Provenance Information

Harold Kaye [1914-1974], New York, NY and London; by 1957, lent to the Worcester Art Museum; 2016, acquired by the Worcester Art Museum in accordance with Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 200B: Disposition of Museum Property.

Exhibition Information

N/A

Publication Information

N/A

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 object was loaned to the Worcester Art Museum in 1957. In 2016, after an extended attempt to locate the heirs of the lender, the work was considered abandoned property and legal title was transferred to the Museum according to Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 200B: Disposition of Museum Property.

Provenance Information

Harold Kaye [1914-1974], New York, NY and London; by 1957, lent to the Worcester Art Museum; 2016, acquired by the Worcester Art Museum in accordance with Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 200B: Disposition of Museum Property.

Exhibition Information

N/A

Publication Information

N/A

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 object was loaned to the Worcester Art Museum in 1957. In 2016, after an extended attempt to locate the heirs of the lender, the work was considered abandoned property and legal title was transferred to the Museum according to Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 200B: Disposition of Museum Property.

Provenance Information

Collection of Frederick R. [1928-2007] and Jan Mayer, Denver, CO by 1993 [1]; Gifted to the Denver Art Museum, 2017
[1] On loan to the Denver Art Museum, February 1993

Exhibition Information

On display in Museum's Pre-Columbian Galleries, 1997-2017

Publication Information

None known

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 Mayer collection of Costa Rican art distinguishes itself from other national and international collections for the depth and breadth of cultural and artistic styles represented therein. Assembled beginning in 1966, the objects represent the developmental arc of Costa Rican ceramics, metallurgy and stone carving and stands as the most comprehensive collection of Central American material culture outside of the region. Mr. and Mrs. Mayer began lending works in this gift to the Denver Art Museum in 1992 and since loan of this work in 1993, it has been on continuous display until 2017 in the Art of the Ancient Americas galleries. This gift complements the collection of Costa Rican material, also gifted by Mr. and Mrs. Mayer with the express purpose that the objects remain together in order for scholars to appreciate fully the development of Central American art, allow work to be put in the public domain, and facilitate further research.

Provenance Information

(Stendahl Galleries), Hollywood, CA, by 1971; Purchased by Frederick R. [1928-2007] and Jan Mayer, Denver, CO, 1971 [1]; Gifted to the Denver Art Museum, 2017
[1] On loan to the Denver Art Museum, 1993

Exhibition Information

On display in Museum's Pre-Columbian Galleries, 1997-2017

Publication Information

None known

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 Mayer collection of Costa Rican art distinguishes itself from other national and international collections for the depth and breadth of cultural and artistic styles represented therein. Assembled beginning in 1966, the objects represent the developmental arc of Costa Rican ceramics, metallurgy and stone carving and stands as the most comprehensive collection of Central American material culture outside of the region. Mr. and Mrs. Mayer began lending works in this gift to the Denver Art Museum in 1992 and since loan of this work in 1993, it has been on continuous display until 2017 in the Art of the Ancient Americas galleries. This gift complements the collection of Costa Rican material, also gifted by Mr. and Mrs. Mayer with the express purpose that the objects remain together in order for scholars to appreciate fully the development of Central American art, allow work to be put in the public domain, and facilitate further research.

Provenance Information

Possibly (Enrique Vargas-Alfaro) [1915-2008], San Jose, Costa Rica and Atlanta, GA; Purchased by Frederick R. [1928-2007] and Jan Mayer, Denver, CO, 1985 (?) [1]; Gifted to the Denver Art Museum, 2017
[1] On loan to the Denver Art Museum, 1993

Exhibition Information

"""Prehistoric Art and Archaeology of Costa Rica."" Sangre de Cristo Arts and Conference Center, Pueblo, CO. January 12-February 24, 1990.
""Costa Rican Pre-Columbian Art from the Collection of Jan and Frederick R. Mayer."" Loveland Museum and Gallery, Loveland, CO, March 22, 1990-May 15, 1990.; On display in Museum's Pre-Columbian Galleries, 1993-2017"

Publication Information

None known

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 Mayer collection of Costa Rican art distinguishes itself from other national and international collections for the depth and breadth of cultural and artistic styles represented therein. Assembled beginning in 1966, the objects represent the developmental arc of Costa Rican ceramics, metallurgy and stone carving and stands as the most comprehensive collection of Central American material culture outside of the region. Mr. and Mrs. Mayer began lending works in this gift to the Denver Art Museum in 1992 and since loan of this work in 1993, it has been on continuous display until 2017 in the Art of the Ancient Americas galleries. This gift complements the collection of Costa Rican material, also gifted by Mr. and Mrs. Mayer with the express purpose that the objects remain together in order for scholars to appreciate fully the development of Central American art, allow work to be put in the public domain, and facilitate further research.

Provenance Information

Collection of Frederick R. [1928-2007] and Jan Mayer, Denver, CO, by 1984 [1]; Gifted to the Denver Art Museum, 2017 [1] On loan to the Denver Art Museum, 1993

Exhibition Information

"New Worlds of the Rich Coast: Ancient Costa Rican Jade and Gold from the Collection of Jan and Frederick Mayer." Utah Museum of Fine Arts, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, April-May, 1990., "Reading the Unwritten Past: Central American Culture before Columbus." Lamont Gallery, Frederick R. Mayer Arts Center, Phillips Exeter Academy, Exeter, NH, September 18, 1992-October 25, 1992; On display in Museum's Pre-Columbian Galleries, 1993-2017

Publication Information

Keverne, Roger (editor). Jade. Van Nostrand, New York. 1991.

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 Mayer collection of Costa Rican art distinguishes itself from other national and international collections for the depth and breadth of cultural and artistic styles represented therein. Assembled beginning in 1966, the objects represent the developmental arc of Costa Rican ceramics, metallurgy and stone carving and stands as the most comprehensive collection of Central American material culture outside of the region. Mr. and Mrs. Mayer began lending works in this gift to the Denver Art Museum in 1992 and since loan of this work in 1993, it has been on continuous display until 2017 in the Art of the Ancient Americas galleries. This gift complements the collection of Costa Rican material, also gifted by Mr. and Mrs. Mayer with the express purpose that the objects remain together in order for scholars to appreciate fully the development of Central American art, allow work to be put in the public domain, and facilitate further research.

Provenance Information

(Edwin H. Merrin Gallery), New York; Purchased by Frederick R. [1928-2007] and Jan Mayer, Denver, CO, June 1981 [1]; Gifted to the Denver Art Museum, 2017
[1] On loan to the Denver Art Museum, 1993

Exhibition Information

"New Worlds of the Rich Coast: Ancient Costa Rican Jade and Gold from the Collection of Jan and Frederick R. Mayer," Utah Museum of Fine Arts, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT: April-May, 1990. (Mark Miller Graham, Organizer), "Reading the Unwritten Past: Central American Culture Before Columbus," at the Lamont Gallery at Phillips Exeter Academy in Exeter, NH, September-October 1992; On display in Museum's Pre-Columbian Galleries, 1993-2017

Publication Information

None known

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 Mayer collection of Costa Rican art distinguishes itself from other national and international collections for the depth and breadth of cultural and artistic styles represented therein. Assembled beginning in 1966, the objects represent the developmental arc of Costa Rican ceramics, metallurgy and stone carving and stands as the most comprehensive collection of Central American material culture outside of the region. Mr. and Mrs. Mayer began lending works in this gift to the Denver Art Museum in 1992 and since loan of this work in 1993, it has been on continuous display until 2017 in the Art of the Ancient Americas galleries. This gift complements the collection of Costa Rican material, also gifted by Mr. and Mrs. Mayer with the express purpose that the objects remain together in order for scholars to appreciate fully the development of Central American art, allow work to be put in the public domain, and facilitate further research.

Provenance Information

Collection of Serge Claude Bogousslavsky [1915-2009], Paris, France and Switzerland; (Sotheby's Park Bernet, Inc.), New York, Sale #4747Y, Lot #30 , December 4, 1981; Purchased by Frederick R. [1928-2007] and Jan Mayer, Denver, CO, 1981 [1]; Gifted to the Denver Art Museum, 2017 [1] On loan to the Denver Art Museum, 1992

Exhibition Information

On display in Museum's Pre-Columbian Galleries, 1993-2017

Publication Information

Sotheby Parke Bernet, Inc. The Bogousslavsky Collection of Pre-Colombian Art (Sale #4747Y, December 4, 1981). New York: Sotheby Parke Bernet, Inc.. 12/04/1981.

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 Mayer collection of Costa Rican art distinguishes itself from other national and international collections for the depth and breadth of cultural and artistic styles represented therein. Assembled beginning in 1966, the objects represent the developmental arc of Costa Rican ceramics, metallurgy and stone carving and stands as the most comprehensive collection of Central American material culture outside of the region. Mr. and Mrs. Mayer began lending works in this gift to the Denver Art Museum in 1992 and since loan of this work in 1992, it has been on continuous display until 2017 in the Art of the Ancient Americas galleries. This gift complements the collection of Costa Rican material, also gifted by Mr. and Mrs. Mayer with the express purpose that the objects remain together in order for scholars to appreciate fully the development of Central American art, allow work to be put in the public domain, and facilitate further research.

Provenance Information

(Enrique Vargas-Alfaro) [1915-2008], San Jose, Costa Rica and Atlanta, GA; Purchased by Frederick R. [1928-2007] and Jan Mayer, Denver, CO, May 28, 1972 [1]; Gifted to the Denver Art Museum, 2017
[1] On loan to the Denver Art Museum, 1993

Exhibition Information

Clara A. Hatton Gallery, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, Pre-Columbian Art from Costa Rica from the Collection of Jan and Frederick R. Mayer, 1977 (traveled to: Maxwell Museum, Albuquerque, NM, October 12, 1977 - May 30, 1978).

Publication Information

Lange, Frederick W. Precolombian Jade: New Geological and Cultural Interpretations. Salt Lake City, UT: University of Utah Press. 1993.

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 Mayer collection of Costa Rican art distinguishes itself from other national and international collections for the depth and breadth of cultural and artistic styles represented therein. Assembled beginning in 1966, the objects represent the developmental arc of Costa Rican ceramics, metallurgy and stone carving and stands as the most comprehensive collection of Central American material culture outside of the region. Mr. and Mrs. Mayer began lending works in this gift to the Denver Art Museum in 1992 and since loan of this work in 1993, it has been on continuous display until 2017 in the Art of the Ancient Americas galleries. This gift complements the collection of Costa Rican material, also gifted by Mr. and Mrs. Mayer with the express purpose that the objects remain together in order for scholars to appreciate fully the development of Central American art, allow work to be put in the public domain, and facilitate further research.

Provenance Information

Collection of Frances Pratt, New York; Purchased by Frederick R. [1928-2007] and Jan Mayer, Denver, CO, December 1970 [1]; Gifted to the Denver Art Museum, 2017
[1] On loan to the Denver Art Museum, 1992

Exhibition Information

On display in Museum's Pre-Columbian Galleries, 1992-2017

Publication Information

Young-Sanchez, Margaret (editor). Nature and Spirit: Ancient Costa Rican Treasures in the Mayer Collection at the Denver Art Museum. Denver Art Museum. 2010.

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 Mayer collection of Costa Rican art distinguishes itself from other national and international collections for the depth and breadth of cultural and artistic styles represented therein. Assembled beginning in 1966, the objects represent the developmental arc of Costa Rican ceramics, metallurgy and stone carving and stands as the most comprehensive collection of Central American material culture outside of the region. Mr. and Mrs. Mayer began lending works in this gift to the Denver Art Museum in 1992 and since loan of this work in 1992, it has been on continuous display until 2017 in the Art of the Ancient Americas galleries. This gift complements the collection of Costa Rican material, also gifted by Mr. and Mrs. Mayer with the express purpose that the objects remain together in order for scholars to appreciate fully the development of Central American art, allow work to be put in the public domain, and facilitate further research.