Uploaded April 2019 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago

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Oriental Institute Oral History Project
Courtesy of the Smithsonian Institution for the Smithsonian Institution Archives
Interview with Robert McCormick Adams (1926–2018), former Director of the Oriental Institute and Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution
Interview conducted by Pamela H. Henson in the office of Robert McCormick Adams in the Smithsonian Institution building
May 26, 1994
Only the audio was recorded for this interview.

00:00:00 - Introduction
00:00:24 - Childhood
00:05:13 - Academics and Activism at the University of Chicago
00:09:37 - First Expedition
00:18:09 - Professors and Peers at the Oriental Institute
00:23:41 - Academic and Professional Advancement
00:31:01 - Fall 1956 Iraq Field Work