To Dust or Not to Dust

July 27, 2015 Posted by: Kiana Amirkiaee

This week we spent time exploring the career of a museum curator. On Tuesday, we visited Saint-Gaudens Historical Site in Cornish, New Hampshire. We teamed up the SCA curatorial interns there to help clean, wax, and buff the beautiful bronze sculptures, which cover the idyllic grecian-esque landscape. On Wednesday and Thursday we were back at Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical park, working with Virginia, Ryan, and Marianne (the curatorial staff). We had the opportunity to see the inside of the Bungalow, the attic of the mansion, the woodshed, and visit Laurance Rockefeller's office at the Belvedere. After dusting, we cut mylar (a plastic material) to place under objects--to protect against staining furniture. We also worked with Virginia in the archives, cataloging some of the pieces in the collection. While a tedious job, it is extremely important to insure that future generations will be able to find artifacts in the same state as they are in today. As the end of the week nears, we feel confident that we are leaving the park in a cleaner state.Our motto for the week: "We have left our mark by not leaving any marks."