National Anthropological Archives

Isabel T. Kelly collection of photographs of Totonac people and archeological sites in Mexico, circa 1947-1948

Summary

Collection ID:
NAA.PhotoLot.80-32
Creators:
Kelly, Isabel T. (Isabel Truesdell), 1906-
Kelly, Isabel T. (Isabel Truesdell), 1906-
Dates:
circa 1947-1948
Languages:
Undetermined
.
Physical Description:
75 Gelatin silver prints
mounted
Repository:

Scope and Contents note

Scope and Contents note
Photographs made by Isabel T. Kelly in Tajin, Papantla, and elsewhere in Mexico. There are images of dances and dancers (including Volador "Flying" dance, Guagua, and Negrito dances), Totonac people, a Totonac wedding, and pyramids and relief sculpture at El Tajin Site. The photographs are enlarged prints, mounted and signed, that were made for an exhibit. In part, the images relate to work of the Institute of Social Anthropology and include photographs made by Isabel T. Kelly, George T. Smisor, Done Otto, Elena Guzman, Bertha B. Harris, and John McDonald; in some cases, multiple photographers documented the same event. Also included is a watercolor drawing "Palo de Voladores" and a school workbook "Silabario Metódico de San Miguel."

Biographical Note

Biographical Note
Isabel Truesdell Kelly (1906-1983) was an archeologist and social anthropologist who specialized in Mexican cultures and prehistory. Born in Santa Cruz, California, she developed a long-standing scholarly interest in anthropology while an undergraduate student at the University of California at Berkeley (UCB). She earned her BA (1926), MA (1927), and PhD (1932) in anthropology at UCB. From 1932-1934, Kelly conducted fieldwork with the Southern Paiute as a National Research Fellow in the Biological Sciences. She then went to Mexico as a research associate under the direction of Carl Sauer and Alfred Kroeber; while there, she directed archeological investigations in Culiacan, Sinaloa. In 1936, she returned to UCB as Carl Sauer's teaching assistant and then conducted research with the Gila Pueblo Archeological Foundation in 1937. With minimal funding from UCB's Anthropology Department, Kelly returned to Mexico for archeological reconnaisance in 1939. She gained Mexican residency in 1940, finally settling in Tepepan. In 1946, Kelly became Ethnologist-in-Charge of the Smithsonian's Institute of Social Anthropology (ISA) Mexico City office; she taught and conducted research among the Totonac Indians in Veracruz and conducted health care research in El Salvador and Mexico. From 1952-1960, Kelly worked with the Institute of Inter-American Affairs (forerunner to the Agency for International Development), studying in Mexico, Bolivia, and Pakistan. In 1960, she returned to research in Mexico with the sponsorship of the Rockefeller Foundation, Wenner-Gren Foundation, and National Geographic Society.

Administration

Author
Sarah Ganderup
Custodial History note
The photographs were donated to the National Anthropological Archives by Isabel T. Kelly through Clifford Evans, 1980.
The watercolor drawing and school workbook were donated to the Smithsonian by Amelia de Langenscheidt and were transferred from the object collections of the Department of Anthropology to the National Anthropological Archives in 1984.
Processing Information
The watercolor painting and school workbook were originally described by the National Anthropological Archives under MS 7408. In 2022, these items were incorporated into Photo Lot 80-32.

Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Use note
Contact the repository for terms of use.
Conditions Governing Access note
The collection is open for research.
Access to the collection requires an appointment.
Preferred Citation note
Photo lot 80-32, Isabel T. Kelly collection of photographs of Totonac people and archeological sites in Mexico, National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution

Location of Other Archival Materials

Location of Other Archival Materials
Totonac artifacts collected by Kelly held in the Department of Anthropology collections in accession 365366.
Location of Other Archival Materials
The National Anthropological Archives holds Institute of Social Anthropology photographs (Photo Lot 4623) and the ISA records.

More Information

Local Call Number(s)

Local Call Number(s)
NAA Photo Lot 80-32


Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Dance Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Flying dance Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Tajín Site (Mexico) Geographic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Mexico -- Antiquities Geographic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Tajín (Mexico) Geographic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Piaroa Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Negritos Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Papantla de Olarte (Mexico) Geographic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Photographs Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Totonac Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Guzman, Elena Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Harris, Bertha Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Done, Otto Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Smisor, George T. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Mcdonald, John Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Smithsonian Institution. Institute of Social Anthropology Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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