About the
Exhibition
Digging Up the Past:
Digging Up the Past offers a unique window into the African presence in Colonial Philadelphia through the discovery of the First African Baptist Church Cemeteries. This history-rich discovery bears witness to an unconscious collective positioning of African American life during a critical time in American history. Through the establishment of these cemeteries and the corresponding history of African Americans in the early 19th century, Digging Up the Past presents a glimpse into the historical, archeological and cultural importance of the loss and discovery of these burial grounds. The excavation unearthed not only the ancestral remains of men, women and children but also numerous burial artifacts that showed the social and economic conditions affecting overall health, well-being and quality of life, along with the observance of African funeral rites and burial traditions. Weaving the history of this period with the archeological and bio-anthropological study, the content of the exhibit will highlight Education, Health & Culture, Occupations & Work, the Arts & Sciences of Death & Bereavement and Ethnography, along with the display of well-preserved material culture such as coffin hardware, clothing fragments, coins, shells, photographs and documents.
Lois Mailou Jones: Prints and Works on Paper
One of the most prominent African American woman artists of the twentieth century is represented through a selection of more than 45 works on paper. She was one of the first artists of color to pay tribute to her African heritage through the implementation of African motifs and patterns into her art. For more than 50 years, Lois Mailou Jones enjoyed a consistently successful career as a painter, teacher, book illustrator and textile designer. Jones has worked extensively in France, Haiti, Senegal, and the United States. Born in 1905 in Boston, Massachusetts she died in 1998.
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