The New Jersey State Museum is currently running “Objects Count: A Decade of Collecting,” which features an eclectic selection of artifacts and specimens in the fields of history, art and science collected by the New Jersey State Museum over the past ten years. The exhibition, located in the Riverside Gallery on the Museum’s 2nd floor at 205 West State Street, will be on view through March 28, 2019.
The New Jersey State Museum is home to over two million objects and specimens, but like all museums, only a small percentage is on view. This exhibit is an opportunity to experience more than 50 recently-acquired objects that have not yet been seen by the public.
Step back to the Ice Age with a caribou antler from New Jersey; contemplate a painting by artist Ben Shahn; view a flight suit from a South Jersey female pilot and contemplate what it was like for a woman to fly a plane in the 1930s. Marvel at Native American projectile points; ponder which ancestor of R.W. Johnson was the owner of a gold signet ring unearthed during an archaeological survey on the original site of the Robert Wood Johnson property in Piscataway, NJ; and much more.
Individually, each object tells a story about the world in which we live. Taken together, these artifacts remind us of a basic premise of the role of museums in modern society – to collect, preserve, research, interpret and display items of artistic, cultural, or scientific significance for public education.
The New Jersey State Museum is open 9:00 a.m. to 4:45 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday, closed all State holidays. For additional information visit www.statemuseum.nj.gov, like the Museum’s Facebook page, follow on Twitter (njstatemuseum), or Instagram (nj_statemuseum.)
