Santa Clara University

Uncovering Mission history

Associate Professor Russell Skowronek

Campus Archaeologist

Anthropologist Russell Skowronek is interested in the history of right here: specifically, what happened in previous centuries on the present site of Santa Clara University.

He teamed up with a master potter from San Jose to study ceramics found on the Mission campus as well as throughout California. The project identified previously unknown regional differences in pottery made during the late 18th century and early 19th century—adding to general understanding of travel and trade patterns at the time.

Skowronek says the Californians neglect their history compared to East Coasters. “California has a very unhealthy relationship with its Mission past. We depict it as this quaint era before the English people came. It was not like that. People were importing things, there was stuff here that came from China by way of Manila.”

Through his work, he has developed a deep appreciation for the state’s residents. “There is great pride here. Here in this research project, we took something that seems simple, a bowl—and discovered that a lot of information was encoded in it. How it was fabricated, how fired, how people ate out of it. It’s fascinating how much a simple object can tell you.”

In light of this, Skowronek invites Santa Clara University students, faculty, and anyone interested in the era before there was a Santa Clara University, to an exhibit opening on Nov. 14, 2009, in Santa Barbara. Called "Ceramics Rediscovered: Science Reshapes Understanding of Hispanic Life in Early California," the exhibit was made possible by a collaboration among Santa Clara students, the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History, and Skowronek himself. Open until 2011, the exhibit will feature ceramic pieces and artifacts detailing the history of centuries past in what is today California.

For more info, visit the Santa Barbara Trust for Historic Preservation events calendar (scroll down to the fifth item on the page).

 

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