Images of a set of carved wooden doors from Zanzibar, which were loaned to the National Museum of Natural History by Evan P. Wright and later donated by William F. Webb. The collection includes images of the doors on exhibit at the museum and copies of photographs of other doors that were possibly also part of the exhibit.
Biographical/Historical note:
The Zanzibar carved wooden doors depicted in this collection were purchased by William J. Bushwaller, then American Vice Counsel in Nairobi, Kenya, on the behalf of Evan P. Wright of Salt Lake City, Utah, who had spent over two decades living in Africa between 1930 and 1973. Bushwaller bought the doors, which were probably made in the 19th century, in 1948 from the Zanzibar Curio Shop in Nairobi. According to the owner of the curio shop, the doors had been purchased from an Arab in Zanzibar in 1945. Starting in 1974, Wright loaned the doors to the National Museum of Natural History, where they were exhibited in the Africa Hall. In 1978, he sold the doors to William Webb, who continued to lend the doors until 1991, when they were officially donated to the museum.
Local Call Number(s):
NAA Photo Lot 2003-22, USNM ACC 364373
Location of Other Archival Materials:
The doors depicted in these photographs are held in the anthropology collections of the National Museum of Natural history in accession 364373.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research.
Access to the collection requires an appointment.