National Anthropological Archives

Elizabeth H. and Sarah S. Metcalf photograph collection relating to the Philippines, circa 1890-1944

Summary

Collection ID:
NAA.PhotoLot.107
Creators:
Metcalf, Elizabeth H. (collector and probable photographer)
Dates:
circa 1890-1944
Languages:
Undetermined
.
Physical Description:
735 Prints
circa
albumen, platinum, cyanotype, and silver gelatin (some on postcard stock)
150 Postcards
circa
halftone, collotype, and chromolithograph
560 Negatives
circa
nitrate
175 Negatives
circa
glass
85 Lantern slides
circa
5 Linear feet
Manuscript material :
Repository:

Scope and Contents note

Scope and Contents note
The collection comprises photographs documenting peoples of the Philippines, including Benguet, Bogobo, Igorot, Ifugao, Moro, and Negrito people and their environment. ALso included are photographs of the military presence in the Philippines. The photographs, including prints and postcards, were made or collected by Elizabeth H. and Sarah S. Metcalf during their time on the Philippine Islands and at the Louisiana Purchase (1904) and Lewis and Clark Expositions (1905). Images of Philippine peoples depict ceremonies and daily activities, including agriculture, hunting, construction of dwellings, and markets. Additional postcards and photographs in the collection were both made and collected during the Metcalf sisters' travels in Switzerland, Yemen, Algeria, Egypt, Malaysia, Japan, and Hawaii. Many of the postcards and some photographs were commercially made, but most of the photographs appear to have been made by the Metcalfs, including some photographs printed on postcard stock. The collection also includes correspondence, financial documents, artifact descriptions, lecture notes, and many newspaper clippings.

Biographical/Historical note

Biographical/Historical note
Sisters Elizabeth Henshaw and Sarah Sprague Metcalf became interested in the Philippines and Bagobo peoples after attending the Philippine Reservation at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition in Saint Louis in 1904. They were particularly impressed by the Bagobo gong music, and developed acquaintances with several of the participants. The following year, the Metcalfs attended the Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition in Portland, Oregon, and again interacted with the Philippine peoples there, who were mostly Igorot. Middle-aged and unmarried, the sisters set off for Mindanao the following year. They spent several months in Zamboanga before moving to Santa Cruz where they were closer to the Bagobo people. During their stay in the Philippines (1906-1910), the Metcalfs photographed and advocated for their Bagobo friends and amassed an extensive collection of indigenous material culture. Uncertainties relating to the First World War brought the sisters back to the United States in 1910 and Elizabeth presented their ethnological research to the American Anthropological Association the following year. Around 1915, they returned to the Philippines, where they settled in Manila and sold indigenous handicrafts in their "Little Home Shop." Elizabeth and Sarah remained in Manila until their deaths in 1925 and 1939, respectively.

Administration

Author
Sarah Ganderup
Existence and Location of Copies note
Copy negatives for nitrate negatives are available.

Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Access note
Original nitrate negatives are in cold storage and require advanced notice for viewing.
Conditions Governing Use note
Contact the repository for terms of use.
Preferred Citation note
Photo lot 107, Elizabeth H. and Sarah S. Metcalf photographs relating to the Philippines, National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution

Location of Other Archival Materials

Location of Other Archival Materials
Additional photographs and material relating to the Metcalf sisters are held in the National Anthropological Archives in Photo Lot 97 and the Department of Anthropology records (Manuscript and Pamphlet file).
Location of Other Archival Materials
Artifacts collected by the Metcalf sisters are held in the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology and in the National Museum of Natural History Department of Anthropology collections in accessions 114868, 124603, 123977, and 57787.

More Information

Local Call Number(s)

Local Call Number(s)
NAA Photo Lot 107

General note

General note
Biographical information mostly taken from Cherubim A. Quizon, "Two Yankee Women at the St. Louis Fair: The Metcalf Sisters and their Bagobo Sojourn in Mindanao," Philippine Studies 52, no. 4 (2004): 527-555.

Other Finding Aids note

Other Finding Aids note
Folder list is available in repository.


Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Dwellings Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Bagobo (Philippine people) Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Negritos Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Postcards Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Photographs Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Agriculture Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Igorot (Philippine people) Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Benguets Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Moros -- depicted Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Gerhard Sisters Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Metcalf, Sarah S. (collector and probable photographer) Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

National Anthropological Archives
Museum Support Center
4210 Silver Hill Road
Suitland, Maryland 20746
naa@si.edu