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Museum witness says exhibits are evidence-based; provides exhibit counts
Summary
Dr. Harding told the committee the National Museum of American History presents "scholarly evidence" through objects and interpretation and gave counts of founding-era exhibits, objects and labels to illustrate the museum's approach.
When asked whether museums should "objectively display" history or "subjectively interpret our past," Dr. Harding replied that the National Museum of American History and other history museums present "scholarly evidence based on objects, interpretation, and share those stories with the American people."
Dr. Harding offered inventory details to describe the museum's treatment of the founding era: "we have a dozen exhibitions that include the founding era right now. 368 objects, 340 labels. George Washington is mentioned 54 times." He also noted that visitors pass a section on George Washington in the Kenneth Behring Hall of Military History before reaching a 15-foot-tall reproduction of the Declaration of Independence. The testimony was framed as a description of curatorial practice rather than as a direct rebuttal to specific allegations about omissions.
