New York African Society for Mutual Relief) and Mary Joseph Lyons (née Marshall) and their children, most notably Maritcha Remond Lyons. The statue would be placed at 106th Street in the North Woods section of the park, and has received funding from several private donors including the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Ford Foundation, JPB Foundation, and Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund. Also in 2019, the outdoor exhibit "Discover Seneca Village" opened with temporary historical markers at points across the Seneca Village landscape of Central Park. The exhibit was originally scheduled to run until October 2020, but its run was extended. Archaeological excavations Following the 1997 exhibition "'Before Central Park: The Life and Death of Seneca Village" at the New-York Historical Society, Wall, Rothschild, Copeland, and Herbert Seignoret decided to see if any archaeological traces of the village remained. They worked with local historians, churches, and community groups to shape the direction of their research project on the site. In June 2000, Wall, Rothschild, Copeland, and other researchers started performing imaging tests to determine if any traces of Seneca Village remained. With student participation, the project conducted exhaustive archival research and preliminary remote sensing. Researchers used soil boring to identify promising areas with undisturbed soil. In 2005, the team used ground-penetrating radar to successfully locate traces of Seneca Village. After extended discussions with the New York City Department of Parks and the Central Park Conservancy, researchers were granted permission for test excavations in the regions of the village thought most likely to contain intact archaeological deposits. Digs took place in 2004, August 2005, and mid-2011. The 2011 excavation uncovered the foundation walls and cellar deposits of the home of William Godfrey Wilson, a sexton for All Angels' Church, and a deposit of items in the backyard of two other Seneca Village residents. Archaeologists filled over 250 bags with artifacts, including the bone handle of a toothbrush and the leather sole of a child's shoe. In 2020, the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission launched an online exhibit, Seneca Village Unearthed, with around 300 artifacts from the 2011 excavation. Art and culture Keith Josef Adkins's play The People Before the Park had its first performances at Premiere Stages in 2015. Marilyn Nelson's poetry collection My Seneca Village was published the same year. Before Yesterday We Could Fly, a period-room exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, opened in 2021. The period room