2026 Mansion Docent Training
Explore the resources for the 2026 mansion docent training program, including agendas, readings, videos, and handouts. Materials are organized by class topics, beginning with the first session in the program.
How to use the Reading List
- All readings on this list are required readings, meaning they are to be read during this training.
- Titles that are bolded are publications that were distributed in December 2025 prior to the training’s start.
- To access the readings for each class, click on the desired class topics to expand the page for a complete list of required reading. Click on the hyperlinks to access the videos, articles, or website links provided in this reading list.
- Prioritized reading: To help docents-in-training with time management, this reading list is organized into two categories: “Read/watch these first,” i.e.: reading/watching assignments that must be completed by the due date, and “Read/watch these second,” i.e.: if additional time is needed, this section can be tackled throughout the training. The goal is to keep up with the reading as best you are able and complete all reading/watching materials on this list by the end of the training.
- Helpful tip: Hillwood publications often list an accession number, which is a unique identifying number, for objects in the collection. For instance, in The Taste for Splendor, the accession number can be located in the section that details the artist/maker, location, dates, materials, and credit line for each object (at the top of each entry). Using the accession number is the best way to search for the object on Hillwood’s collection database (http://hillwoodmuseum.org/collection).
Further Study
There are additional readings over-and-above those found on this required reading list; these are materials that Hillwood recommends for further study on its collection and founder. Enjoy exploring For Further Study: A Non-Required Reading List for more in-depth study on particular subjects or general context. As such, docents-in-training may think of that list as where to go for continued education after the docent training is completed.
Handouts
Read/watch these first:
Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens’ website. www.hillwoodmuseum.org. Please peruse this website to understand the online content available to visitors, paying special attention to the “Estate” section, including “Marjorie Merriweather Post,” “Developing Her Taste,” Sir Joseph Duveen,” “Frozen Peas to Fabergé,” “Life at Hillwood,” and mansion rooms under “Museum.”
Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens’ Orientation Film. Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens. https://hillwoodmuseum.org/visit/plan-your-visit. The 10-minute visitor orientation film is embedded on the “Plan Your Visit” webpage. This film is shown in the visitor center theater during regular open hours (10 a.m. – 5 p.m.) on the quarter-hour.
Hillwood’s website. “Hillwood’s Rich Soil” and “Before Hillwood: A Brief History of this Land.”
Markert, Kate, Lynn Rossotti, Liana Paredes. Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens. Washington, DC: Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens, 2015. This book is commonly referred to as Hillwood’s “souvenir book.” Sections of this book (p. 29-50 and p.91-111) are organized by mansion or garden room. We recommend reading those sections while walking those rooms. Note: only pencils (not pens) are allowed in the mansion.
Visitor Guide and Map with Audio Tour. Washington, DC: Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens. This booklet is commonly referred to as Hillwood’s printed tour booklet. We recommend reading the printed tour booklet while walking the mansion/garden rooms. Note: only pencils (not pens) are allowed in the mansion.
Read/watch these first:
Marjorie Merriweather Post’s Biography
Curator Lecture: Hillwood Museum’s Channel. “Marjorie Merriweather Post’s Biography.” YouTube video. 57:53 minutes. Published January 22, 2019. Accessed November 13, 2025.
Audio tour stops 300, 110, 310, 516-518, 525, 470 in Mansion and Garden Audio Tour Scripts. Washington, DC: Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens, November 2016. Note: This is a compilation of the scripts from the following audio tours: mansion, garden, family, French collection, and Russian collection. You have two options for accessing this resource: 1) You can read it as a Word document available from the volunteer website or 2) Download the mobile app from Hillwood’s website, located under “Visit” (the app includes images of the objects and rooms, which is handy). We recommend listening to the audio tour, with audio script in hand while walking the mansion and garden rooms. Note: only pencils (not pens) are allowed in the mansion. The mansion is closed to the public for a deep clean for a few weeks in January and into early February.
Chung, Estella M. Living Artfully: At Home with Marjorie Merriweather Post, 51-72, 99-128. Washington, DC: Hillwood Museum and Gardens Foundation, in association with D. Giles Limited, 2013.
Chung, Estella M. Marjorie Merriweather Post: The Life Behind the Luxury. Washington, DC: Hillwood Museum and Gardens Foundation, in association with D. Giles Limited, 2019.
Marjorie Merriweather Post: The Life Behind the Luxury | Q&A from December 9, 2019 Volunteer Education Sessions. Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens.
Museum Visitors
Falk, John H. “Calling All Spiritual Pilgrims: Identity in the Museum Experience.” Museum (Jan/Feb 2008): 62-67.
Learners at Hillwood. Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens.
Perry, Deborah L. “The Anatomy of a Museum Visit: What Visitors Really Want.” In The Sourcebook: AAM 1994 Annual Meeting, 69-72. Washington, DC: American Association of Museums, 1994.
Rand, Judy. “The Visitors’ Bill of Rights.” Reach, August 1997.
Silverman, Lois. “Making Meaning Together: Lessons from the Field of American History.” In Transforming Practice: Selections from the Journal of Museum Education, 1992-1999, edited by Joanne S. Hirsch and Lois H. Silverman, 230-239. Washington, DC: Museum Education Roundtable, 2000.
Read these second:
Marjorie Merriweather Post’s Biography
“A World Unique and Magnificent.” Life Magazine, November 5, 1965.
Brown, Stephanie. Marjorie Merriweather Post: A Timeline, 1887-1973. Washington, DC: Hillwood Museum & Gardens, 2006.
“Descendants of Charles William Post.” Washington, DC: Hillwood Museum & Gardens, 2022.
Kurlansky, Mark. Birdseye: The Adventures of a Curious Man, 166-174. New York, NY: Doubleday, 2012.
Tidwell, Mike. “The Best Democracy I’ve Known.” In American Legacy: Summer 2000.
The Oral History Research Office. The Reminiscences of Marjorie Merriweather Post. New York: Columbia University, 1964.
Read/watch these first:
Curator Lecture: Hillwood Volunteer Website. “Living Artfully: At Home with Marjorie Merriweather Post.” YouTube video. 1:05:37 minutes. Published January 2019. Accessed November 13, 2025.
Curator Lecture: Hillwood Volunteer Website. “The Houses and Collection of Marjorie Merriweather Post: The Joy of It.” YouTube video. 1:15:49 minutes. Published December 2022. Accessed November 13, 2025.
Audio tour stops 340, 350, 370, 390, 519, 524, 400, 410, 440, 450, 470, 490, 496-497, 460, 480 in Mansion and Garden Audio Tour Scripts. Washington, DC: Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens, November 2016.
Chung, Estella M. Living Artfully: At Home with Marjorie Merriweather Post, 23-50, 73-98. Washington, DC: Hillwood Museum and Gardens Foundation, in association with D. Giles Limited, 2013.
Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens. “Staff Dining Room Refresh.” 2025.
Zeisler, Wilfried. The Houses and Collections of Marjorie Merriweather Post: The Joy of It, 6-67, 271-281. Washington, DC: Rizzoli Electa, 2022.
Read these second:
Zeisler, Wilfried. “Telephone Room: New Behind-the-Scenes Room Opening in March.” Hillwood Volunteer Newsletter (February 2023 issue)
Combined Volunteer Newsletter Articles on the Eyemats on view in the Russian Porcelain Room and Pavilion. Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens.
Post, Marjorie Merriweather. “Notes on Organization.” 1965.
Read these in order:
Gartenhaus, Alan. “Teaching with Questions.” The Docent Educator 1, no. 3 (1992): 2-3.
Marsh, Caryl. “Opening the Way for Questions: Techniques for Encouraging the Expression of Curiosity.” Northeast Training News 2, no. 2 (1980): 8-9.
Shuh, John Hennigar. “Teaching Yourself to Teach with Objects.” Journal of Education 7, no. 4 (1985): 8-15.
Read/watch these first:
Curator Lecture: Recoding to come
Review previously assigned readings pertaining to furniture, furnishing, and small precious objects in the: printed tour booklet, and Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens (the “souvenir book”).
Audio tour stops 311, 312, 320, 321, 323, 510, 522, 523, 353, 354, 355, 366, 430, 461 in Mansion and Garden Audio Tour Scripts. Washington, DC: Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens, November 2016.
French Tapestries
Hillwood Collection Database. “Tapestry with the Scenes “L’Operateur” and “La Curiosité” (41.1),“ Bacchus and Ariadne” (41.2), “Jupiter and Antiope” (41.3). http://www.hillwoodmuseum.org/collection
Whitehead, John. “Chapter 10: Textiles.” The French Interior in the 18th Century, 199-210. London: L. King, 1992.
French Furniture and Small Precious Objects
Hillwood’s website. “Riesener Project:” https://hillwoodmuseum.org/museum/entry-hall/riesener-project
Koeppe, Wolfram. Catalogue entry 18. In Extravagant Inventions: The Princely Furniture of the Roentgens, Wolfram Koeppe and Reinier Baarsen, 94-97. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2012. This attribution of the rolltop desk to Maria Antonia supersedes previous beliefs that this desk was intended for Marie Antoinette. This catalog citation is the most up-to-date information about the desk. For more about the Roentgens, see also Wolfram Koeppe’s lecture on November 18, 2014, as listed in the further study reading list.
Paredes Arend, Liana. French Furniture from the Collection of Hillwood Museum & Gardens. Washington, DC: Hillwood Museum and Gardens, 2002.
Zeisler, Wilfried. The Houses and Collections of Marjorie Merriweather Post: The Joy of It, 68-84, 161-170. Washington, DC: Rizzoli Electa, 2022.
Russian Furniture and Small Precious Objects
Emerson, Julie. “Vessels of Tradition: The Kovsh.” In Moscow: Treasures and Traditions, 104-107. Washington, Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1990.
Zeisler, Wilfried. “Recap of the Monighetti Cabinet Highlighted at the Volunteer Appreciation Reception.” Post Serial Newsletter (Summer 2019 issue): 12-13.
Zeisler, Wilfried. The Houses and Collections of Marjorie Merriweather Post: The Joy of It, 84-119, 170-187. Washington, DC: Rizzoli Electa, 2022.
Frameworks
Carson, Barbara G. “Interpreting History through Objects.” In Patterns in Practice: Selections from the Journal of Museum Education, edited by Susan K. Nichols, 129-133. Washington, DC: Museum Education Roundtable, 1992.
Miner, Susan. “An Object Lesson.” The Docent Educator 4, no. 3 (1995): 7.
Zimmerman, Philip D. “Introduction.” In Seeing Things Differently, 7. Winterthur, DE: Winterthur Museum, 1992; and Winterthur exhibition brochure “Perspectives on the Decorative Arts in Early America.”
Read these second:
French Furniture & Tapestries
Catalogue entries 40-44; 46; 88-98 in A Taste for Splendor: Russian Imperial and European Treasures from the Hillwood Museum.
DeJean, Joan. The Age of Comfort: When Paris Discovered Causal – and the Modern Home Began. New York, NY, 2009: Chapter 6
Tilles, Rebecca. “New Research on the Miniature Bed.” Post Serial Newsletter (Summer 2019 issue): 9
Russian Furniture and Small Precious Objects
Catalogue entries 118-120; 157; 168 in A Taste for Splendor: Russian Imperial and European Treasures from the Hillwood Museum.
Read/watch these first:
Curator Lecture: Recording to come
French Porcelain
Review previously assigned readings pertaining to porcelain and glass in the: printed tour booklet, and Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens (the “souvenir book”).
Audio tour stops 341, 382, 420, 421, 422, 423, 424, 425, 513 in Mansion and Garden Audio Tour Scripts. Washington, DC: Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens, November 2016.
Zeisler, Wilfried. The Houses and Collections of Marjorie Merriweather Post: The Joy of It, 189-195. Washington, DC: Rizzoli Electa, 2022.
Paredes Arend, Liana. Sèvres Porcelain at Hillwood. Washington, DC: Hillwood Museum and Gardens, 1998.
Read these second:
French Porcelain
Catalog entries 32-34; 66-74; 83-84; 110; 116-117 in A Taste for Splendor: Russian Imperial and European Treasures from the Hillwood Museum.
Read/watch these first:
Curator Lecture: Recording to come
Review previously assigned readings pertaining Fabergé and Russian metalwork in the: printed tour booklet, and Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens (the “souvenir book”).
Audio tour stops 360, 361, 362, 363, 365, 367, 369, 373, 374, 375, 376, 512, 526 in Mansion and Garden Audio Tour Scripts. Washington, DC: Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens, November 2016.
Birbaum, Franz. “Birbaum Memoirs.” In Fabergé: Imperial Jeweler, Géza von Habsburg and Marina Lopato, 444-461. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc, 1994.
Zeisler, Wilfried. Fabergé Rediscovered. Washington, DC: Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens; London: in association with D. Giles Limited, 2018.
Zeisler, Wilfried. The Houses and Collections of Marjorie Merriweather Post: The Joy of It, 218-224. Washington, DC: Rizzoli Electa, 2022.
Read these second:
Catalog entries 10-13; 25; 50; 52; 55-61; 108; 118; 122-123; 132; 160; 162-164; 174-179 in A Taste for Splendor: Russian Imperial and European Treasures from the Hillwood Museum.
Read these first:
Gartenhaus, Alan. “Crafting a Tour.” The Docent Educator 5, no. 1 (1995): 2-4.
Gartenhaus, Alan. “Hey, What’s the Big Idea?” The Docent Educator 5, no. 1 (1995): 6-7
Read/watch these first:
Curator Lecture: Hillwood Volunteer Website. “Jewelry & Costumes Collections.” YouTube video. 1:04:22 minutes. Published December 2022. Accessed November 13, 2025.
Paredes, Liana. Spectacular: Gems and Jewelry from the Merriweather Post Collection, 11-21. Washington, DC: Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens; London: in association with D. Giles Limited, 2017.
Zeisler, Wilfried. The Houses and Collections of Marjorie Merriweather Post: The Joy of It, 224-259. Washington, DC: Rizzoli Electa, 2022.
Ann Lowe
Major, Gerri. “Dean of American Designers: Frail New Yorker has Spent 50 Years Creating Fashions for Nation’s Top Society,” In Ebony magazine. December 1966 issue.
Way, Elizabeth. Ann Lowe: American Couturier, 71-149, 175-197. New York, NY, Rizzoli Electa, 2023.
Read these second:
Martinelli, Megan. “This is Miss Lowe, Head of the American House of Ann Lowe!” Hillwood Volunteer Newsletter (September 2023 issue)
Read/watch these first:
Curator Lecture: Hillwood Volunteer Website. “Paintings and Portraiture.” YouTube video. 1:08:41 minutes. Published January 2023. Accessed December 10, 2025.
Review previously assigned readings pertaining to paintings and portraiture in the: printed tour booklet, and Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens (the “souvenir book”).
Audio tour stops 313, 431, 436, 322, 351, 352, 364, 371, 462 in Mansion and Garden Audio Tour Scripts. Washington, DC: Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens, November 2016.
Aurisch-Kessler, Helga. High Society: The Portraits of Franz Xaver Winterhalter, 3, 56, 170. Arnoldsche Art Publishers/ Museum of Fine Arts, Houston/Augustinermuseum Freiburg (2016)
Lloyd, Sandra Mackenzie. “Giving Objects Their Voice.” The Docent Educator 4, no. 3 (1995): 14-16.
Salmond, Wendy R., Russell Martin, Wilfried Zeisler. Konstantin Makovsky: The Tsar’s Painter in America and Paris, 14-58. Washington, DC: Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens; London: in association with D Giles Limited, 2015.
Salmond, Wendy R. Russian Icons at Hillwood. Washington, DC: Hillwood Museum, 1998.
Visitor Center Label from “Konstantin Makovsky: The Tsar’s Painter.” Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens, 2016. This exhibition was on view in the mansion with special displays in the visitor center February 13-June 12, 2016.
Zeisler, Wilfried. The Houses and Collections of Marjorie Merriweather Post: The Joy of It, 124-159. Washington, DC: Rizzoli Electa, 2022.
Read these second:
Catalog entries 1; 15; 49; 97; 100-103; 145-146; 150; 158-159; 185 in A Taste for: Russian Imperial and European Treasures from the Hillwood Museum
Martinelli, Megan and Rebecca Tilles. “A Portrait and Its Frame: Two Fascinating Stories.” Hillwood Volunteer Newsletter (April 2022 issue)
Read/watch these first:
Curator Lecture: Recording to come
Review previously assigned readings pertaining to paintings and portraiture in the: printed tour booklet, and Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens (the “souvenir book”).
Audio tour stops 330, 331, 332, 333, 511, 432, 433, 434, 435, 514, 515 in Mansion and Garden Audio Tour Scripts. Washington, DC: Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens, November 2016.
Porcelain and Glass – General
Odom, Anne. “American Collectors of Russian Decorative Arts.” In Treasures into Tractors: The Selling of Russia’s Cultural Heritage, 1918-1938, Anne Odom and Wendy Salmond, 265-290. Seattle, WA: University
Zeisler, Wilfried. The Houses and Collections of Marjorie Merriweather Post: The Joy of It, 195-211. Washington, DC: Rizzoli Electa, 2022.
Russian Porcelain and Glass
Hillwood exhibition brochure. “Russian Porcelain and the Fine Art of Propaganda.”
Kettering, Karen L. Russian Glass at Hillwood. Washington, DC: Hillwood Museum, 2001.
Odom, Anne. Russian Imperial Porcelain at Hillwood. Washington, DC: Hillwood Museum, 1999.
Read these second:
Catalog entries 26-27; 29-30; 35; 37; 62-64; 75-77; 79-80; 111-112; 114-115; 124-131; 133; 136, 138; 141; 150; 152-154; 156; 161; 169 in A Taste for Splendor: Russian Imperial and European Treasures from the Hillwood Museum.
Frommer, Frederick J. “Before Lincoln Issued the Emancipation Proclamation, This Russian Czar Freed 20 Million Serfs.” In Smithsonian Magazine, August 30, 2022.
Read/watch these first:
Curator Lecture: Recording to come
Audio tour stop 381 in Mansion and Garden Audio Tour Scripts. Washington, DC: Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens, November 2016.
Hillwood Collection Database. “Clock Case (16.3),” “Portrait of Countess Julia Samoilova with Foster Daughter Giovannina and Black Servant” (51.73), ““Portrait of Countess Julia Samoilova with Austrian Hussars.” (2016.1). Accessed September 9, 2022. http://www.hillwoodmuseum.org/collection
Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens. “Contemporary Artists on View in Mansion: Cindy Sherman and Roberto Lugo.” October 2025.
Kisluk-Grosheide, Daniëlle. How to Read European Decorative Arts, “Mantel Clock with Musical Movement.” 49-51. Seattle, WA: University of Washington Press, 2009.
Read watch/these second:
Display labels in Pavilion: “Portrait of Lloyd Patterson,” “Portrait of Countess Julia Samoilova with foster daughter Giovannina and Black Servant,” and “Alexander Pushkin, a Russian literary giant of African descent.” Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens, April 7, 2022. These displays are currently on view in the pavilion.
Tilles, Rebecca. “Two New Acquisitions of Contemporary Art at Hillwood.” Hillwood Volunteer Newsletter (October 2021 issue)
James Patterson Portrait
El-Hai, Jack. “Comrades We’ve Been Screwed.” SundayLongRead.com ( December 6, 2020).
Hillwood Museum’s channel. “Black and White: The Remarkable Story of African Americans During The Soviet Experiment.” YouTube video. 1:28:45 minutes. Published March 6, 2024. Accessed November 13, 2025.
Hillwood Museum’s channel. “Virtual Conversation | A Revealing Portrait: Discovering Lloyd Patterson.” YouTube video. 1:07:31 minutes. Published May 17, 2022. Accessed November 13, 2025.
Read/watch these first:
Interpreting the Gardens and Estate on Mansion Docent Tours
Review previously assigned readings pertaining to Hillwood’s gardens in: audio tour scripts, printed tour booklet, and Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens (the “souvenir book”).
Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens. “Interpreting the Gardens-Mansion Connection on Tours.” 2025.
Ten-Minute Room Demonstration Development
Hillwood Mansion Rotations. Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens.
Upstander Training
Communication Skills for Docents. Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens.
Staff Lecture: Hillwood Volunteer Website. “Volunteer Training: Being an Active Upstander.” YouTube video. 47:08 minutes. Published November 2022. Accessed June 29, 2023.
Welcoming All: Creating an Inclusive Tour Experience. Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens.
Welcoming All: Engaging with Different Visitors. Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens.
Read these first:
Second Mansion Rotation Information and Displays. Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens. Link to come
Read these first:
Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens’ website. www.hillwoodmuseum.org. Please peruse the website to understand the touring options, amenities, and policies relating to the visitor experience, paying special attention to the “Visit” section, including “Opening Hours and Tickets,” “Plan Your Visit,” “Hints and Tips,” “Merriweather Café,” “Facilities and Access,” and “Museum Shop.”
Volunteer Documents: (Links to come)
- Volunteer Handbook
- Code of Ethics Handbook
- Mansion Docent Guidelines
- Volgistics User Guide
- Hillwood Resources available to Volunteers
- Responding to an Incident