National Anthropological Archives

Henri F. Pittier photographs of Costa Rican people and artifacts, circa 1903-1904

Summary

Collection ID:
NAA.PhotoLot.128
Creators:
Pittier, Henri, 1857-1950
Dates:
circa 1903-1904
Languages:
Undetermined
.
Physical Description:
1 Page
Sheet music :
128 Prints
silver gelatin
Repository:

Scope and Contents note

Scope and Contents note
Photographs of Guatuso people and activities including pottery making, as well as images of artifacts, mainly whistles from the collections of the National Museum in San Jose. ALso included is a sheet of music.

Biographical/Historical note

Biographical/Historical note
Henri Francois Pittier de Fabrega (1857-1950) was a Swiss-born geographer, botanist, and anthropologist who carried out most of his work in Central and South America. Educated in civil engineering at the University of Lausanne and Jena University, he moved to Costa Rica in 1887, where he became founder-director of the Instituto Fisico-geografico. In about 1904, Pittier took a position as "Special Agent in Botanical Investigation in Tropical Agriculture in the Bureau of Plant Industry" for the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). He continued to work for the USDA until 1919, though his title was changed to Botanist in 1912. In 1919, he left the United States to become director of the Commercial Museum in Caracas, Venezuela, where he conducted extensive studies of the nation's flora.

Administration

Author
Sarah Ganderup
Custodial History note
Donated by Henri Pittier to the Bureau of American Ethnology in 1903 and circa 1904.

Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Access note
The collection is open for research.
Access to the collection requires an appointment.
Conditions Governing Use note
Contact the repository for terms of use.
Preferred Citation note
Photo lot 128, Henri F. Pittier photographs of Costa Rican people and artifacts, National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution.

Location of Other Archival Materials

Location of Other Archival Materials
Additional Pittier photographs held in National Anthropological Archives Photo Lot 14, Photo Lot 40, and Photo Lot 93.
Location of Other Archival Materials
Correspondence from Pittier is in the National Anthropological Archives in the records of the Bureau of American Ethnology.
Location of Other Archival Materials
Artifacts donated by Pittier are held in the Department of Anthropology collections in accessions 45947, 45831, 44747, and 65286.
Location of Other Archival Materials
The Smithsonian Institution Archives holds Henri Pittier field notes (SIA Acc 12-350) and records relating to Pittier in SIA RU000192.

More Information

Local Call Number(s)

Local Call Number(s)
NAA Photo Lot 128


Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Guatuso Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Photographs Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Whistles Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Pottery craft Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Museo Nacional de Costa Rica Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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