PUBLICATIONS OF THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART • 1870-1964 A Bibliography compiled by Albert TenEyck Gardner Associate Curator of American Paintings and Sculpture 1965 3/i^Ar »(^/w^A^*» /)& '(%«st, PREFACE In the second century A.D. the prolific writer Galen compiled a classified bibliography of his works — necessary, in his view, to set the record of history straight. He first listed all the books falsely attributed to him and then, in seventeen succeeding chapters, listed and annotated the five hundred or so titles that had come from his hand. The account might be termed a "bio-bibliography," as it con­ stitutes a record of the author's productivity. This term is also appropriate to Albert TenEyck Gardner's bibliography of the publica­ tions of-The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the first complete listing of all known books, pamphlets, and serials bearing our imprint; for it is a record of the institution's achievements over the past nine decades and mirrors its varied and numerous activities. The scholarly publications testify to the contributions made to knowledge by the Museum's staff; the catalogues and guides indicate the broad scope of its acquisitions; the exhibition catalogues commemorate the many important loan exhibi­ tions that have complemented and augmented its collections. In brief, this bio-bibliography is a valuable index of the myriad ways in which the Museum presents its vast collections of art to an ever-growing public. It is also a testimony of the contributions of many individuals to the Museum's publishing program. As Mr. Gardner notes, a decisive influence over this program was wielded by Henry Watson Kent, Secre­ tary of the Museum for twenty-seven years, who established a tradition of fine design and printing for Museum publications that has survived ever since. For many years the Museum maintained its own press, and the work of such giants in typography and the graphic arts as Bruce Rogers, Theodore De Vinne, Daniel Berkeley Updike, Carl Purington Rollins, Edward Edwards, W.A. Dwiggins, Rudolph Ruzicka, and T.M. Cleland added luster and charm to many Museum imprints. Bruce Rogers' Centaur typeface was designed especially for the Museum Press. The outstanding work of designers and printers, accomplishing a happy union between form and content and reflecting a concern and appreciation for the book as a whole, has made many of the Museum's publications collector's items. With this bibliography Mr. Gardner has rendered a great service to students of art and to bibliophiles alike. Not only does it provide a convenient summary of almost all information published by the Museum concerning its collections, and clarify the order and progression of our titles and editions over the years, it bears witness to a tradition of distinguished institutional publishing of which the Museum can well be proud. James Humphry III NOTES 1. "The Metropolitan Museum of Art" has been abbreviated as MMA throughout the text. 2. Between 1880 and 1905 the Museum issued a series of Handbooks that were reprinted frequently and irregularly, with revisions in text and many minor variations in format. The numbers of these Hand­ books refer to subjects, as listed below, although the system was not always followed closely. Handbook No. 1 Paintings owned by the MMA, usually "old masters" No. 2 Cypriote pottery No. 3 Cypriote sculpture No. 4 Egyptian antiquities No. 5 Oriental porcelains No. 6 Loan collections and special exhibitions No. 7 Plaster casts No. 8 Drawings, prints, photographs No. 8a Tapestries No. 9 Gems No. 10 Various subjects, general guides, paintings, jades No. 11 Metal reproductions No. 12 Seal cylinders No. 13 Musical instruments No. 14 Loan exhibition of Japanese armor No. 15 Arms and armor Copyright (CJ 1965 by The Metropolitan Museum of Art Library of Congress Catalogue Card Number 65-15284 INTRODUCTION This book is an attempt to bring together the titles of all books, pamphlets, and catalogues published by The Metropolitan Museum of Art during the past ninety-four years. It displays the wide range of subjects upon which the Museum has turned its attention, and the high standards in typography, book design, and editorial style, as well as in content, that have been established and maintained. The Museum has often played the role of a leader, a trend setter. The format of the Bulletin, for example, which served from the publication of the first issues in 1905 until 1942, was copied by many other museums. A num­ ber of the catalogues of early loan exhibitions have a special interest today because of the significant results of the exhibitions they record. For instance, the catalogue of the Hudson-Fulton Exhibition of 1909 records the Museum's interest in early American furniture, architecture, and decorative arts — an interest that ultimately resulted in the building of the American Wing. The Catalogue of the Morgan Collection of Chinese Porcelains, issued in 1907, was for a time one of the standard works on the subject. The exhibition of impressionist and postimpres- sionist paintings in 1921 caused almost as much commotion in the New York art world as the more famous Armory Show of 1913. In 1939 the exhibition of paintings called Life in America — scenes of American life and American history — brought to light the work of a whole group of forgotten American painters and sparked a new interest in nineteenth century American painting. One of the most popular publications of the Museum has been William M. Ivins, Jr.'s Notes on Prints, issued in 1930. Among other books that have become standard works in their fields are A Handbook of the American Wing, first issued in 1924; the Handbook o j Arms and Armor, 1905 and later editions; American Engraved Powder Horns, 1945, by Stephen V. Grancsay; The Scepter of Egypt, 1953, by William C. Hayes, and the many handsome and elaborately printed reports of the Museum's Egyptian Expeditions; Alan Priest's catalogue of Chinese Sculpture, 1944; and John Goldsmith Phillips' book on China-Trade Porcelain, 1956. The publications of Gisela M.A. Richter on Greek and Roman art are, of course, well known to students of classical archaeology. The Cloisters, by James J. Rorimer, has run through many printings since it was first issued in 1938. A Handbook o f Mohammedan Decorative Arts, 1930, by Maurice S. Dimand, has a history of five editions, including an Arabic translation in 1954 — the only work of its kind in that language. The series of scholarly catalogues of the Museum's Department of European Paintings, beginning with the volume on Italian, Spanish, and Byzantine paintings issued in 1940, marked a new era for such publica­ tions; the influence of this work can be traced in the catalogues pub­ lished by many other museums in this country and in Europe. The De­ partment of Western European Arts has recently brought out two impor­ tant publications. Early Florentine Designers and Engravers, by John Goldsmith Phillips, and Three Centuries of French Domestic Silver, by Faith Dennis. The Museum Press was established in 1908 under the supervision of Henry Watson Kent, who for many years designed most of its publications. Under his direction Bruce Rogers designed a new typeface called Centaur, for the use of the Museum Press, and Frederick Warde designed Arrighi Italic especially for the Museum. In 1938 a selection of Metropolitan Museum publications was exhibited at the Morgan Library as a tribute to Mr. Kent for his part in introducing fine typography into museum books and catalogues. In 1946 rising costs greatly curtailed the work of the Museum Press, and in 1949 it was discontinued altogether. The bibliography that follows presents a chronological summary of the activities and endeavors of the Museum from 1870-1964. All these pub­ lications may be said to stem from the Museum's first publication, the Charter, Constitution and By-Laws of 1870, in which it is stated that the Museum is established for the purpose "of encouraging and develop­ ing the study of the fine arts — of advancing the general knowledge of kindred subjects, and, to that end, of furnishing popular instruction." A.T. G. TABLE OF CONTENTS Preface iii Notes iv Introduction v Publications on Art Catalogues of Special Exhibitions 1 Departmental Publications American Paintings and Sculpture 15 American Wing 17 Ancient Near Eastern Art 18 Arms and Armor 19 Egyptian Art 20 European Paintings 24 Far Eastern Art . 29 Greek and Roman Art 30 Islamic Art 33 The Junior Museum 34 Medieval Art and The Cloisters 36 Musical Instruments 38 Prints 39 Western European Arts 40 General Guides 42 Serials 43 Miscellaneous 53 Miscellaneous Publications Museum History 55 Legal and Business Documents 56 Miscellaneous 63 Ephemera 68 Index of Authors 70 PUBLICATIONS ON ART Catalogues of Special Exhibitions 1872 Catalogue of the pictures in the MMA. Also issued on large paper. 1873 Catalogue of a loan exhibition [paintings], September 1873. 1874 Catalogue of the collection of arms, armour, and other objects loaned to the MMA, by H. Cogniat. Reprinted 1875, 1876. Catalogue of engravings, etchings, and mezzotints belonging to James L. Claghorn. Catalogue of the loan exhibition of Daintings at the MMA, March 1874. Catalogue of the loan exhibition of paintings and statuary at the MMA, May 1874. Catalogue of the loan exhibition of paintings at the MMA, September 1874. Catalogue of the loan exhibition of paintings and statuary atthe MMA, December 1874. 1875 Pottery and porcelain: handbook for the use of visitors examining pottery and porcelain in the MMA. Catalogue of the loan exhibition of paintings and statuary at the MMA, May 1875. 1876 Catalogue of the New York centennial loan exhibition of paintings selected from the private art galleries, 1876.