The University of Wyoming Archaeological Repository: Planning for Sustainable Preservation of Vulnerable Repository Collections

FAIN: PF-287794-22

State Parks and Cultural Resources, Wyoming (Cheyenne, WY 82001-3110)
Megan Reel (Project Director: January 2022 to February 2023)
Molly Herron (Project Director: February 2023 to January 2026)

A planning project to develop a Collection Preservation Plan for an archaeological faunal collection containing nearly 800 boxes of bone artifacts, 40 skulls and large elements, and 82 jackets from at least 15 sites located in the Great Plains.

The University of Wyoming Archaeological Repository (UWAR) requests funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities Sustaining Cultural Heritage Collections to develop a Collections Preservation Plan for an especially vulnerable portion of its collection. This plan will support a detailed condition assessment of fragile faunal collections in need of preservation, an evaluation of sustainable temperature and relative humidity solutions for these collections, and recommendations for their stabilization and rehousing. It will build off of a 2018 General Conservation Survey undertaken at the repository and lead to actionable steps for UWAR to better preserve the collections. The planning team will include an outside Conservation Consultant, an outside Preparator, UWAR Collections Staff, and the Wyoming State Archaeologist.