Guide to Antonio Zeno Shindler drawings of Japanese textile workers and archaeological specimens, 1877-1880

Scope and Contents

The collection consists of forty-five (45) drawings by Antonio Zeno Shindler.

Two (2) of the drawings depict Japanese textile workers and are signed with the Shindler monogram.

Forty-three (43) of the drawings depict archaeological specimens, mostly from mound sites in Tennessee, Iowa, Indiana, Georgia, and Ohio. An annotation on the one of the of drawings reads: "Drawings of objects in the Museum by A. Zeno Shindler, probably in the 1870's or earlier. (Signed) W. H. Holmes." Most of the specimens depcicted were in the United States National Museum (USNM) collections. However, the numbers given do not always correspond to USNM catalog numbers and some drawings have no numbers. Two of the drawings depict specimens in the National Museum of Brazil. The drawings are dated and signed with the Shindler monogram and have been annotated by Shindler with the locality and collector of specimen and the scale of the drawing.

Please note that the contents of the collection and the language and terminology used reflect the context and culture of the time of its creation. As an historical document, its contents may be at odds with contemporary views and terminology and considered offensive today. The information within this collection does not reflect the views of the Smithsonian Institution or National Anthropological Archives, but is available in its original form to facilitate research.

Biographical Note

Antonio Zeno Shindler (1823-1899) was a photographer and artist for the Smithsonian Institution and a benefactor of William Blackmore. He was probably born Antonio (or Antonion) Zeno in Bulgaria or Romania. He adopted the name Shindler from a patron in Geneva, Switzerland, with whom he moved to and lived with in Paris, where he studied art. While it is uncertain exactly when Shindler first arrived in the United States, he is listed in an 1852 directory for Philadelphia, Pennsylvania as working as a drawing instructor. From then until 1863, he exhibited his artwork in the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. In 1867, Shindler moved with his family and his brother-in-law's family to Washington, DC. In Washington, Shindler took propriotorship of the Addis Photographic Gallery, where he worked under the name Shindler and Company with his brother-in-law. Shindler was commissioned by English philanthropist William Henry Blackmore and the Smithsonian to make copies of Blackmore's collection of photographs, create a catalog for their exhibition, and photograph delegations of Native Americans visiting Washington. The Blackmore project was completed circa 1872 and Shindler continued to work for the Smithsonian as an artist until his death in July 1899.

Related Materials

The National Anthropological Archives holds photographs made by Shindler in Photo Lot 31 (Antonio Zeno Shindler photographs of Native Americans and agents) and other photograph collections.

The Smithsonian Institution Archives holds the A. Zeno (Antonio Zeno) Shindler Watercolors (Record Unit 7371).