Maxwell Museum of Anthropology, Albuquerque

Founded in 1932 as the Museum of Anthropology of the University of New Mexico, the Maxwell Museum of Anthropology was the first public museum in Albuquerque. Its purpose was to showcase the expanding collection of artifacts collected from field schools of archaeological research associated with the UNM Anthropology Department, the School of American Research, and the Museum of New Mexico.

Initially, exhibits were housed in UNM's Rodey Hall until its demolition in 1971. The museum was subsequently moved to Scholes Hall in 1935 and then to its current location in 1961. In 1972, Dorothy and Gilbert Maxwell, philanthropists, funded a major construction project to expand the museum facilities, and it was renamed in their honor. Since then, the museum has become a nationally renowned research center and a significant regional museum.

The museum has five exhibit areas that host permanent and rotating exhibits, showcasing the human cultural experience. The Ancestors permanent exhibit depicts human evolution over four million years, featuring life-size models of human ancestors. The People of the Southwest permanent exhibit portrays the cultural heritage of the American Southwest over eleven thousand years, displaying artifacts from various cultures, including Mimbres, Ancestral Puebloan, and Puebloan, as well as exhibits showcasing UNM fieldwork in New Mexico, including a reconstruction of excavation at Chaco Canyon.

The museum's North Gallery, Bawden Gallery (named after Garth Bawden, museum director from 1985 to 2005), and the Ortiz Center Gathering Space (named after the late Alfonso Ortiz, a noted UNM anthropology professor) host changing exhibits showcasing artifacts from the museum's extensive collection, as well as traveling exhibits. The museum's courtyard features a 46-foot (14 meters)-high totem pole that was brought to the museum from British Columbia in 1941.