University Museum

About the Museum

Through its care and maintenance of donated ethnographic, historic and prehistoric objects it preserves an important part of Southwestern and  Border region culture and history.  The Museum  also encourages student and faculty research on our diverse cultural materials.  Additionally, Museum faculty members  supervise independent student research projects each semester.

The Museum collections are primarily anthropological (archaeological and ethnographic) with secondary collections in history and the natural sciences.  Anthropological collections document the cultural diversity of the border in the Greater Southwest and northern Mexico.  The preservation and cataloguing of collections are Museum priorities to promote research and access to cultural materials.  Exhibits are developed by students and staff as well as brought in from other institutions. 

These exhibits focus on the traditions of on-going historic and prehistoric cultures.  Past exhibits have explored life in 1930s' New Mexico, Southwestern weavings, prehistoric cultural interactions along the Gila River, the Fremont expedition, and everyday life in a Las Cruces Hispanic household at the turn of the 20th century.  The Museum also provides public lectures on a variety of topics. These lectures feature faculty, staff, and visiting experts who present insights on cultural traditions, events, and activities