The Hampton Archive Project

the collection

It comprises of artifacts and documentations collected by Dr. O. W. Hampton in the Highlands of Papua over an 18-year period (1982-1999). There are approximately 1000 artifacts from daily and ritual lives, which include many stone tools, accessories, and very rare textile materials such as spider-web cloths and looped fiber bags. In addition, there are more than 20,000 color slides, 200 sounds recordings on cassette tape made in the field, and meticulous research notes.

the project

The Tracing Patterns Foundation is committed to preserve this important collection for future generations. We will conserve the artifacts, scan and digitize the information, and make them available free to the public.

the collector

Dr. O.W. (Bud) Hampton
(1928-2017)

The late Dr. Hampton was an Adjunct Curator of Anthropology, University of Colorado Museum, Boulder. He earned his doctorate from Texas A&M University and  a master's in geology from the University of Colorado. As ethnographer, he studied the material culture of the Dani people of Papua (formerly named Irian Jaya) during the period from 1982 to 1999. This was a critical period for anthropological study in this region, since the area became safe for travel, while outside influences still remained relatively modest. Dr. Hampton was principally interested in stone tools (he was a geologist by training), but he collected artifacts, photographed, and documented all aspects of Dani material culture and the nearby cultures such as the Yali and the Sentani. He was the author of Culture of Stone, Sacred and Profane Uses of Stone Among the Dani.