Religion

Page from the Koran

One hallmark of the American experience captured in the Museum's collections is the nation's broad diversity of religious faiths. Artifacts range from Thomas Jefferson's Bible to a huge "Sunstone" sculpture carved for a Mormon temple in Illinois in 1844 to a household shrine from the home of a Pueblo Indian in the 1990s. Furniture, musical instruments, clothing, cooking ware, and thousands of prints and figures in the collections have all played roles in the religious lives of Americans. The most comprehensive collections include artifacts from Jewish and Christian European Americans, Catholic Latinos, Protestant Arab Americans, Buddhist and Christian Asian Pacific Americans, and Protestant African Americans. One notable group is the Vidal Collection of carved figures known as santos and other folk religious material from the practice of Santeria in Puerto Rico.

Place: New York

1922 Clarkesville Reformed Church Embroidered Counterpane

This redwork embroidered counterpane was most likely made as a fund raiser for the Clarksville Reformed Church. It is dedicated to “Rev. Boyce Pastor.
Description
This redwork embroidered counterpane was most likely made as a fund raiser for the Clarksville Reformed Church. It is dedicated to “Rev. Boyce Pastor. Peggy His wife, Rex Their dog.” According to further inscriptions on the quilt, the occasion was the “Clarksville Reformed Church Fair Dec. 8th 1922.”
A twelve-petal daisy is the motif of the forty-eight blocks, the petals providing spaces for over 500 embroidered names. First, the names were written in pencil, and then embroidered with red cotton. In a few instances, a different name is embroidered over the original penciled name. One block utilized the spaces for advertising: “Priced / Lowest / The / Transportation / Economical / Motor Cars / Chevrolet / Wright / Gardner / Automobile / Equipped / Fully.” Presumably a small donation, maybe ten or twenty-five cents, assured one’s name embroidered on the counterpane. Further funds may have been secured by a raffle at the December fair. Or it may have been given to Pastor Boyce as a token of appreciation. Quilts or counterpanes such as this are still used, as they have been for more than 150 years, to raise funds for worthy causes.
The Clarksville Reformed Church was established in 1853, when a building was erected to serve the congregation. Sadly, this church was destroyed by fire on a cold February Sunday in 1912. The congregation rallied to rebuild and less then a year later, in January 1913, they were able to hold services in a new church. Clarksville in the 1920s, when this counterpane was made, was a small village in Albany County, New York. Reverend Boyce was the pastor for the Clarksville Reformed Church from 1919 to 1926 and also the Reformed Church in Westerlo, New York. In the 1950s Clarksville was still a small village and it became increasingly difficult to support the church. Another church in Clarksville, the Methodist Episcopal Church, also faced similar problems, and the solution was to merge the two. By the mid-1960s, a new church was dedicated whose sign incorporates the two bells from the older churches, symbolizing the origins of the new Clarksville Community Church.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1922
maker
unknown
ID Number
1995.0011.02
accession number
1995.0011
catalog number
1995.0011.02

St. Paul's Eastchester Episcopal Church

date made
1940s
maker
United States. Office of War Information
Federal Works Agency
ID Number
2013.0327.0559
catalog number
2013.0327.0559
accession number
2013.0327

Proper Lessons for Sundays and other Holy-Days

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date published
1850 - 1865
ID Number
DL.033668B
catalog number
033668B
accession number
70138

SIDUR TIFERETH JEHUDAH

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
publisher
Hebrew Publishing Company
ID Number
1993.0102.017
catalog number
1993.0102.017
accession number
1993.0102

Ezekial Saw de Wheel; Joshua Fit de Battle of Jericho

The Southernaires. side 1: Ezekial Saw De Wheel; side 2: Joshua Fit De Battle of Jericho (Decca 2858), from the album, The Southernaires in a Recital of Spirituals (Decca 83).78 rpm.Currently not on view
Description
The Southernaires. side 1: Ezekial Saw De Wheel; side 2: Joshua Fit De Battle of Jericho (Decca 2858), from the album, The Southernaires in a Recital of Spirituals (Decca 83).
78 rpm.
Location
Currently not on view
recording date
1939
recording artist
Southernaires
manufacturer
Decca
ID Number
1996.0320.05288
maker number
2858
83
accession number
1996.0320
catalog number
1996.0320.05288

Hymnal of the Protestant Episcopal Church (U.S.A.)

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date book published
1886
date corner covers made
1887
inscribed date
1888-06-18
1888-10-21
date given
1888-04-01
printer
Eyre and Spottiswoode
maker
Gorham Manufacturing Company
ID Number
DL.033670A
catalog number
33670A
accession number
70138

candle

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1981
user
Miguel, John
Miguel, Terena
ID Number
1991.0301.01
catalog number
1991.0301.01
accession number
1991.0301

Expulsion of Adam & Eve by James S. Baillie

This colored print depicts Adam and Eve, downcast beside a small lake. A distraught Eve is naked and kneeling on the ground. Adam is standing and fashioning a covering of branches to hide his nakedness and shame.
Description
This colored print depicts Adam and Eve, downcast beside a small lake. A distraught Eve is naked and kneeling on the ground. Adam is standing and fashioning a covering of branches to hide his nakedness and shame. A sylvan setting of trees and gentle hills forms the background.
The Expulsion represents the passage from the book of Genesis (3:22-24) after the Fall. That is, after Adam and Eve have eaten of the fruit which God has forbidden them to eat, they are cast out of the Garden of Eden and into the world where they are forced to labor and suffer the consequences of their sin. This scene encapsulates the central tenet of Christianity: only by repenting and following the teachings of Christ, can mankind obtain salvation.
This print was produced by James S. Baillie, who was active in New York from 1838 to 1855. James Baillie started as a framer in 1838, and then became an artist and lithographer in 1843 or 1844. He discovered how to color lithographs while working as an independent contractor for Currier & Ives in the mid 1840s. He was a prolific lithographer and colorist for Currier & Ives, and his prints were extremely popular with a wide distribution. James Baillie spent his later years concentrating on painting instead of lithography.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
ca 1846
depicted
Adam
Eve
maker
Baillie, James S.
ID Number
DL.60.2972
catalog number
60.2972
accession number
228146

Erinnerung an den Tag der Confirmation

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1884
maker
Kaufmann, Ernst
ID Number
2007.0076.01

Holy Bible, King James Version

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1940
maker
World Publishing Co.
ID Number
CL.306787.60
accession number
306787
catalog number
306787.60

Psalms & Hymns

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date published
1860
inscribed date
1865-01-01
publisher
D. Appleton and Company
ID Number
DL.033671
catalog number
033671
accession number
70138

“The Shepherd Boy”

This sheet music for the song "The Shepherd Boy" was written and composed by G. D. Wilson. The song was published by the Armstrong Music Co. of New York, New York in 1903.
Description
This sheet music for the song "The Shepherd Boy" was written and composed by G. D. Wilson. The song was published by the Armstrong Music Co. of New York, New York in 1903. The cover features an illustration of a shepherd boy sitting on rocks among sheep and doing his best to woo a girl.
Location
Currently not on view
publishing date
1903
composer
Wilson, G. D.
publisher
Armstrong Music Publishing Company
ID Number
1982.0439.30
accession number
1982.0439
catalog number
1982.0439.30

"Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition!"

This sheet music is for the sonfg “Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition!” with words and music by Frank Loesser. It was published by Famous Music Corp.
Description

This sheet music is for the sonfg “Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition!” with words and music by Frank Loesser. It was published by Famous Music Corp. in New York, New York in 1942.

On a Sunday morning in December 1941, a chaplain had his most difficult assignment — to say a prayer to sailors aboard a U.S. navy ship actively under low–flying attack by the enemy firing from all directions. He quickly realized the best he could do was walk the ammunition line saying, “Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition!” Stories of the overheard phrase quickly turned into legend and passed between soldiers, eventually reaching the press and one Broadway composer and lyricist, Frank Loesser. He served in the Radio Productions Unit charged with mounting shows of popular guest stars for boosting morale of the troops.

With the phrase as the song title, he combined the stories into one set of lyrics — fact mattered not as much as the need to inspire spirit. By 1943, the song, performed by Kay Kaiser and His Orchestra, had reached no. 1 on the Billboard chart, surpassing its peak of no. 8 the previous year when performed by the Merry Macs. Loesser donated his royalties for sale of the song to the Navy Relief Society. The chaplain originally quoted wished to remain anonymous, and the episode to remain legend. Many variations on the tale, the name of the chaplain, whether or not he himself manned a gun turret to participate in the battle, and the battle's whereabouts have existed over the years.

Location
Currently not on view
date made
1942
composer
Loesser, Frank
depicted
Kyser, Kay
lyricist
Loesser, Frank
publisher
Famous Music Corp.
ID Number
1983.0424.108
accession number
1983.0424
catalog number
1983.0424.108

The Book of Common Prayer

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date published
1836
ID Number
DL.033664
catalog number
033664
accession number
70138

Jewish Students Appeal

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Dale Button and Emblem Co.
ID Number
1986.0773.106
accession number
1986.0773
catalog number
1986.0773.106

"God Bless America"

This sheet music is for the song “God Bless America,” written and composed by Irving Berlin, and published by Irving Berlin, Inc in 1938. Irving Berlin (1888–1989) wrote the song in 1918, at the end of World War I.
Description
This sheet music is for the song “God Bless America,” written and composed by Irving Berlin, and published by Irving Berlin, Inc in 1938. Irving Berlin (1888–1989) wrote the song in 1918, at the end of World War I. In 1938, with war again approaching, Berlin revised the work as a “peace song.” Kate Smith’s recording of the updated “God Bless America” became the number three hit in 1939.
Location
Currently not on view
publishing date
1939
composer; lyricist
Berlin, Irving
publisher
Irving Berlin, Inc.
ID Number
1983.0320.07
accession number
1983.0320
catalog number
1983.0320.07

Engraved woodblock of an "Iroquois mask"

This engraved woodblock of an "Iroquois Mask" was prepared by the Government Printing Office in Washington, D.C.; the print was published as Plate XXII.49 (p.
Description
This engraved woodblock of an "Iroquois Mask" was prepared by the Government Printing Office in Washington, D.C.; the print was published as Plate XXII.49 (p. 189) in an article by William Healey Dall (1845-1927) entitled “On Masks, Labrets, and Certain Aboriginal Customs with an Inquiry into the Bearing of Their Geographical Distribution” in the Third Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology to the Secretary of the Smithsonian, 1881-82. According to the annual report, the mask was “used by the order of ‘Falsefaces’.” Lewis Henry Morgan (1818-1881) was the original artist.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1884
publisher
Bureau of American Ethnology
printer
Government Printing Office
author
Dall, William H.
original artist
Morgan, L. H.
block maker
A. P. J. & Co.
ID Number
1980.0219.0437
accession number
1980.0219
catalog number
1980.0219.0437

The Holy Bible

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1880 - 1890
ID Number
ZZ.RSN82667U02

Flagon

Flat lid, straight tapered flagon or pitcher with applied, large, curved V-shape spout, chair-back thumbpiece and molded rim on a banded base with raised, flat bottom; plain body pierced with 6 rows of holes at spout.
Description
Flat lid, straight tapered flagon or pitcher with applied, large, curved V-shape spout, chair-back thumbpiece and molded rim on a banded base with raised, flat bottom; plain body pierced with 6 rows of holes at spout. Hollow, D-section, indented S-curve handle with tongue-over-pip below the three-knuckle hinge tapers to a hooded bud terminal on small oval attachment. Sawtooth or serrated circular "T.B." touchmark for Timothy Brigden at center of three concentric circles inside bottom.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1815 - 1819
ID Number
1986.0027.60
accession number
1986.0027
catalog number
1986.0027.60

Hapisgoh (The Summit)

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1852-1853
1890
ID Number
GA.285049.02.01
accession number
285049
catalog number
285049.02.01

Wooster Family Bible

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1806
ID Number
2015.0084.01
catalog number
2015.0084.01
accession number
2015.0084

Order for Daily Evening Prayer and Book of Common Prayer

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date book published
1886
date corner covers made
1887
inscribed date
1888-04-01
printer
Eyre and Spottiswoode
maker
Gorham Manufacturing Company
ID Number
DL.033670B
catalog number
33670B
accession number
70138

FUN IDISHEN KVAL

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1932
ID Number
1993.0102.012
catalog number
1993.0102.012
accession number
1993.0102

“The Lord Is My Shepherd (23rd Psalm)”

This sheet music for the song "The Lord Is My Shepherd (23rd Psalm)" was written and composed by John B. Marsh and published by the William. A. Pond and Co. of New York, New York in 1898.
Description
This sheet music for the song "The Lord Is My Shepherd (23rd Psalm)" was written and composed by John B. Marsh and published by the William. A. Pond and Co. of New York, New York in 1898. This cover is plain paper with black text, but the phrase “The Lord” is underlined by the image of a shepherd’s staff. The contralto solo was written with affectionate regard to Mr. Warren Pond.
Location
Currently not on view
publishing date
1898
composer
Marsh, John B.
publisher
William A. Pond & Co.
ID Number
1982.0439.35
accession number
1982.0439
catalog number
1982.0439.35

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