After the Academy’s move to Bryn
Athyn, the museum was housed
first within Benade Hall, and later
moved to the top floor of the new
Library in 1912. Falling into disuse
by the late 1930s, the museum was
revived in the early 1970s by a
group of enthusiastic faculty, led by
Aubrey Odhner.
The size, scope and quality
of the museum was dramatically
altered when Glencairn and its
world-class collections were gifted
to the Academy in 1980. When
Glencairn Museum opened in
1982, the Academy’s museum had
been transformed from a collection
of 1,000 objects to one of 10,000.
The Charter states that the
Academy, “shall be for the purpose
– A former intern
of … promoting education in all of
its various forms….” Today, more
than ever, Glencairn Museum
serves as one of those forms of education for our students, enriching their
classroom study of history, religion and art, and providing rich and varied
opportunities for the development of career skills.
Last year alone Glencairn hosted more than 70 ANC Secondary Schools
class trips, totaling more than 800 individual student visits. Students enrich
their understanding of past cultures and religions by learning to “read” art
and artifacts as expressions of beliefs and practices, and through hands-on
activities. As one teacher attests, “There’s nothing like seeing actual artifacts
for making the study of ancient history more immediate and relevant … for
teenagers.”
Freshmen visit the Egyptian and Ancient Near East galleries and try their
hand at cuneiform writing. Sophomores make numerous trips as part of their
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