Running from March 23 – April 30, 2015, The Americas Underground explores the various ways in which caves, rockshelters, mines, and other uses of the ‘underground’ have been perceived across the Americas. The exhibit addresses the theme of continuity and change in underground practices through time with the hopes of shedding light on these 'dark and scary' places. The exhibit demonstrates how caves have provided spaces for ritual and social practices throughout history, while practices such as archaeology, mining, caving, and tourism have emerged in different areas in different times and been slowly added to the repertoire. Photography, cultural objects and artifacts collected from ancient and modern contexts by UC Merced scholars and California residents demonstrate how modern practices intersect and overlap with past practices in interesting, but sometimes conflicting ways.
The exhibit has been organized by Marieka Arksey, Ph.D. Student in SSHA at UC Merced. It is made possible with generous assistance and funding from the following: UC Merced’s Center for Humanities, UC Merced Library, California State Parks: California State Gem and Mineral Mining Museum Mariposa, Mark Aldenderfer, Holley Moyes, Kathleen Hull, Patrick Wilkinson, Sarah Spoljaric.
