Description
Book SynopsisThe study of provenance—the history of the creation and ownership of an artefact, work of art, or specimen—provides insights into the history of taste and collecting, illuminating the social, economic, and historic trends in which an object was created and collected. It is as much a history of people as it is of objects, and its study often reveals intricate networks of relationships, patterns of activity and motivations. This book promotes the study of the history of collecting and collections in all their variety through the lens of provenance, and explores the subject as a cross-disciplinary activity. Perhaps for the first time in a publication, it draws on expertise ranging from art history and anthropology, to natural history and law, looking at periods from antiquity through the 18th century and the Holocaust era to the present, and materials from Europe and the Americas to China and the Pacific. The issues raised are wide-ranging, touching on aspects of authenticity, cultural meaning and material transformation and economic and commercial drivers, as well as collector and object biography. The book fills a gap in the study of collecting and provenance, taking the subject holistically and from multiple standpoints, better to reflect the widening interest in provenance from a range of disciplinary perspectives. This book will be a service to the field, from established scholars and museum professionals to students of collecting history, cultural heritage, and museum studies.
Trade ReviewIn so masterfully bringing together the essays of this volume, Jane Milosch and Nick Pearce address the relevance of provenance to collecting history and cultural history in the broadest possible way. They have marshalled a team of experts in fields that include art history, material culture, anthropology, economics, and law, who present case studies ranging across five continents and spanning millennia. Together the twenty-eight chapters of the book, some of which also focus on the value of the most up to date research methodologies, comprise a groundbreaking contribution to the field of provenance research, whose importance has been accorded ever greater recognition thanks to the scholars and editors of this superb book. This is a volume that will be valued for decades to come. -- Inge Reist, Director Emerita, Center for the History of Collecting, The Frick Collection and Frick Art Reference Library
Provenance research is increasingly critical to a broad range of disciplines with significant and cascading implications. This book provides a nuanced, cogent, and timely overview of present practices while exploring future challenges. It is an indispensable resource for those working in the arts, museums, libraries, archives, and law and policy. -- Helen A. Robbins, Repatriation Director, The Field Museum
A persuasive claim is made here for provenance research as a defining activity of responsible curatorship. More than recording an object’s history, it involves forensically researching every aspect of the multiple connections forged through the web of contexts in which objects participate, to establish a dense and inalienable biographical passport. -- Arthur MacGregor, Editor, Journal of the History of Collection
Table of ContentsForeword Lynn H. Nicholas, Independent Scholar Preface Richard Kurin, Smithsonian Institution Introduction Acknowledgements Nick Pearce, University of Glasgow, and Jane C. Milosch, Smithsonian Institution Provenance: Past and Future Challenges 1.The Provenance of Provenances Christian Huemer, Österreichische Galerie Belvedere 2.Intellectual Property and Ownership History Christel H. Force, The Metropolitan Museum of Art 3.Provenance Research in Museums: From the Back of the House to the Front Jane C. Milosch and Andrea Hull, Smithsonian Provenance Research Initiative (SPRI) 4.Transforming Research Methodologies: The Frick Art Reference Library’s Collaborative Approach Louisa Wood Ruby and Samantha Deutch, The Frick Art Reference Library 5.Digging in Digital Archives: Recovering Context for the Getty Museum’s Orpheus Mosaic Nicole Budrovich, J. Paul Getty Museum 6.Exhibiting Provenance in the University Museum: A Case Study Nancy Karrels, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign 7.Provenance in 2050 David Newbury, J. Paul Getty Trust, and Louise Lippincott, Carnegie Museum of Art Objects in Motion 8.Provenance as Palimpsest: The Mazarin Venus Judith Barr, J. Paul Getty Museum 9.Archaeology, Fakery, and Lunacy: N.S. Brown's Chinese Neolithic Collection Nick Pearce, University of Glasgow 10.The Importance of Provenance in Nineteenth-Century Paris and Beyond: Four Works of Art from Prince Pierre Soltykoff’s Famed Collection of Medieval Art Christine E. Brennan, The Metropolitan Museum of Art 11.The Medieval Bury Chest: Mapping the Journey from Durham Cathedral to the Burrell Collection, Glasgow Elizabeth Hancock, University of Glasgow; Erma Hermens, Rijksmuseum; and Lindsay Gordon, Glasgow Museums 12.Plunder, Dissolution, and Dodgy Dealing: The International Market for Spanish Art in the Nineteenth Century Hilary Macartney, University of Glasgow, and Véronique Gerard Powell, Paris-Sorbonne Université 13.Documenting the Violin Trade in Paris: The Archives of Albert Caressa and Émile Français, 1930-1945 Carla Shapreau, University of California, Berkeley; Jean-Philippe Échard and Christine Laloue, Musée de la musique, Paris 14.Twice Plundered, and Still Far from Home: Tracing Nazi-Looted Books in Minsk and Moscow Patricia Kennedy Grimsted, Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies and the Ukrainian Research Institute, Harvard University Museums and Collection Formation: Provenancing Art and Nature 15.Lost and Found: Reestablishing Provenance for an Entire Museum Collection Ann McMullen and Maria Galban, National Museum of the American Indian 16.Thomas Pattinson Yeats (1746–1782), Naturalist: Connecting Margaret Bentinck, Duchess of Portland, and William Hunter E. Geoffrey Hancock, University of Glasgow 17.A Kato Mosi Kaka and Other Tongan Treasures from the United States Exploring Expedition (1838-1842) in the Smithsonian Institution Adrienne L. Kaeppler, National Museum of Natural History 18.Provenance and Place in Indigenous Australia Gaye Sculthorpe, British Museum 19.Pursuing Provenance: Perspectives on the Arts of Africa Christine Mullen Kreamer, National Museum of African Art 20.One Object, Three Histories: Provenancing the Dromedary Louise Lippincott, Carnegie Museum of Art 21.Forest Gold Edward J. Bronikowski, Smithsonian’s National Zoological Park Conservation Biology Institute Provenance and Collecting Policies: Practical, Legal, and Ethical Challenges 22.A Voyage into the Half-known: Museum Ethics in the Early Twentieth Century Petra Winter, Staatliche Museen, and Carola Thielecke, Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz 23.Forgotten Language of the Ledger: Signaling Ownership, Authority, and Provenance with Museum Accession Status Joshua Gorman, National Museum of American History 24.The Holy Family on an Unholy Odyssey: Legal Ownership of Stolen Trophy Art Christa Roodt, University of Glasgow 25.Problems, Practices, and Politics of Provenancing Objects from China’s Yuanmingyuan Louise Tythacott, University of London 26.Crisis Response and Beyond: The National Gallery of Australia’s Asian Art Provenance Project and Other New Initiatives Bronwyn Campbell, National Gallery of Australia 27.Antiquities Trafficking and the Provenance Problem Donna Yates and Emiline Smith, University of Glasgow 28.Before, During, and After: Documenting Museum Collections in Times of Crisis and Disaster Brian I. Daniels and Corine Wegener, Smithsonian Cultural Rescue Initiative Endnotes Index About the Contributors
