Hall of the American Indian

Although the Hall's artworks and artifacts were marketed as scientific and cultural representations, the room's primary role was to entertain.

Unlike museum pieces, which would have been documented and catalogued, few records of any kind exist that might shed light on their sources and histories.

Today, thousands of mysteries swirl around each object: Who made it? Why was this one chosen for display rather than another? What did it mean to the people who created it? What did it mean to the people who gazed at it from the grill room tables of a New York luxury hotel?

Over the years, since the Astor Collection has become part of the University of Virginia Art Museum, curators, students, and anthropologists have conducted research on the works and their history. In the near future, these records and images will be available online.

The Hall of the American Indian also presented visitors with over one hundred and fifty photographs and drawings of Indian peoples and landscapes. These images are valuable records, not only of the native cultures they depict, but of the way the Hotel Astor's creators and guests consumed them for entertainment and casual study. These images will be available at a later date for viewing online.

Images and Text Copyright, 2000
The Rector and Visitors of the
University of Virginia, Charlottesville.