Field Museum
Chicago
The Chicago World’s Fair of 1893 was held in honor of the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus’ arrival in the Americas, so it seems only fitting that the Field Museum, which grew out of the fair, should also allow visitors to explore the America that Columbus first encountered when he landed.
In the museum’s permanent “The Ancient Americas” exhibit, stone carvings, gold statuettes, pottery and metalwork transport visitors back to the bustling Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan, which was twice the size of contemporaneous London and Paris during its heyday. The Field’s pottery collection includes one of the most extensive Aztec collections outside of Mexico, Mayan pieces from Mexico and Belize, and Incan vessels from Peru.
Los Angeles County Museum of Art
Los Angeles
The largest art museum in the western United States, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) offers visitors a gateway to the world from LA’s Museum Mile. LACMA’s collection primarily revolves around art from California and cultures that have affected the state’s people, and in 2008, it became one of only five museums in the country to own a significant collection of Oceanic and Polynesian art.
Though often underrepresented in major museums, Oceanic art has profoundly affected major modern artists, among them Man Ray and Max Ernst. LACMA’s now encyclopedic collection includes period photography, artworks and decorated functional objects, such as a hand drum from Papua New Guinea, a ceremonial shield from the Solomon Islands, the bedcover of Hawaiian Princess Ka’iulani and items acquired by Captain James Cook from the Hawaiian Islands in 1778.
