Provenance Information

Ex coll. Michael Shubin (1950-2008), Montebello, California, acquired from Simon Ohan Simonian, California, September 20, 1991.

Exhibition Information

To our knowledge, this object has never been exhibited.

Publication Information

To our knowledge, this object has never been published.

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Partial interest received prior to 2008

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

The initial gift was accepted under the guidelines of the 2004 AAMD Report on the Acquisition of Archaeological Materials and Ancient Art as an extraordinary teaching resource.

Provenance Information

Jay C. Leff, Uniontown, PA, by 1972 [Allentown 1972, cat. 131]; sold, Sotheby’s, May 31, 1975, lot 387, to Crouch Gallery, Macomb, IL; sold to Patricia Brett Erens, Chicago, 1975 [invoice SWP-137 and correspondence and documentation from Patricia Brett Erens, Oct. 13, 2020; copy in curatorial object file, Arts of the Americas]; given to the Art Institute of Chicago, 2021.

Exhibition Information

Allentown, PA, Allentown Art Museum, Pre-Columbian Art of Mesoamerica from the Collection of Jay C. Leff, Feb. 12–Apr. 2, 1972, cat. 131.

Publication Information

Allentown Art Museum, Pre-Columbian Art of Mesoamerica from the Collection of Jay C. Leff, exh. cat. (Allentown, PA: Allentown Art Museum, 1972), 54-55, cat. 131, fig. 131 (ill.).

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Informed judgement that works were outside of the country of modern discovery before 1970

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

It is not currently possible to determine if the object originated within the United States or Mexico due to the absence of archaeological provenience and because Casas Grandes societies inhabited both sides of the present-day US-Mexico border. If the object originated in Mexico, provenance research allows the museum to make an informed judgment that the work was most likely in the United States by 1970. The object was acquired by Patricia Brett Erens, the donor, after June 1975, from Crouch Gallery in Macomb, IL, which had purchased it at public auction on May 31, 1975. The object was previously in the collection of Jay Leff, and had been publicly exhibited from February 1972 in Allentown as well as published in the accompanying catalog. Presumably, the object was in Leff’s possession for some period of time before it was exhibited, and the Art Institute of Chicago is unaware of any prior claims made against the work. As a border culture, Casas Grandes has often been overlooked by museums, and this vessel will help present a more diverse and inclusive understanding of Indigenous art in the Americas.

Provenance Information

Crouch Gallery, Macomb, IL, by 1975 [this and the following according to invoice SWP-75, July 3, 1975; copy in curatorial object file, Arts of the Americas]; sold to Patricia Brett Erens, Chicago, 1975; given to the Art Institute of Chicago, 2021.

Exhibition Information

None

Publication Information

None

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Informed judgement that works were outside of the country of modern discovery before 1970

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

It is not currently possible to determine if the object originated within the United States or Mexico due to the absence of archaeological provenience and because Casas Grandes societies inhabited both sides of the present-day US-Mexico border. If the object originated in Mexico, provenance research allows the museum to make an informed judgment that the work was most likely in the United States by 1970. The object was acquired by Patricia Brett Erens, the donor, on July 3, 1975, according to the invoice from Crouch Gallery in Macomb, IL. Attempts to contact affiliates of the gallery for more information have not been successful. Presumably, however, it would have been in the possession of the gallery for a period of time before the sale. As a border culture, Casas Grandes has often been overlooked by museums, and this vessel will help present a more diverse and inclusive understanding of Indigenous art in the Americas.

Provenance Information

Private collection, Deming, NM, by 1973 [this and the following according to correspondence from private collector, Chicago, Apr. 22, 2021; copy in curatorial object file, Arts of the Americas]; sold to private collection, Chicago, after 1973; sold to Patricia Brett Erens, Chicago, Apr. 17, 1975 [receipt 9869, Apr. 17, 1975; copy in curatorial object file, Arts of the Americas]; given to the Art Institute of Chicago, 2021.

Exhibition Information

None

Publication Information

None

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Informed judgement that works were outside of the country of modern discovery before 1970

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

It is not currently possible to determine if the object originated within the United States or Mexico due to the absence of archaeological provenience and because Casas Grandes societies inhabited both sides of the present-day US-Mexico border. If the object originated in Mexico, provenance research allows the museum to make an informed judgment that the work was most likely in the United States by 1970. The object was acquired in Chicago by Patricia Brett Erens, the donor, on April 17, 1975. It was formerly owned by another private collector in Chicago who has confirmed it was purchased from a previous private collector in Deming, NM, in 1973. The length of time that the object was in the private collection in Deming is not yet known. As a border culture, Casas Grandes has often been overlooked by museums, and this vessel will help present a more diverse and inclusive understanding of Indigenous art in the Americas.

Provenance Information

Private collection, Deming, NM, by 1973 [this and the following according to correspondence from private collector, Chicago, Apr. 22, 2021; copy in curatorial object file, Arts of the Americas]; sold to private collection, Chicago, 1973; sold to Patricia Brett Erens, Chicago, c. 1974 [correspondence and documentation from Patricia Brett Erens, Oct. 13. 2020; copy in curatorial object file, Arts of the Americas]; given to the Art Institute of Chicago, 2021.

Exhibition Information

None

Publication Information

None

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Informed judgement that works were outside of the country of modern discovery before 1970

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

It is not currently possible to determine if the object originated within the United States or Mexico due to the absence of archaeological provenience and because Casas Grandes societies inhabited both sides of the present-day US-Mexico border. If the object originated in Mexico, provenance research allows the museum to make an informed judgment that the work was most likely in the United States by 1970. The object was acquired in Chicago by Patricia Brett Erens, the donor, by 1974. It was formerly owned by another private collector in Chicago who has confirmed it was purchased from a previous private collector in Deming, NM, in 1973. The length of time that the object was in the private collection in Deming is not yet known. As a border culture, Casas Grandes has often been overlooked by museums, and this vessel will help present a more diverse and inclusive understanding of Indigenous art in the Americas.

Provenance Information

Alexander–Suggs Gallery, Chicago, by Dec. 1975 [this and the following according to receipt, item A577, Dec. 27, 1975; copy in curatorial object file, Arts of the Americas]; sold to Patricia Brett Erens, Chicago, Dec. 27, 1975; given to the Art Institute of Chicago, 2021.

Exhibition Information

None

Publication Information

None

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Informed judgement that works were outside of the country of modern discovery before 1970

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

It is not currently possible to determine if the object originated within the United States or Mexico due to the absence of archaeological provenience and because Casas Grandes societies inhabited both sides of the present-day US-Mexico border. If the object originated in Mexico, provenance research allows the museum to make an informed judgment that the work was most likely in the United States by 1970. The object was acquired in Chicago by Patricia Brett Erens, the donor, by December 27, 1975, according to the invoice from the Alexander-Suggs satellite gallery in Chicago. Attempts to contact affiliates of the gallery for more information have not yet been successful. Presumably, however, it would have been in the possession of the gallery for a period of time before the sale, and possibly first at the main Alexander-Suggs Gallery in Saint Louis, MO. As a border culture, Casas Grandes has often been overlooked by museums, and this vessel will help present a more diverse and inclusive understanding of Indigenous art in the Americas.

Provenance Information

By the mid-1960s said to be in the collection of Kenneth John Hewett (1914-1994), London; 1995 – 2004, private collection; June 9, 2004, acquired by John Medveckis, purchased through Sotheby’s, New York (lot 49); 2004 – 2021, collection of John Medveckis, Philadelphia; acquired in 2021, gift of John Medveckis.

Exhibition Information

None

Publication Information

Sotheby's, New York. 2004. Egyptian, Classical, and Western Asiatic Antiquities. lot 49.

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Gift or bequest expected or on loan prior to 2008

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

The balsamarium has been on loan and on display at The Metropolitan Museum of Art since 2007. Additionally, research has traced the object’s history back to the mid-1960s, when it is said to have been in the collection of Kenneth John Hewett (1914-1994). Numerous bronze balsamaria of comparable shape and technique have been found in Roman Gaul (present-day France), and it is thought that many were produced there. The closest comparison for iconography comes from San Giorgio, Trentino, in northern Italy (Claudia Braun, 2001, Römische Bronzebalsamarien mit Reliefdekor, p. 130 and pl. 47, cat. 43, Trento, Ufficio Beni Archeologici, acc. no. A.s.G. 113). However, the origin of ancient metalwork is difficult to trace, and bronze balsamaria have also been found in other areas of the Roman Empire, especially Germany, Romania, and Bulgaria.

Provenance Information

Gawain McKinley, London, before 1980. Purchased by Selim Dere of Fortuna Fine Arts, New York, January 1980. Purchased by Renée E. and Robert A. Belfer from Fortuna Fine Arts, New York, on April 10, 1995. Given by Renée E. and Robert A. Belfer to The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2012.

Exhibition Information

The work has been on loan to, and on display at, The Metropolitan Museum of Art since April 2007.

Publication Information

Lightfoot, Christopher S. 2014. Ennion: Master of Roman Glass. p. 34, fig. 24, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Lightfoot, Christopher S. 2014. "Recent Acquisitions, A Selection: 2012-2014." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, 72(2): p. 13.

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Gift or bequest expected or on loan prior to 2008

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

This object has a provenance established to 1980 and has been on loan to, and on display at, The Metropolitan Museum of Art since 2007. This large amphora is an exceptional and striking example of early Roman blown glassware. Without exact parallels on which to draw, it is difficult to be certain about its date, but the shape and color of the amphora point to the Julio-Claudian period. There is nothing in The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s collection that is closely comparable to this remarkable amphora.

Provenance Information

Acquired by Renée E. and Robert A. Belfer as a pair from Gawain McKinley, London, before 1996. Given by Renée E. and Robert A. Belfer to The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2012.

Exhibition Information

The work has been on loan to, and on display at, The Metropolitan Museum of Art since April 2007.

Publication Information

Lightfoot, Christopher S. 2014. "Recent Acquisitions, A Selection: 2012-2014." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, 72(2): p. 13.

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Gift or bequest expected or on loan prior to 2008

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

This object has a provenance established to 1996 and has been loan to, and on display at, The Metropolitan Museum of Art since 2007. The preservation of a matching pair of ancient glass vessels is extremely unusual and fortuitous. Their shape and so-called “blobbed” decoration make these two drinking cups especially attractive. The Metropolitan Museum of Art does not have any other examples of the “blobbed” technique; this example is exceptional for its beauty, importance and presentation.

Provenance Information

Collection of Jean-Hubert Demeulenaere, Paris, until 1985; sold at Hôtel Drouot Paris, June 3-4, 1985, lot 80. Sold by Fouat Alouf, Beirut, Lebanon, to S. Aboutaam, circa 1985; with Phoenix Ancient Art, New York and Geneva, until 1996. Acquired by Renée E. and Robert A. Belfer from Phoenix Ancient Art on August 2, 1996. Given by Renée E. and Robert A. Belfer to The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2012.

Exhibition Information

The work was exhibited in connection with the Hôtel Drouot sale in 1985. The work has been on loan to, and on display at, the Metropolitan Museum of Art since April 2007.

Publication Information

Verres Antiques et de l’Islam, 34, lot 80 (Hôtel Drouot Paris sale catalog, 3-4 June 1985).

Lightfoot, Christopher S. 2014. Ennion: Master of Roman Glass. p. 41, fig. 29, p. 42, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Lightfoot, Christopher S. 2014. "Recent Acquisitions, A Selection: 2012-2014." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, 72(2): p. 13.

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Gift or bequest expected or on loan prior to 2008

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

This object was published in 1985 as part of a sale in Paris. It has been on loan to, and on display at, The Metropolitan Museum of Art since 2007. Cast ribbed bowls form a distinctive type of Roman glassware, representing the final flowering of luxury cast glass tableware before the industry came to be dominated by blown vessels. They are known from throughout the Roman world, as well as beyond. This one is a particularly large and well-executed example and represents the best of its type in splendid condition. The Metropolitan Museum of Art does not own any other bowl of this size, shape, or quality.