Religion

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.

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
1999.0350.01
accession number
1999.0350
catalog number
1999.0350.01
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
1999.0350.02
accession number
1999.0350
catalog number
1999.0350.02
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
1996.0111.06
accession number
1996.0111
catalog number
1996.0111.06
This text of the collected works of Rje Tsong-kha-pa, a well-loved Tibetan scholar, includes illustrations of Buddha Sakyamuni and Buddha Maitreya on the first page.
Description
This text of the collected works of Rje Tsong-kha-pa, a well-loved Tibetan scholar, includes illustrations of Buddha Sakyamuni and Buddha Maitreya on the first page. As it is a commentary on a famous work by Asanga (4th century CE) on Bodhisattva ethics, Asanga and the author Rje Tsong-kha-pa are pictured on the next page to show the lineage through which this particular teaching evolved. Both the illustrations and the text are printed from woodblocks. The loose pages are contained between two wooden boards.
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Rje Tsong-kha-pa
ID Number
GA.08092
catalog number
08092
accession number
29359
This intricately designed prayer mat was produced in India and quilted in the first half of the 19th century. The top is a single piece of fabric; a central mihrab (prayer niche) with floral motifs that is framed by several printed borders of various widths.
Description
This intricately designed prayer mat was produced in India and quilted in the first half of the 19th century. The top is a single piece of fabric; a central mihrab (prayer niche) with floral motifs that is framed by several printed borders of various widths. The cotton fabric used for the prayer mat is block-printed, hand-printed, resist-printed, and dyed. Black outlines of stems and leaves and red outlines of flowers are block-printed with a series of small blocks. Resist-painted details were added to flowers before red-dyeing. Blue color appears to be painted. Painted yellow appears in the mihrab and some other areas. The lining is a roller-printed cotton with a small overall floral pattern. It has a cotton filling. The quilting consists of parallel diagonal lines in a running stitch. It is bound with a silk/cotton bias strip. Printed cotton prayer mats were sold and used across the Islamic world.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1800-1850
maker
unknown
ID Number
TE.T14440
catalog number
T14440
accession number
275379
The Hindu Temple Society of North America was founded in 1970 and became one of the first and most prominent Hindu temples in the New York City area. It was built with traditional granite stones imported from India.
Description
The Hindu Temple Society of North America was founded in 1970 and became one of the first and most prominent Hindu temples in the New York City area. It was built with traditional granite stones imported from India. This prototype of the temple’s religious symbol was once carved into the façade of the building, and represents religious diversity through five major faiths – Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism – all surrounding and illuminated by the lamp of knowledge and acceptance, a symbol of Universalism.
date made
ca 1970
ID Number
2016.0049.01
catalog number
2016.0049.01
accession number
2016.0049
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
late 19th century
ID Number
2012.0203.0080
accession number
2012.0203
catalog number
2012.0203.0080
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
late 19th century
ID Number
2012.0203.0081
accession number
2012.0203
catalog number
2012.0203.0081

Our collection database is a work in progress. We may update this record based on further research and review. Learn more about our approach to sharing our collection online.

If you would like to know how you can use content on this page, see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use. If you need to request an image for publication or other use, please visit Rights and Reproductions.