MASCA Froelich Rainey and Elizabeth Ralph records

The Museum Applied Science Center for Archaeology (MASCA) was established in 1961 by a grant from the National Science Foundation following a proposal by Froelich Rainey. MASCA was modeled after the Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art at Oxford. From the time of its inception in 1961, MASCA, along with the Radiocarbon Laboratory at the Penn Museum made a number of contributions to radiocarbon dating, including, but not limited to, breakthroughs in recalibration and dendrochronology.

Elizabeth Ralph of the University Physics Department was named associate director of MASCA in 1962 following her tenure as a research assistant in the Carbon-14 laboratory.

Elizabeth Katherine Ralph, a life-long resident of the Trenton N.J. area was born in 1921. She attended Wellesley College, receiving her B.A. degree in chemistry in 1942. Ralph began a career in industry following graduation. She worked her way up to management as an electrical and chemical engineer. In 1949, Ralph began her master's program at the University of Pennsylvania majoring in Physics and Geology.

Ralph followed in the footsteps of a pioneer in radiocarbon dating, Willard F. Libby of the University of Chicago. The development of the "new" (5730) half-life led, more recently, to the "calibration" of C-14 measurements with the help of precidely dated tree rings. She has been a leader in archaeological surveying, improving the sensitivity of the instruments to variations in magnetic intensity. Under her direction, MASCA's C-14 laboratory acquired an international reputation for excellence by processing hundreds of measurements from all over the world while constantly evaluating such methodological issues as inter-laboratory calibration and the "radiocarbon calendar."

Elizabeth Ralph published extensively and generously presented at conferences, seminars and local meetings. Her generosity also extended to students whom she trained. Dr. Ralph received the AIA Pomerance Award for Scientific Contributions to Archaeology in 1986 for being "a scientist of the loftiest standards and a human being of patience, fairness, and good humor. With great pride and gratitude for her many contributions to the growth and development of archaeology as an interdisciplinary science, we honor her today with the Pomerance Award of the Archaeological Institute of America for Scientific Contributions to Archaeology."

The Radiocarbon Laboratory and MASCA have collaborated with a number of prestigious institutions including the Lerici Foundation in Rome, the Tree Ring Laboratory in Tucson and the Research Laboratory for Archaeology and History of Art at Oxford. The Radiocarbon Laboratory was dissolved in 1982, upon the retirement of Dr. Ralph. MASCA was not terminated until 26 years later in 2008.

The Museum Applied Science Center for Archaeology (MASCA) was established in 1961 by a grant from the National Science Foundation following a proposal by Froelih Rainey. MASCA was modeled after the Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art at Oxford. From the time of its inception in 1961, MASCA, along with the Radiocarbon Laboratory at the Penn Museum made a number of contributions to radiocarbon dating, including, but not limited to, breakthroughs in recalibration and dendrochronology.

Elizabeth Ralph of the University Physics Department was named associate director of MASCA in 1962 following her tenure as a research assistant in the Carbon-14 laboratory.

The MASCA collection is housed in fourteen archival boxes and incorporates the files of Elizabeth Ralph. Original processing of the records was interrupted due to illness but included grouping the files into series and individual items into chronological and alphabetical order. Later refinements included adjustments to the series and the addition of the files of Elizabeth Ralph. These files held personal correspondence, her dissertation, memberships and activities.

The correspondence, projects and publication series contain the vast amount of the collection data. Correspondence is arranged chronologically in the MASCA series and in date order in the Ralph papers. The grants are arranged by date. The projects are arranged by type and then by location in alphabetical order. Of the total projects in that series, there are only two folders related to thermoluminescence, the majority to the use of the magnetometer.

Publications by the staff of Masca are arranged in date order from 1960 to 2005.

Publication Information: University of Pennsylvania: Penn Museum Archives,

Finding Aid Author:

Use Restrictions: Although many items from the archives are in the public domain, copyright may be retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law. The user is fully responsible for compliance with relevant copyright law.

Preferred Citation: [Item name]. Box [Box number]. MASCA Froelich Rainey and Elizabeth Ralph records. Penn Museum Archives. Accessed [Date accessed].

Corporate Name(s)

• MASCA research papers in science and archaeology

Form(s)/Genre(s)

• Pottery

Geographic Name(s)

• Alaska
• Japan
• Guatemala (nation)
• Italy
• Gordion (Extinct city)
• Mexico

Personal Name(s)

• Ralph, Elizabeth K.
• Rainey, Froelich, Director of the University Museum
• Judson, Sheldon
• Iskander, Zaki
• Haury, E.W.
• Coe, Michael D.
• Bevan, Bruce W.
• Aitken, Martin J.
• Libby, Willard F. (1908-1980)

Subject(s)

• Julsrud collection
• U.S. Atomic Energy Commission
• Thermoluminescence
• Smithsonian Institution
• Radiocarbon dating

The standard size records (all documents, photographic prints, and drawings up to 11x17 inches) in this collection have been digitized and may be accessed via this finding aid. Each folder has been scanned as a multi-page PDF; the contents presented in the original order. The PDFs have been labeled with the collection number (PU-Mu. 0067), the box number, and the folder number (i.e. PUMu0067_01_01). Oversize plans and drawings, as well as photographic negatives, have not been scanned.

If you wish to publish an image, please contact archives@pennmuseum.org to obtain a publication-quality scan produced by the Penn Museum Photo Studio.

Some items in this collection may describe culturally sensitive topics, document human remains or include names and/or images of deceased individuals. Records might contain language that is outdated, offensive, or incorrect. We include these to provide historic context for archival materials and enable access and inquiry. Contents may not reflect current views and values of the Penn Museum.