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Museum of Natural and Cultural History

@uomnch.bsky.social

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Oregon's science and culture museum. Located on the University of Oregon campus in Eugene, Oregon. State repository for archaeological and paleontological artifacts.

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Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · Nov 15

We've put together a starter pack of official museum accounts on Bluesky! Who are we missing? go.bsky.app/Ko2Bvky

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Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · 1d

Oh boy I wish our counterpart, the @uoregon.bsky.social Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art, was on Bluesky!

Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · 14d

Wasco weaver Pat Courtney Gold crafted this sally bag, named "Honor the Frog." Sally bags are a unique example of Columbia Plateau weaving, traditionally used to carry and store foods and medicines. See our online gallery for more sally bags! mnch.uoregon.edu/coll.../plat... #indigenousart

A 7.5" long woven cylindrical bag is tied via woven cord to a woven bag about half the size. The body of the larger bag is light beige, with a brown woven outline of a frog featured. On the smaller bag, the same outline of a frog is visible as well as the edges of another one.

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Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · 20d

Took a trip over to our fossil vaults today and thought you all might appreciate this label for our teaching collection cabinets...#paleosky #fossilfriday

A piece of white paper is taped to a cabinet. It reads 'A collection of calcium carbonate casts or a posse of plastic paraphernalia or a frenzied fiberglass free-for-all or a vast vinyl volume or a roomful of rubberized relics or Simply a whole lotta casts that need to be put away."

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Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · Sep 9

10,000 miles. 105 presentations. 5 University of Oregon students. Our educators crisscross Oregon every summer, sharing museum programs with libraries throughout the state.🧪 #scicomm

Read more:
news.uoregon.edu/how-i-spent-...

How I spent my summer vacation: student educators bring science to towns across Oregon

The annual outreach by the Museum of Natural and Cultural History means as much to the students who give the talks as to the communities that host them

news.uoregon.edu

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Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · Sep 8

Join our executive director @tbraje.bsky.social for this virtual talk with Ventura County Archaeological Society! Email [email protected] for the Zoom link. 🏺

Text reading "Ventura County Archaeological Society, September 9th 2025, 7pm Zoom meeting. Dr Todd Braje Understanding Imperiled Earth: How Archaeology and Human History inform a Sustainable Future." Email us at vcas.arch@gmail.com for the Zoom link.

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Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · Sep 8

"No matter who you are, this work is for you."

Transgressors presents now and future Indigiqueer ancestors who move beyond boundaries in life and art. The work of 10 artists. curated by Anthony Hudson and Felix Furby, is on view at the museum until January 4, 2026. #IndigenousArt

Two students are silhouetted against a brilliant glowing light box in Transgressors, an exhibit at the University of Oregon that examines Indigenous Queer identity. The light box is an illustrated image of a woman riding a horse. She is surrounded by thunder and lightning, wearing a white dress with rainbow ribbons that stream out behind her dramatically.

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Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · Sep 4

This enamelware coffee pot is from the historic site of the Corvallis, Oregon city dump (used 1910-1913). It's made from iron sheet metal and covered in a ceramic enamel layer; this method of manufacturing was at its peak popularity in the United States from 1880 to 1930.🏺 ☕

Museum archaeologist Marlene holds the artifact in her hands and smiles at it. The coffee pot is about 6" in diameter. The bottom is intact, showing blue speckled enamelware; about halfway up the coffee pot the metal is crushed and rusted beyond recognition.

A blue enamelware pot sitting in a white photography box. The coffee pot is about 6" in diameter at its widest. The bottom is intact, showing blue speckled enamelware; about halfway up the coffee pot the metal is crushed and rusted beyond recognition as a pot.

A blue enamelware pot laying horizontally in a white photography box. The coffee pot is about 6" in diameter at its widest. The bottom is intact, showing blue speckled enamelware; about halfway up the coffee pot the metal is crushed and rusted beyond recognition as a pot.

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Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · Sep 2

@therealchelsearose.bsky.social interviewed Chris Ruiz, director of this summer's Applegate House Field School, on Underground History. Listen here for a great overview of archaeological field schools and why we were so invested in running a commuter one this summer! 🏺🧪

Decoding the summer archaeological field school

Chris Ruiz joins Chelsea Rose, host of Underground History.

www.ijpr.org

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Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · Aug 26

It's #nationaldogday and we're celebrating Ruthie, this summer's Applegate House Field School Site Supervisor. Ruthie oversaw team morale, secured the site from intruders (primarily deer and squirrels), and inspected the archaeology crew's work. Thanks for a great field school, Ruthie! 🏺

A beige lab/pittie mix stands in a field in front of pop up tents at the University of Oregon archaeology field school. Her ears are perked all the way up and her tongue is sticking out.

A beige lab/pittie mix sits in front of archaeology equipment. She grins widely at the camera.

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Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · Aug 20

Oregon—Where Past is Present shares 14,000 years of Oregon stories. Come visit the museum and delve into Oregon’s past, from the archaeology of the First Americans to the dynamic cultures of today’s Tribes.

A person reads a panel in the museum at the University of Oregon. They are in front of a large panel decorated like rock and titled "Layers of Time"

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Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · Aug 13

Wow, thank you for sharing! It was something very different for us. Kenya created the stunning ofrenda in the space and we're so glad she did.

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Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · Aug 13

Scott Fisher (director of Pine Mountain Observatory) and Kenya Márquez (founder of Ballet Papalotl) are familiar names in the museum from their work on Capturing the Cosmos: Images from the James Webb Space Telescope and Hostile Terrain '94, respectively.

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Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · Aug 13

It's the peak of the Perseids and we're welcoming some new stars to our Oregon Stories case! This case features objects from contemporary Oregonians their own words telling their stories.

An exhibit case with a panel in the center reading "Our Oregon Stories." One half of the case is filled with stories and objects from Scott Fisher; the other half is filled with stories and objects from Kenya Márquez.

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Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · Aug 11

(me @ me: be cool be cool be cool be cool the cool teens are paying attention to me)

nice

(me: nailed it 💅)

T Karnos @tkarnos.bsky.social · Aug 11

Missed your visit to our town, so I made sure to stop by and see you in Eugene today -- what a wonderful set of exhibits! (+ yay for the lovely native plants out front)
My teens even said how they enjoyed themselves more than they expected to, which is *high praise* coming from them.

Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · Aug 7

This weekend, we're hosting family-friendly activities that explore how archaeology works. Look at the outfit our student employees made for Mylo, our plushie ground sloth that sits at our front desk 🥹🦥🏺

Mylo the stuffed ground sloth wears a beige safari-style hat made out of paper and carries a paper trowel

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Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · Aug 4

This is excellent news for Oregon's kelp forest conservation! There's so much work yet to do but this is a crucial step in restoring the sunflower sea star to our coast. 🌊 🧪

Elakha Alliance @elakhaalliance.bsky.social · Aug 4

🌟 It's being hailed as the “discovery of the decade” by Drew Harvell, a disease ecologist at the University of Washington and member of the research team behind the breakthrough.

After years of mystery, scientists have finally pinpointed the cause of sea star wasting disease! #marinescience #ocean

Scientists Finally Identify Killer Microbe Behind ‘Terrifying’ Sea Star Disease

www.nytimes.com

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Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · Aug 4

Chinese immigrants were among the earliest non-Indigenous communities to settle in Oregon. Our exhibit Roots and Resilience explores the intense discrimination they faced, and their perseverance in shaping Oregon's diverse industries, business, and communities.

A woman reads a panel with the titles "Struggle...and Resilience" and a timeline visible at the bottom. It's in the exhibit Roots and Resilience, Chinese American Heritage in Oregon at the Museum of Natural and Cultural History on the University of Oregon campus.

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Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · Jul 30

One month left of our traveling library program!

The whole family will enjoy exploring the environment, designing solutions, and imagining a brighter future for the Earth. #scienceeducation

In Oregon? View the map to see when we're stopping near you: maphub.net/MNCH_UO/mnch...

Museum educator Rowan and a child look together at a map activity labelled "One Big Ocean"

A map of Oregon with dots showing the library programs sprinkled across the state.

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Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · Jul 28

Vanessa Finney of Jefferson Public Radio interviewed Emily Hartlerode, director of Oregon Folklife Network, about culture-keepers and traditional arts in Oregon. Listen to the end for a preview of our final Oregon Culture Night (this Thursday, July 31)! www.ijpr.org/show/the-jef...

'Oregon Culture Nights' demonstrates the value of traditional arts

Emily Hartlerode, Director of the Oregon Folklife Network, joins The Creative Way host, Vanessa Finney.

www.ijpr.org

Reposted by Museum of Natural and Cultural History

Underscore Native News @underscore-news.bsky.social · Jul 25

In part as a response to the wave of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation and rhetoric, organizations and individual allies from across the country worked together to create the virtual hub. Creating spaces of love, safety and resource sharing for 2SLGBTQ+ relatives.

✍️: @nikabartoosmith.bsky.social for UNN+ICT

New Online Support Hub Launches for 2SLGBTQ+ People - Underscore Native News

Two Spirit Support Boat offers resources and an online community for Indigiqueer adults, caregivers of 2SLGBTQ+ youth and clinicians.

www.underscore.news

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Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · Jul 23

Insects and bugs are critical to a healthy environment! We love seeing them in our Native Plants Courtyard.

Got a kiddo who loves bugs? We've got bug-themed activities in our courtyard for the next two Fridays and Saturdays in #EugeneOregon. 🐝🐜🌞

An orange and yellow bee on a light pink Nootka rose flower.

A dragonfly with delicate black wings is resting on a large, bright green Twinberry leaf.

An iridescent green-bodied fly sits on a veiny milkweed leaf.

Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · Jul 22

This photo has 5 generations of UO archaeological field school students! Students from 2011, 2014, 2018, 2022, and 2023 worked on a survey project in northern Nevada, led by Geoffrey Smith (University of Nevada-Reno) and Aiden Hlebechuk (MNCH field school and archaeological research division alum).

Five grinning archaeologists in the scrubby Great Basin.

Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · Jul 17

Our Indigenous Archaeology Field Methods field school is wrapping up!

13 students have spent the last four weeks in coastal California, conducting collaborative archaeology with members of the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band. Stay tuned for more about what they've been doing. 🏺🧪🏛️

A young person is centered on a dry scrubby landscape with a brilliant blue sky behind them. They're wearing safety glasses and holding an axe, mid chop.

A small (2 inches across) bleached animal skull sitting on a human palm.

Three young people grouped around archaeology equipment in a scrubby landscape.

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Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · Jul 7

The Oregon Folklife Network hosts live demonstrations of Oregon's living traditions at the museum in July! Culture bearers from a wide variety of backgrounds will provide insider knowledge about their traditional artforms -- if you're in the area, come hang out with us this summer. 🏛️

A blue background with text reading "Oregon Culture Nights" and then a list of each performance, each on a Thursday at 6:00p.m. July 10: Traditional Irish Gaelic Singing with Brian O hAirt. July 17: Nattuvangam in Classical South Indian Dance with Sweta Ravisankar and apprentice. July 24: Carnatic (Indian Classical) Singing with Smitha Chakravarthy and apprentice. July 31: Palestinian Embroidery with Feryal Abbasi-Ghnaim and apprentice.

Museum of Natural and Cultural History @uomnch.bsky.social · Jul 7

The Mammoth Trumpet spotlighted the Traditional Nutrition Project! MNCH Curator of Great Basin Archaeology, Katelyn McDonough, worked on this paleoethnobotanical study with Perry Chocktoot, former Director of Cultural and Heritage for the Klamath Tribes, and Geoffrey Smith at UNR. 🏺🧪

A screenshot of a Mammoth Trumpet article. The title reads "From the Soil: Paleoindian Plane Use at Connley Cave 5"

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