This collection encompasses over 2 million

prehistoric and historic specimens from

nearly 100 years of excavation and over

2,000 ethnographic objects. Archaeology

specimens are recognized as the definitive

systematic research collection for the study

of New Jersey prehistory and one of the most

important collections for regional study of

northeastern North America.

Developed overwhelmingly through professional

excavations by Museum staff and archaeologists

from universities and consulting agencies, the

collections provide data on the entire span of

human occupation of New Jersey from

prehistoric to historic 19th century.

The Museum's archaeology collection is the preferred repository for collections excavated within New Jersey by state and federal projects. The ethnographic collection consists of items brought back to New Jersey by residents who traveled as diplomats, military officers, missionaries, and enthusiastic tourists in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Most specimens represent the Delaware and other North American Indian groups.

The collection is particularly rich in examples of Native American textiles, bead, and hide work. It includes a small number of West African specimens, collected to interpret the New Jersey African-American past, and a small selection of Asian objects collected by New Jersey donors on business or pleasure trips during the late 1800s through the 1950s. The ethnographic collection also includes a significant collection of Alaskan Eskimo specimens.

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Main Museum Building and Auditorium Galleries
205 West State Street, Trenton Tuesday – Saturday, 9 am to 5 pm Sunday, noon to 5 pm
Closed Mondays & State Holidays