Stanford University Archaeology Collections

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Stanford University Archaeology Collections SUAC: Connections through Collections Interested in researching our collections or getting involved with outreach projects? Get in touch!

The Stanford University Archaeology Collections (SUAC) connects the campus and broader community with a large collection of archaeological and ethnographic artifacts collected by the University since its founding in 1891. Many of these items were once held in the Stanford Museum, which was founded to house historical and cultural material collected by the Stanford family. SUAC also cares for many systematically excavated field collections from Stanford lands and the wider Bay Area, which chronicle diverse people's lives from several thousand years ago to the 20th century. SUAC has an educational mission and presents content here for educational and informational purposes only. Downloading for commercial purposes is prohibited. Certain materials and works of art presented on this page may be protected by copyright and/or may be subject to other third party rights or restrictions, including trademarks and the rights of privacy and publicity. SUAC disclaims any warranties about its rights in such materials and works.

The Sámi are Indigenous Peoples of northern Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Russia’s Kola Peninsula. Though divided by nati...
10/12/2026

The Sámi are Indigenous Peoples of northern Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Russia’s Kola Peninsula. Though divided by national borders, they share a language family, histories, and cultural traditions.

One Sámi cultural tradition is duodji, the making of traditional Sámi art. This wooden cup, or guksi (Northern Sámi), is one example. We don’t know who made this cup. If you do, get in touch! The cup is carved from a birch burl. Its handle is embellished with engraved reindeer antler and also functions as a rattle.

Duodji often incorporates materials of cultural significance from Sámi homelands, including birch wood, spruce roots, and reindeer antler and hide. Notice how this knife sheath is made by joining two pieces of reindeer antler. Inlaid birch wood on the antler knife handle provides a secure grip.

This flag represents Sápmi, the traditional homelands of the Sámi, which span Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Russia. Sámi representatives in Norway, Sweden, and Finland coordinate policies and represent Sámi interests in international forums through the Sámi Parliamentary Council.

Are you looking for hands-on experience working with museum collections! Join us as a SUAC intern! We are now accepting ...
09/02/2026

Are you looking for hands-on experience working with museum collections! Join us as a SUAC intern! We are now accepting internship applications for the Fall 2026 quarter!

Tap the link in our bio or email Dr. Amber Lincoln to apply!

Please join us in welcoming SUAC’s new Academic Curator, Dr. Amber Lincoln! 🎉Amber is a museum professional and cultural...
08/05/2026

Please join us in welcoming SUAC’s new Academic Curator, Dr. Amber Lincoln! 🎉

Amber is a museum professional and cultural anthropologist with interests in material heritage and histories, museum studies, making and memory practices, human-animal relations, decolonizing museum practices and climate anthropology. She has worked collaboratively with Native American, First Nations and Indigenous Arctic communities in Alaska, Nunavut, Sápmi (northern Scandinavia), California, and Siberia. Informed by teachings from Indigenous partners, Amber has prioritized collaborative research and exhibition projects that explore how Indigenous Peoples use their material practices and cultural heritage to address challenges arising from rapid social, environmental and economic changes. These interests have taken shape in exhibitions and projects while working at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, the British Museum, and the National Museum of the American Indian and in a variety of publications, including the book, Arctic: Culture and Climate (2020).

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