The Semitic Museum Debate Continues

From 1982 to 1992 it was my privilege and pleasure to be a docent at the Harvard Semitic Museum. From the very young to the elderly, from the unsophisticated to the highly educated scholars, from the local inhabitants to those of many lands, all visitors went away impressed and rich from their experiences at the H.S.M.

I know firsthand how hard and how devotedly and sincerely the staff functioned--way beyond the call of ordinary employees--a truly extraordinary group who gave freely of their time and knowledge and, most importantly, were able to inspire others and command respect.

Dr. Carney Gavin, curator and executive director; Nitza Rosovsky, curator of exhibits (who resigned); Elizabeth C. Carella, curator for the history of photography; Dr. Gary Pratico, curator for the archaeological collections; Elizabeth C. Thyne, coordinator for public programs; William Corsetti, curator for educational planning; Mary Ellen Taylor, archivist; Linda Christian Herot, financial administrator. All are beyond peer. What a shabby and shameful way to treat staff. Fire them?

Limiting Harvard's collections to faculty and students is not what donors envisioned, nor does it enrich our society. We are merely caretakers of artifacts from past civilizations and the near past. Zero transmission is unthinkable. Who knows what child or adolescent may have been inspired, by learning from the past, to making his or her own great contribution to our civilization!

A composer of music needs not only a conductor and orchestra (or instrumentalists) but an audience to listen. What artist hasn't dreamt of having his or her art being viewed and appreciated by many generations of the public? So too is the need for sculpture, architecture, archaeology to have its audience.

The above mentioned staff, having been given the ingredients, turned them into a small gem of a museum with an international reputation. How could a few Harvard administrators naively not do their own research and fact finding? It is never too late. Girls' Latin School '40