Today in Smithsonian History: April 14, 1954

The Macchu Picchu, a UNESCO World Heritage Site near Cusco in Peru, at twilight. (2009 photo by Martin St. Amant via Wikipedia Commons CC BY 2.5)

April 14, 1954 The new exhibit hall “Highlights of Latin American Archaeology” opens with a special ceremony in recognition of Pan-American Day at the Museum of Natural History. The hall is the first permanent exhibit hall to be completely renovated since the building was opened to the public in 1910. The renovation was begun in 1951 and “presents man’s cultural development from his earliest known beginnings in Latin America to the high civilizations of the Inca, Aztec and Maya.”

Explore “The Great Inka Road: Engineering an Empire” on view at the National Museum of the American Indian through June 1, 2018.

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