Special Project: The Smithsonian Institution Libraries introduced automated 

 circulation with borrowers' cards and bar-coded books. The African Art Branch 

 was the first to go on line. The automated circulation data base improves 

 accountability and security and provides accurate data about the use of the 

 Libraries' collections. 



October 27 



Exhibition: "To Color America: Portraits by Winold Reiss," a major exhibition of 

 images of African Americans and American Indians, as well as some Asians and 

 Mexicans, opened at the National Portrait Gallery. 



