Taylor-Mesilla site welcomes new conservator

Bulletin report

New Mexico Historic Sites announced the arrival of Yasmine Jahangiri as the new museum technician and conservator of the Taylor-Mesilla and Fort Selden historic sites. Yahangiri will be responsible for the collections at both sites, including recording and documenting all of their items. She will also assist with interpretive programs and exhibit development, the agency explained in a news release.

The Taylor-Mesilla site in Old Mesilla was the home of J. Paul and Mary Daniels Taylor for six decades. A visitor center is scheduled to open there this fall, followed by a grand opening of the site in fall 2025.

“We are excited to have Yasmine join us as she takes excellent care of all the collections at our site as we open the Taylor-Mesilla Historic Site. She is already working diligently to lay the groundwork for excellent collection care,” said Regional Manager Wendi Laws in a press release.

Jahangiri is a Farmington native who earned a bachelor’s degree in theater and museum conservation from New Mexico State University. The press release said she worked at NMSU’s University Art Museum, helping to digitize the museum’s Mexican retablo collection, which is said to be the largest in the United States.

In the press release, Jahangiri wrote, “J. Paul Taylor was a key supporter of NMSU’s museum conservation program, and I am grateful to be able to use my education to help preserve the Taylor collection.”

New Mexico Historic Sites is a division of the state Department of Cultural Affairs under the authority of the Museum of New Mexico Board of Trustees. The New Mexico Historic Sites system was established by an act in 1931 to preserve New Mexico’s scientific resources and consists of the Bosque Redondo Memorial at Fort Sumner Historic Site, Coronado, Fort Selden, Fort Stanton, Jemez, Lincoln, Los Luceros, and Taylor-Mesilla. For more information, visit NMHistoricSites.org.