Founded in 1889, the Harvard Semitic Museum houses more than 40,000 Near Eastern artifacts, mostly from museum-sponsored excavations in Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Syria, and Tunisia. We use these collections to investigate and teach Near Eastern archaeology, history, and culture. The Harvard Semitic Museum is one of the Harvard Museums of Science & Culture (HMSC).
Hours
Open Monday–Friday, 11:00 am–4:00 pm
Open Sundays, 11:00 am–4:00 pm
Closed Saturdays
Admission: Free
The second floor galleries will be closed Monday, January 13 through Friday, January 17.
Directions
By Train
1. Take a MBTA Red Line to Harvard Square Station
2. Take a Massachusetts Avenue exit
3. Walk diagonally through Harvard Yard to
4. Continue walking through the Plaza
5. Turn right on Kirkland St
6. Turn left onto Divinity Ave
By Bus
1. Take the 86 Bus to Kirkland St
2. Turn right on Kirkland St
3. Take the first left onto Divinity Ave
By Car
From Harvard Square
1. Head East on Massachusetts Ave
2. Make a slight right onto Cambridge St
3. Make a slight left to stay on Cambridge St
4. Turn left onto Quincy St
5. Turn right onto Kirkland St
6. Take your first left onto Divinity Avenue
Virtual Tour
Featured Video
3D Models
The museum has created 3D models of some choice objects from its collections. This peg-shaped, stone figurine would have been placed in the foundation of an important structure as it was being built. You can view more of our models here.
Director's Welcome
Recent Publications
- Tel Miqne-Ekron Excavations, 1985–1988, 1990, 1992–1995: Field IV Lower—The Elite Zone, Part 1: The Iron Age I Early Philistine City
- Tel Miqne-Ekron Excavations, 1985–1988, 1990, 1992–1995: Field IV Lower—The Elite Zone, Part 3B: The Iron Age I and IIC Early and Late Philistine Cities Plans and Sections
- Tel Miqne-Ekron Excavations, 1985–1988, 1990, 1992–1995: Field IV Lower—The Elite Zone, Part 9/3A: The Iron Age I and IIC Early and Late Philistine Cities Database
- Sea Peoples of the Northern Levant: Aegean-Style Pottery from Early Iron Age Tell Tayinat
- Excavations at the Early Bronze IV Sites of Jebel Qa'aqir and Be'er Resisim
- The Material Culture of the Northern Sea Peoples in Israel