Hawaiian Collection Gifted to Bishop Museum

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Honolulu, HI -- The Beneficiaries and the Trustees of the Estate of Samuel Mills Damon have announced the gift of a rare and valuable collection of more than 600 significant Hawaiian and Pacific artifacts to Bishop Museum, according to Tim Johns, Chief Operating Officer for the Estate of Samuel Mills Damon. The monetary value of the important collection is estimated at more than $1 million, but its historical and cultural significance is regarded as “priceless.”

The gift comes at a time when the Museum has recently undertaken a $20 million restoration and re-installation project in Hawaiian Hall where most of its Hawaiian and Polynesian cultural artifacts are displayed. The renovations, when completed, will create a state-of-the-art facility with upgraded security, conservation, and presentation methods for the Bishop Museum’s unrivaled collection. World-renowned exhibition designer Ralph Appelbaum, designer of the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C., is leading the team. The new Hawaiian Hall is expected to open in December 2008.

For more information about Bishop Museum or the S. M. Damon Collection and gift, call (808) 847-3511 or visit www.bishopmuseum.org.

[From the Bishop Museum online press release.]