Bernard Berenson Letters
Two letters from Bernard Berenson to Max Goldstein.
Originally laid in Les marques de collections de dessins and d'estampes : marques estampillées et écrites de collections particulières et publiques : Marques de marchands, de monteurs et d'imprimeurs. Cachets de vente d'artistes décédés. Marques de graveurs apposées après le tirage des planches. Timbres d'édition. Etc / avec des notices historiques sur les collectionneurs, les collections, les ventes, les marchands et éditeurs, etc., par Frits Lugt. N8380 L968
Dates
- Creation: 1935 August 17 - 1935 October 26
Creator
- Berenson, Bernard, 1865-1959 (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
Open
Conditions Governing Use
Users of the collection must read and agree to abide by the rules and procedures set forth in the Materials Use Policies.
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Extent
2.00 items
1 folders
Biographical or Historical Information
Bernard Berenson (June 26, 1865 – October 6, 1959) was an American art historian specializing in the Renaissance. He was a major figure in pioneering art attribution and therefore establishing the market for paintings by the "Old Masters".
Berenson was born Bernhard Valvrojenski in Butrimonys (now in Alytus district of Lithuania) to a Litvak family. They emigrated to Boston, Massachusetts from the Vilna Governorate of the Russian Empire in 1875, whereupon the family name was changed to "Berenson." He attended the Boston University College of Liberal Arts as a freshman during 1883-84, but, unable to obtain instruction in Sanskrit from that institution, transferred to Harvard University for his sophomore year. He graduated from Harvard and married Mary Smith, who became a notable art historian in her own right.
Among US collectors of the early 1900s, Berenson was regarded as the pre-eminent authority on Renaissance art. His verdict of authenticity increased a painting's value. While his approach remained controversial among European art historians and connoisseurs, he played a pivotal role as an advisor to several important American art collectors, such as Isabella Stewart Gardner, who needed help in navigating the complex and treacherous market of newly fashionable Renaissance art. As Renaissance scholarship has evolved, a number of Berenson's attributions are now believed to be incorrect. There is also ongoing speculation as to whether some of these misattributions were deliberate, since Berenson often had a considerable financial stake in the matter. Due to the strong subjective element in connoisseurship, such accusations remain hard to either disprove or substantiate. Berenson died at age 94 in Settignano, Italy.
Source of Acquisition
Gift of Mrs. Max Goldstein, June 26, 1968
Processing Information
Processed May 1969.
Creator
- Berenson, Bernard, 1865-1959 (Person)
- Title
- Bernard Berenson Letters
- Description rules
- dacs
- Language of description
- eng
Revision Statements
- 2020 October 2: Resource record updated in ArchiveSpace by Sarah Schnuriger.
Collecting Area Details
Part of the Manuscripts Collecting Area
Joel Minor
Olin Library, 1 Brookings Drive
MSC 1061-141-B
St. Louis MO 63130 US
(314) 935-5495
spec@wumail.wustl.edu