About Us
Glencairn, built between 1928 and 1939 in Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, was once the home of Raymond and Mildred (Glenn) Pitcairn and their children. The building now serves as a not-for-profit museum of religious art and history. Collections include ancient Egyptian, ancient Greek and Roman, medieval Christian, Islamic, Asian, and American Indian. For more information see History or watch our award-winning 30-minute documentary film, "Embracing the Sacred: The Story of Glencairn Museum."
MISSION STATEMENT
The mission of Glencairn Museum is to create an intentional space that invites visitors to encounter religious art and artifacts as expressions of spiritual beliefs and practices.
In stewarding and interpreting the collection and historic home, the Museum places a particular emphasis on art and artifacts that reflect the beliefs and practices of the New Church (Swedenborgian Christian) and the history of Glencairn, a National Historical Landmark.
DESIRED IMPACT
Glencairn Museum seeks to ignite curiosity, facilitate exploration, and inspire reflection on spiritual beliefs and practices through material objects. Specifically, the Museum hopes that visitors will:
recognize the similarity of certain spiritual concepts within the human desire to find meaning and purpose in their lives.
respect differences in how religions answer spiritual questions common through time and across cultures.
practice empathy by engaging with alternative perspectives.
reflect on the role of religion and their own spiritual beliefs and practices.
INTERPRETIVE APPROACH
Glencairn Museum considers art and artifacts as doorways to understanding the total religious experience of the people who created and used them. Specifically, the Museum seeks to facilitate a dialogue between object and viewer about how objects reveal the beliefs of their creators and users, and the ways in which they expressed those beliefs through their practices.
The desired goal is for both Museum and visitor to temporarily suspend personal judgments about whether these beliefs and practices are true or false, right or wrong. Through this approach, each object can serve as a gateway to better understanding religion as it is experienced by the religious adherents in their daily lives.
Glencairn Museum is committed to interpreting religious traditions in a way that is:
acceptable to, and whenever possible informed by, adherents of the religion in question.
informed by the professional community of scholars.
comprehensible to the visiting public.
INCLUSION AND ACCESSIBILITY STATEMENT
Glencairn Museum is committed to fostering an equitable, accessible, and inclusive culture that welcomes a diversity of backgrounds and perspectives. Staff and visitors alike are encouraged to appreciate their own cultural heritage, while also exploring the cultures of others with openness and respect. Glencairn is further committed to ensuring that our visitors and community have equitable opportunity and access to our facilities, collections, and experiences. We actively support ongoing staff diversity and inclusion training, professional development, and internal assessment.