United States Congress – Special Collections & The Gallery

BRINGING HISTORY TO LIFE!

Students in Dr. Laura Wangerin's "VIKINGS!" class discuss a replica of the Gundestrup Cauldron from the university's collections

This semester, students experienced history first-hand through object-based learning (OBL), an approach that adds value to classroom studies. In OBL, students learn via engaging in conversation and discourse using artworks, artifacts, archival materials, or digital representations of unique objects as catalysts to foster a sense of wonder, awe and curiosity. Object-based learning prioritizes critical thinking inspired by close observation to connect objects to concepts learned in the classroom.

Dr. Laura Wangerin’s “VIKINGS!” class visited the Archives and Special Collections recently to view the university’s replicas of the Gundestrup Cauldron and Book of Kells in a conversation guided by the student’s thoughts, questions and observations – relating the imagery back to what was learned through readings and coursework. Students were taken by the scale of the work, the construction of the cauldron, and the high relief imagery which is visible 360 degrees around. Engaging objects via the senses connects students to the past while making connections to the present. Objects are powerful tools for learning, especially when students realize they are standing in the presence of an object made by people or cultures from long ago. In this sense, objects can become almost like time machines, bringing us back to pivotal moments in human or natural history.

Noticias Summarias das Perseguições da missam de Cochinchina, principiada, & continuada pelos Padres da Companhia de Jesu. (OCLC #: 16077971)

In Dr. Kirsten Schultz’s course “Religion and Society in Early Latin America” students visited to see rare books published around the time of the Counter-Reformation to enhance their understanding and appreciation of the issues at stake as they discussed the role of the Church in colonial society. Conversation centered on the adventencia pages of the “Noticias Summarias,” which served as an agreement that the book could be published. The volume is an important account of the Portuguese mission in Cochinchina and Tonkin, today’s Vietnam.

The Walsh Gallery and Archives and Special Collections care for the university’s various collections and make them available for study, research, exhibitions and related programs. Objects include materials from world cultures and span from the neolithic era to the present. Highlights of the collection include Byzantine and Greco-Roman coins and artifacts; Native American basketry, ceramics and beaded crafts along with tools and leather goods; Japanese toys and 19^th century woodblock prints; 3,000-year-old Chinese ceramics and metalwork; contemporary Chinese art; 17^th and 18^th century European engravings; and documents dating to the founding of the Newark Diocese and Seton Hall College. There are also significant collections from New Jersey politicians such as Brendan Byrne – the state’s 47^th governor and Donald M. Payne, New Jersey’s U.S. representative who served the 10^th congressional district from 1989 until his death in 2012.

A portion of the university’s collections can be viewed on Google Arts and Culture and you can view scholar Dr. Caterina Agostini’s recent digital exhibition, “Currency Culture” which uses coins from the Ron D’Argenio Collection of Coins and Antiquities to discuss notions of power and politics as conveyed on minted coins from the Byzantine and Roman Empires.

Dr. Caterina Agostini presents her research on coinage — Dr. Caterina Agostini, D’Argenio Fellow at Seton Hall University presents her research on the university’s collection of coins to students in the Italian Studies Program.

Those interested in viewing the Gundestrup Cauldron can view it through the end of the semester on the first floor of the Walsh Library in the display windows outside the Archives and Special Collections. If you would like to make an appointment to use the collections for research, class visits or other scholarly pursuits, please contact us. We would love to hear about your projects and how we can work together to illustrate your ideas!

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The Walsh Gallery has a considerable collection of fine art, artifacts and archeological specimens for use by faculty, students and researchers. For access to this or other objects in our collections, contact us at 973-275-2033 or walshgallery@shu.edu to make a research appointment. Now on view in the Walsh Gallery: Seton Hall Re/Collects through Friday, December 9^th. The gallery is located on the 1^st floor of the Walsh Library and is open Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm. Groups of 8 or more must make an appointment prior to visiting.

Object of the Week: Congressman Donald Payne greets Congressman John Lewis and Bono

DECEMBER IS UNIVERSAL HUMAN RIGHTS MONTH

Donald M. Payne served as a U.S. Representative for New Jersey’s 10th Congressional District from 1989 through 2012 and was the state’s first African American congressional representative. Born and raised in Newark, he is an alumnus of Seton Hall University where he earned his bachelor’s degree in 1957 before continuing his studies at the graduate level at Springfield College in Massachusetts.[1] Before his life in politics, Donald M. Payne was an executive at Prudential Financial, served as vice president at Urban Data Systems and taught in Newark’s Public Schools. In 1970, he became the first black president of the National Council of Y.M.C.A.s before becoming Chairman of the World Y.M.C.A. Refugee and Rehabilitation Committee. In 1972, Payne ran for a seat on the Essex County Board of Chosen Freeholders and was elected – serving three terms in total. He also served three terms on the Newark Municipal council from 1982 to 1988.[2]

During his time in the U.S. House of Representatives, Congressman Payne served on many important committees and was a leading advocate for education, democracy, and human rights. In his first term as congressional representative, Donald Payne was appointed to the House Committee on Education and Labor and the House Committee on Foreign Affairs. During his subsequent eleven terms in Congress, he also served on the following; Subcommittee on Workforce Protections; the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education; the Subcommittee on Africa and Global Health, of which he was also the chairman; the Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere; and the Subcommittee on Organizations, Human Rights, and Oversight. He was also a member of the Congressional Black Caucus, serving as chair from 1995-1997. He belonged to several other congressional caucuses, including the Progressive Caucus and the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, and co-founded the Sudan Caucus in 2005. [3]

from the left: U.S. Representative Gregory Meeks - NY (L) with Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Wangarĩ Muta Maathai, Representative Donald Payne and Ambassador Leonard Ngaithe - MSS0078 courtesy of Archives and Special Collections — from the left: U.S. Representative Gregory Meeks – NY (L) with Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Wangarĩ Muta Maathai, Representative Donald Payne and Ambassador Leonard Ngaithe – Courtesy of Archives and Special Collections, MSS 0078

In 1994, Representative Payne led an official delegation to Rwanda, seeking to end the ethnic violence that claimed hundreds of thousands of lives. He was also among the first to publicly denounce the Sudanese genocide in the country’s Darfur region in 2003. Later, Payne called for an international tribunal which brought Sudanese militia members responsible for the massacres to justice.[4] Representative Payne championed the Africa Growth and Opportunities Act (2000) to promote African economic development and trade with the US. He sponsored or co-sponsored dozens of bills to help African countries economically, support peace, expand agricultural programs, provide safe drinking water and promote educational opportunities for millions of children. In 2008 he had a key role in the authorization of up to $48 billion over 5 years to fight HIV/AIDS, a substantial portion of it going to Africa.[5]

Upon his death in 2012, Professor Alemayehu G. Mariam, professor of political science at California State University, San Bernardino and expert in human rights law, eulogized Representative Payne in Ethiopian News and Views: “His passing marks a major setback to the cause of freedom, democracy and human rights in Ethiopia and Africa. But Don Payne has left us a rich legacy of human rights advocacy and legislative action spanning over two decades. It is now our burden — indeed our moral duty — to build, to expand and to deliver on that legacy.”[6] The son of a chauffeur and lumber handler, Representative Payne worked his way through college while attending Seton Hall University. He said, “We have to understand there are no more impossible dreams for black youngsters. They can do basically anything they want to do, and if I’m a prime example of that, all the better.”[7] Whether serving on a global scale as a human rights activist, or motivating black youth locally, both messages are inspiring and demonstrate Payne’s unwavering commitment to service. The Donald M. Payne Sr. Global Foundation continues Representative Payne’s work as a global human rights advocate and community activist. You can watch this documentary video, The Life of Congressman Donald M. Payne, Sr. to learn more about his life’s work.

Seton Hall University’s Department of Archives and Special Collections holds the professional papers of Donald M. Payne from his time as U.S. Representative for New Jersey’s 10th congressional district. The materials are related to Congressman Payne’s legislative work, particularly for the

Letter from Representative Gregory Meeks to Donald Payne, 2005 - MSS0078 courtesy of Archives and Special Collections — Letter from Representative Gregory Meeks to Donald Payne, 2005 – Courtesy of Archives and Special Collections MSS0078

House Committee on Education and Labor and the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, as well as his work on behalf of his district and state. There are also background materials on a wide variety of issues, projects, events, and pieces of legislation relevant to Congressman Payne’s career, and materials related to his involvement in congressional organizations and activities, including a large number of press clippings, recorded appearances and speeches, and photographs depicting Congressman Payne with notable public figures and celebrities including Presidents of the United States and several other countries.[8]

The images and materials shown here are but a small part of the vast patrimony available to students, faculty and researchers. For access to this or other objects in our collections, complete a research request form to set up an appointment or contact us at 973-761-9476.

[1] https://archivesspace-library.shu.edu/repositories/2/resources/242 accessed 11/17/2020

[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_M._Payne accessed 11/17/2020

[3] https://archivesspace-library.shu.edu/repositories/2/resources/242 accessed 11/17/2020

[4] https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/congress/donald-m-payne-njs-first-black-congressman-and-an-advocate-for-africa-dies-at-77/2012/03/03/gIQAWjLvuR_story.html accessed 11/17/2020

[5] https://ecadforum.com/2012/03/08/donald-payne-a-farewell-to-a-human-rights-champion/, accessed 11/17/2020.

[6] https://ecadforum.com/2012/03/12/delivering-on-donald-paynes-human-rights-legacy/, accessed 11/17/2020.

[7] https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/congress/donald-m-payne-njs-first-black-congressman-and-an-advocate-for-africa-dies-at-77/2012/03/03/gIQAWjLvuR_story.html, accessed 11/17/2020.

[8] https://archivesspace-library.shu.edu/repositories/2/resources/242, accessed 11/17/2020.

Donald M. Payne papers now open for research

President William J. Clinton with Congressman Payne, May 1, 2001. mss0078_1116_01

The Donald M. Payne papers, 1988-2012, Mss 0078, are now open for research at the Archives and Special Collections Center. This collection of 53 linear feet is the collected congressional papers of Donald M. Payne, Sr., who was New Jersey’s 10th Congressional District Representative to the United States Congress from 1989-2012. Congressman Payne was New Jersey’s first African American congressional representative, and served eleven consecutive terms, passing away in 2012 during his twelfth term.

Donald Payne, Sr., was a native of Newark, N.J., and attended Seton Hall in the 1950s. A Democrat and a member of the House Committee on Education and Labor and the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Congressman Payne was a leading advocate of education and human rights. He was especially active in supporting increased funding for higher education and in supporting democratic efforts in Africa, particularly in Sudan. He was a member and former chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus and won a number of awards for his work on behalf of education, democracy, and human rights.

The Donald M. Payne papers chronicle Congressman Payne’s work during his 23 years in the U.S. House of Representatives. Included are notes and drafts of legislation with which Congressman Payne was heavily involved, papers and photographs from his travels to Africa, research materials related to his areas of interest, and many other materials documenting his work in Congress. This collection is a rich resource for anyone interested in diplomacy and international relations, promotion of education, New Jersey and national politics, political events in Africa over the past 25 years, and the legislative process.

The collection is primarily paper documents and photographs, which are available to researchers in the Archives and Special Collections Center reading room. Advance appointments are required for the use of archival material. Also in the collection are some electronic, audio, and video materials, which are not yet available for research, due to preservation concerns. These materials came to Seton Hall University through the generosity of Congressman Payne’s family and heirs.

Please feel free to contact us with questions or to make an appointment to view this collection!