This archive is primarily a list of all Abbe Museum exhibits, though we have included additional content wherever possible. Exhibits are organized alphabetically by title, though you may also browse by the closing date or any associated keywords using the search tools below. Don't see something that you're looking for? Get in touch with us at info@abbemuseum.org.
The “Micmac Indian Craftsmen” were the first modern Indigenous artists in Atlantic Canada and developed an international following almost overnight. Their work was inspired by traditional Wabanaki stories, and their visual…
Read MoreDuring May 2014, an epic journey took place commemorating the travels of Henry David Thoreau and his Wabanaki Guide, Joe Polis, in the Maine Woods in July of 1857. This exhibit…
Read MoreIn this exhibit, you met Lucy Nicolar, a Penobscot performer known by her stage name, Princess Watahwaso, but affectionately referred to by everyone as Aunt Lu. Born in 1882 on Indian…
Read MoreFrom baskets to beadwork, woodcarvings to birchbark canoes, tools or artwork, objects are an important expression of Wabanaki culture. Since the arrival of the first European explorers more than 400 years…
Read MoreVisit the original Abbe Museum at Sieur de Monts Spring in Acadia National Park, built as a trailside museum in 1928. The exhibits focus on the archaeology of Maine and are…
Read MoreThis exhibit celebrated a uniquely Wabanaki art form, a centuries-old craft that has frequently been dismissed by museums and academics as not “traditionally” Wabanaki. Root clubs have been viewed by…
Read MoreFour Directions of Wabanaki Basketry, located in our unique Circle of the Four Directions, offers a place of quiet reflection for visitors. The exhibit features a basket from each of the…
Read MoreA vision by Penobscot artist and historian James Francis. This tribute to Mount Katahdin, through Penobscot histories and accounts of non-Native travelers and writers, uses images, music, stories, and the…
Read MoreWith the signing of the Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act in 1980, and later agreements, Maine distinguished itself from the rest of the Nation by establishing a unique relationship with the four…
Read MoreWinner of a 2012 Leadership in History Award. Indians and Rusticators: Wabanakis and Summer Visitors on Mount Desert Island 1840s-1920s highlighted the role that Mount Desert Island (MDI) played in…
Read MoreThis important and enlightening exhibition from the Smithsonian Institution was about the intersection of American Indian and African American people and cultures. IndiVisible: African-Native American Lives in the Americas explored…
Read MoreKikehtahsuwiw is a story about several women in the Passamaquoddy Tribe, residing at both Motahkomikuk (Indian Township) and Sipayik (Pleasant Point). Each of these women shares a common goal: healing their…
Read MoreAccording to Wabanaki oral histories, Kluskap–or Koluskap, Gluskap, Glooskap, and Gluskabe–made the world habitable for human beings and taught people to live wisely. Kluskap stories have been told and…
Read MoreHow did people live in the past? What can we know about their lives and history from the archaeological record? This exhibit followed archaeological research conducted by the Abbe Museum starting…
Read MoreMany different types of images relating to Maine's Tribal History exist, which are seldom seen except by researchers and scholars In the field. In addition, the general public is seldom given…
Read MoreNative Americans have lived on Meddybemps Lake at its outlet to the Dennys River for at least 8,600 years. The Passamaquoddy people have named this site N'tolonapemk, which in Passamaquoddy means…
Read MoreFor generations, Native American traditional artists in the Northeast have passed on their culture through beadwork, basketry, birchbark, and woodcarving. Organized and curated by Kathleen Mundell, this traveling exhibition sponsored by…
Read MorePeople of the First Light, the Abbe Museum's core exhibit, introduces visitors to the Wabanaki universe, engaging them with the culture and history of a people that is unfamiliar to many…
Read MoreThis exhibit is the latest collaboration between Wabanaki community members and the Abbe Museum. It is presented from a first-person perspective, with Mi’kmaq artisans and culture keepers sharing their experiences…
Read MoreIn 1613, a small group of French Jesuits, sailors and settlers arrived at Mount Desert Island, looking for a place to establish a mission and build trade relations with the Wabanaki…
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