If you break a mirror, it’s seven years’ bad luck. I’d think with this one it’d be exponentially higher.- Janet Napolitano, Arizona governor

Gov. Janet Napolitano came to campus yesterday afternoon to honor the Arizona State Museum’s pottery collection and to tour other campus sites.

The governor named the museum’s Southwest Indian Pottery Collection as one of Arizona’s Treasures, a designation that highlights tourist destinations in the state.

Napolitano toured the museum’s pottery storage unit and the new pottery vault, now under construction.

The pottery vault is expected to be completed in September and house 20,000 of the museum’s

ceramic vessels, some of which are more than 1,000 years old.

The new storage facility will be a vast improvement over the current area housing the vessels, said Nancy Odegaard, chief conservator at the museum.

“”When I first saw (the old area), it brought tears to my eyes,”” Odegaard said.

The new facility will be climate-controlled and feature a viewing area, she said.

“”It’s basically the storage conditions that will be vastly improved in that it will bring the five storage rooms together,”” Odegaard said.

The pottery vault project is expected to cost $2.5 million, according to the Facilities Design and Construction Web site.

The pottery collection became the 21st Arizona Treasure and was the first to be named this year, Napolitano said.

In addition to her stop at the museum,

Napolitano also toured the Center for Creative Photography and the Steward Observatory Mirror Laboratory.

At the CCP, the governor viewed the exhibit “”Harry Callahan: The Photographer at Work,”” and saw rarities in the center’s collection including photographer Ansel Adams’ hat.

“”It’s the only place of its sort in the world,”” said Doug Nickel, director of the center. “”Most centers collect individual photographic works but not entire careers.””

Part of the exhibit presented photograph-related pieces such as film negatives, letters and contact sheets.

“”The founding idea of the center is there is a creative process in photography that is different from the creative process in painting or music,”” Nickel explained to the governor.

The governor also visited the mirror lab, where giant mirrors used in telescopes are cast, polished and integrated into supporting structures at the lab, said Peter Strittmatter, director of the Steward Observatory.

“”This is the only place in the world where all three things come together,”” Strittmatter said.

The governor marveled at the size of the mirrors, which measure dozens of feet across.

“”If you break a mirror, it’s seven years’ bad luck,”” Napolitano said. “”I’d think with this one it’d be exponentially higher.””

The governor said her favorite part of the campus tour was seeing the different things the campus has to offer and getting to speak with the people behind them.

“”That’ll help me sell investments in higher education up at the capitol,”” Napolitano said.