A Handbook to the National Museum at the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, Brentano Brothers, 1886 (colour...

Congress established the United States National Museum (now known as the Arts and Industries Building) in 1879 to house and display the growing collections of the Smithsonian Institution. This early handbook provides a glimpse of some of the first exhibits on view to the American public. This guidebook is housed in the Smithsoniana collection in the Smithsonian Institution Libraries. This unique collection contains books by and about the Smithsonian Institution, from its creation in 1846 to the present day. Early guidebooks, booklets, and reports not only document the collections and exhibitions of their eras; they also provide evidence of what was scientifically and culturally important and illustrate the advance of the Institution’s exhibition methods.