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Make a Gift, Make an Impact

Your gift to Milwaukee Public Museum’s annual fundraising campaign helps protect and preserve collections, underwrites educational programs, and supports important scientific research.

Half a million visitors – including more than 140,000 students and children – benefit from MPM’s programs, events, and exhibits each year. 2026 will be the final full year in our current building, and with your help, we plan to make it our most impactful year yet.

For the indigenous First Nations of Canada’s Pacific coast, masks are more than mere decoration or ceremonial props; they are part of a living tradition that connects people to their community, their collective past, their creator, their ancestors, their cosmology, and powerful elemental forces.

The majority of the masks presented here were made by Kwakiutl[1]  (now known as Kwakwak

Cosmic Curiosities

“Gravitation cannot be held responsible for people falling in love.”
- Albert Einstein

Over the past century and a half the discovery of thousands of copper artifacts, primarily on Wisconsin soil, has given rise to speculation and interpretation of their manufacture and function.

Many of these artifacts leave little doubt as to their probable function, but others are not so well understood. The Old Copper Collection at the MPM constitutes the entire range of known artifact types.

Thank you submitting your questions to our 2018 Ask a Curator Day on Wednesday, September 12!

Below, we have all your questions and answers compiled for your reference at any time.

Select publications below are available as PDF files.

Click title to download.