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Explore Global Cultures

Discover North Carolina’s only museum dedicated to the study of global cultures. Explore stories of humanity, from ancient archaeological sites to the celebrations and struggles of today. Learn about people from around the world through their everyday objects, ceremonial artifacts, and visual arts.

Open Tuesday to Saturday, 10:00am to 4:30pm. Admission is free.

Featured Exhibits

exhibit gallery

To Be Seen: Documenting the Art of the Ivory Coast
Through August 16

exhibit gallery

Headrests: The Exhibit
Through September 21

Upcoming Events

multiple beaded necklaces

African Tie Dye Workshop

July 28, 2-4pm

Booth at Indigenous People & Moravians: A Celebration of Cultures

August 10, 1:30-4:30pm

Recent News Stories

Studying WFU Student EngagementJune 5, 2024
Focusing on PhotogrammetryMay 24, 2024
Commemorating the HolocaustFebruary 1, 2024

Explore the Collection with the Artifact of the Month

Tibetan Saddle RugJuly 1, 2024
Maya HuipilJune 3, 2024
Japanese Carpentry ToolMay 2, 2024

Find a Craft Activity with Cultures Up Close

Pacific Islands: Paint a Tapa ClothMay 31, 2023
Ghana: Weave a Kente ClothFebruary 27, 2023
Native American Heritage Month: Make & Play the Bean GameNovember 22, 2022

Stay in Touch

Receive updates on exhibits and events from the Lam Museum

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Jul 8

Registration for Sunday's Beautiful Beads Workshop will close at noon on Friday. Make sure to reserve your space now! Visit the Events Calendar link in our bio for details.

#lammuseum #wakethearts #familyfun #wsnc #crafts

Jul 3

The Museum will be closed Thursday, July 4 through Saturday, July 6 for #IndependenceDay. Have a happy and safe holiday, and we'll see you next week!

Jul 1

Our July #ArtifactOfTheMonth is a Tibetan saddle rug. This type of saddle rug was used for cushioning between the horse’s back and the saddle. A second smaller rug would have been placed on top of the saddle for the comfort of the rider. Because Tibetan saddles were often made of wood, these rugs made riding more comfortable for both the horse and the rider. Many under-saddle rugs are made of two woven pieces joined together, as this one is. The shape of this rug with a pair of pointed corners is referred to as a butterfly design.
Known for their rich colors, unique decorations, and exquisite craftsmanship, Tibetan rugs can be classified as either religious or utilitarian. Utilitarian rugs such as saddle rugs can also feature imagery that expresses people’s beliefs. More detailed and intricate patterns indicate the owner’s higher socioeconomic status.

The main decorations found on this saddle rug are dangerous creatures: dragons, tigers, lions, and bird-like Garudas fighting with snake-like Nagas. Dragon imagery is common on saddle rugs because it represents wealth. Merchants may choose this kind of rug to win the dragon’s favor, hoping for good fortune in their business.

The humanoid figures at the edge of the saddle rug are the Garuda in anthropomorphic form. Garuda is the “Lord of Birds” in Hindu Buddhist tradition, but it sometimes has a more sinister characterization in Tibetan Buddhism. The Naga are a type of intelligent and evil serpents; here, they are being devoured by the Garudas. Thus, the appearance of the Garuda often represents protection.

The two snow lions in the center of the rug are celestial animals that indicate power and fearlessness. Tigers are considered to have the extraordinary power to cast out demons and control evil. The combination of the dragons, Garudas, snow lions, and tigers on the saddle conveys hope for being safe during transportation and having good fortune in business.

Research and writing for this post were provided by Michelle Ye ('25).

#Tibet #saddlerug #tibetanrugs #rug #textile #lammuseum #wakethearts

Jun 28

That's a wrap on #FridaysfromVienna! Dr. Gurstelle will be back with us at the Museum next week, but we wanted to post a few more photos @kateswingate generously shared with us.

#Vienna #studyabroad

Jun 21

This week’s #FridaysfromVienna update features two class photos (finally!). The first is atop the Leopold Museum in the MuseumsQuartier, a 2000s redevelopment and rebranding of Vienna’s urban core. The class went on an architecture tour and spoke to their head of marketing to learn more about how museums position themselves as civic assets. The second photo shows the class overlooking Vienna from the western hills.

#Vienna #museumsquartier #studyabroad #museumstudies

Jun 18

The Museum will be closed tomorrow for #Juneteenth. We look forward to seeing you another day!

Jun 17

The first of our summer workshops is less than a month away! Spaces in both workshops are still available, and you can find the registration information via the Events link in our bio.

#lammuseum #wakethearts #beads #crafts #familyfriendly

Jun 14

It’s time for #FridaysfromVienna! Dr. Gurstelle reports, “We went to Schönbrunn Palace and talked with curator Martin Mutschlechner about the economics of running a world heritage site, and about the historical research behind restoration (shown in the second photo). I also am including a photo of me from the Kahlenberg hill above Vienna.”
We promise there are students there with him… maybe they’re really camera shy? 🤷🏼‍♀️

#schonbrunnpalace
#studyabroad
#museumstudies

Jun 13

We hope to see you this Saturday! When you're ready for a break from the heat, we'll be inside Biotech Place in Room 150 from 1-5pm with African instruments to play and a take-home craft project.

#juneteenth #africanmusic

Jun 11

If you've been to the Museum recently, you may have noticed that our front yard is looking a little busy. Through the summer, there will be a construction project to address long-standing drainage issues in the area surrounding Palmer and Piccolo Halls. We have been assured that we will have access to our front door throughout the project, and the Museum will remain open for our regular hours. If there are any unforseen changes to that schedule, we will post them here.

#lammuseum

Jun 7

It’s time for our second edition of #FridaysfromVienna! This week, Dr. Gurstelle, his students, and his family visited Schönbrunn Zoo, the oldest zoo in the world. Dr. Gurstelle reports “The final photo is of Elmar the zoologist showing us a King Penguin egg. This was a highlight, as the students were less excited about our 30-minute talk about filters, pumps, and properly mixing salt water.” We’ve been promised a full class photo for next week’s update… stay tuned!

#Vienna #schönbrunnzoo

Jun 3

Our June #ArtifactOfTheMonth is a beautiful embroidered Maya huipil. A huipil is a rectangular blouse that makes up part of a Maya women’s traditional outfit. The word huipil comes from the Nahuatl (Aztec) language, and blouses in this style have been worn by indigenous Mesoamerican women for more than one thousand years.

This huipil is from the Maya town of San Mateo Ixtatán in the department of Huehuetenango, Guatemala. The town is in the northwestern part of the county, high in the Cuchumantanes Mountains. The people of San Mateo are often referred to as Chuj Maya, based on the language they speak, but they prefer to identify themselves based on the name of their municipality, in this case as ajSan Matéyo.

The women of San Mateo Ixtatán make and wear huipiles that are different from all others in Guatemala and immediately identifiable. Since at least the beginning of the 20th century, the women have made their voluminous huipiles by embroidering a double layer of commercially produced white cotton cloth, rather than weaving the garment on a backstrap loom. The women heavily embroider the blouse on both sides so that it is completely reversible, with the same design inside and out. The double-sided embroidery makes the huipil very heavy and appropriate for the cool climate of the high mountain town. Huipiles from San Mateo are also longer than those found elsewhere in the country. They are worn over wrapped skirts, rather than tucked in. Because of the intricate hand-stitched designs, a huipil like this one can take many months to complete.

In addition to being beautiful pieces of clothing, huipiles also express the wearer’s ethnic identity, often indicating a specific community of origin, as this one does. The designs can reflect aspects of the Maya beliefs and connections to the natural world. In this piece, the stars may connect to the centrality of astrology in the Maya worldview, and the zigzags likely represent the mountains surrounding their home.

#lammuseum #wakethearts #Maya #huipil #textile #Guatemala

May 31

Our academic director, Andrew Gurstelle, is currently in Vienna, Austria, teaching Museum Studies during summer session 1 from Wake Forest’s Flow House. We’ll be sharing his museum adventures with #FridaysfromVienna. This week, they visited the Weltmuseum Wien, the big state anthropology museum. Dr. Gurstelle reports, “It was very cool! Despite its much bigger size and much older history, it is gratifying to see that they have the same objects (Day of the Dead figures and Yup’ik models pictured), interpretations, and goals as we do. On the other hand, they definitely are fine with displaying human remains (shrunken heads – not pictured!) and looted objects (Benin bronzes).

#Vienna #weltmuseumwien

May 30

Our newly conserved Bedouin wedding necklace is now on display! Many thanks to the donors who made this project possible and to @erdmann_conservation for doing such great work!

#lammuseum #Bedouin #jewelry #SaudiArabia

May 28

Memorial Day has come and gone, and now it's time to think about summer! We're offering two craft workshops in July, one about beads and one about indigo tie dye. The workshops are appropriate for ages 8 and up. Visit the Events Calendar link in our bio for complete information.

#lammuseum #wakethearts #crafts #beads #tiedye #indigo #familyfriendly #wsnc

May 24

The Museum will be closed this weekend for Memorial Day. We hope you enjoy the holiday!

May 17

We’re proud to join museums nationwide this summer in the Blue Star Museums initiative, a program that provides free admission to currently-serving U.S. military personnel and their families. The program will begin on Armed Forces Day, this Saturday, and end on Labor Day, September 2. While we continue to offer free admission to all visitors, we are excited to be able to participate in this program honoring our military personnel and thanking them for their service and sacrifice.

Blue Star Museums is a partnership between the National Endowment for the Arts and Blue Star Families, in collaboration with the Department of Defense and participating museums across America.

#bluestarmuseums

May 2

May is #aapiheritagemonth, and we've selected this #Japanese carpentry tool for our #ArtifactOfTheMonth. This traditional tool is known as a sumitsubo. In English, the name translates to ink pot, but it is also referred to as an ink line or ink line reel. It is used to mark lines on wood, similar to chalk lines often used in the US, but it creates a much finer and darker line.

A sumitsubo features a thin line of thread, often silk, spooled around a reel. The thread passes through the inkwell portion of the tool, which is filled with silk or cotton fibers soaked in ink. As the line is pulled, the thread soaks up ink from the well. The far end of the line is attached to a wooden piece with a sharp pin, called a karuko, which the carpenter pushes into the wood to secure the end in place. This piece is missing from our example. The carpenter then reels out the inked line over the surface, picks it up, and lets it snap into place, leaving the ink mark on the wood. Using this tool, perfectly straight lines can be marked over long distances. Traditional Japanese carpentry often relies on joining pieces of wood without nails or screws, which makes the precise measurements and straight lines created by the tool especially important.

The sumitsubo is often the most elaborate tool in a Japanese carpenter’s otherwise modest toolbox, and because it is used for the first step in a carpentry project, it has a special significance. The sumitsubo was traditionally made by the individual using it, and it served as an opportunity to display his craftsmanship and artistic skills, resulting in some tools with very elaborate carvings. This example is relatively plain in design but nonetheless took skill to create. Tools like the sumitsubo reflect the Japanese idea of monozukuri, the art of making things, in which the process is equally important as the final creation.

This sumitsubo is from the early 20th century. Typical of Western Japan, it does not have a crank for the reel. Sumitsubo date back as far as the 8th century in various forms, and they are still used today, both in the form seen here and as a more compact plastic tool.

#lammuseum #Japan #carpentry #woodworking

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