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Edit in/Save to Microsoft WordBurke Museum of Natural History and Culture
Seattle, Washington 98195-3010
United States
Fax: 206-685-3039
The Burke Museum Archaeology Collections include more than one million cultural objects from around the world, although our research and exhibits focus on cultural materials from the Pacific Rim (the area surrounding the Pacific Ocean and the islands within.
We are best known for our collections of artifacts from the Lower Columbia River and the Puget Sound Region of Washington State. We also have collections from post-1850s, some of which pertain to medical practices. Relevant collections come from privies and dumps.
Archaeological collections primarily for the Pacific Northwest, including those from Native American and post-1850s sites. A privy collection associated with a late 1800s drug store reflects the use of nationwide and pharmacy-made medicines. A mass spectrometry analysis on nine sealed vessels identified a number of compounds typically used in nineteenth century medicines. This collection also addresses the history of sanitation.