The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1916-04-11


portant sale from the great collection OF
art objects gathered by his father r.
W. French & Co. announced yesterday
the purchase Of all Of the tapestries lent
to the Metropolitan Museum by the iate
j. Pierpont Morgan. The price paid was
somewhat greater than &2.000.00O.
The sale Is by far the most important
that has yet been made BY Mr.. Morgan
from the collection which Is generally
supposed to have cost the. late MI MOT
gan &75.000.0O0. There are other par's
OF the Morgan art treasures on view IN
the Metropolitan Museum that may have
made a more popular appeal. out 'here
was nothing finer or more intrins'eaiS
valuable to art lovers than the tapestries
II is a point in the history OF art
sales in America that there have oeeh
few, II any, Of greater Importance than
the one announced yesterday. Mr.. Nor
gan's collection of tapestries 10 the ohiy
one Of great Importance on this conti-
nent. II the collection in Itself cannot
be rated as the first Of its kind IN the
world II can at least be said that II In
cludes the great Mazarin tapestry. which
Is acknowledged the finest tapestry IN
existence.
When making the announcement OF
the purchase +. W. French q 20. IN
sisted that the collection had not peen
| bought for any American or Europeah
collector. II was said that the tapestries
4 a "a q
sonal business on the part OF the nrn'
| and that no individual sales from IL
have AS yet been arranged. ,,
! For a short time the collection VIII
he on view to the general public In the
| METROPOLITAN Museum. Some tinie ia
! May, however. French 4 co. Intend
/ to move the tapestries to their ea'ei'es
at East Fifty-sixth street wnere "e'
will be exhibited until disposed OF.
! The sale naturally brings to nina the
! leading Individual art collector In the
! country to-day, Henry &. Frick. MT.
Fr,ck purchased the famous F'ragonard
paintings, which were bought Tor MN
by Duveen Bros. from the Morgan col
/, lection u year ago. II was SAID Al 'ne
time that the purchase price was prop
ably about 100000.
soon after the FragOnard paintings
were delivered to Duveen Bros. all OF
the eighteenth century furniture ana
sculptures In the Morgan collection al
the museum were sold to the same deal
ers for a sum generally supposed to be
s3.O0o.00o.
But the first great sale from the
enormous number OF art objects ieit o.!
( tho late Mr.. Morgan caused a gre~'
sensation at the time. That was the
sale OF the famous Morgan porcelairs.
Duyeen Bros were the purchasers and
the amount paid was said TO be S3.OoO,-
00O Since that sale the collection mas
been widely dispersed. but the mos'
valuable pieces went TO the home OF MT
Frick.
SaIes Have Reached RlO.OOO.oOO
With Yesterdays sale the inroads now
,,,de unon the art collection OF the late
Mr.. Morgan amount in value 10 apou'
SIO.OOO,O0O. During this time tne soi
has made one notable gift TO the Metro
nolitan Museum. That was the presen'
tation OF the famous Colonna Madonna
by Raphael last month and the 'oth!'
and Renaissance art in the Morgan col
lection. The Colonna Madonna ~ re
garded as the most important painting
ever brought 10 this continent.
The Mazarin tapestry, which leads Al
others in the collection just sold. ~ nc
called because IL was once owhe" u!
Cardinal Mazarin, who guided the GOV
ernment Of France durluA the minority
NJ Louis XIV. The tapestry not onl,
exceis all others in cNquisiteness o.
weave and perfection Of texture but als'
I'm picture and story interest. I'M
cloth il the product of the Golden Ag'
, OF tapestry weaving. II was made ap
proximately in the year 1900 -,
The Mazarin tapestry ~ r'cn VIII
Z gold and silver ~ well as with SILK an,
f.f
! added to those of the ribs ana hatcn
, inRs. prodacc a woven picture that tell
: more in the same space than has eve
heen told in any other tapestry. !
has a jewelled border. which is char
act.ristic of the period and Is divided
3 INTO three wings. The subject is IN
] Triumph OF Christ and the New DIS
: pensation.
Two other tapestries in the Morga
collection are unsurpassed by any other
in America. These are the tamou
DolIfus Cruciixion and Saint Veronica
\ both remarkably rich with gold.
CruciaxIon Woven 1898.
The Dollfus Crucinxion once be
,onped TO the magnificent Berwick an
! ,iha collection, which was warml
nraised at the time Of its sale by VIII
/. lam Morris. II is few years late
IN date than inc MaLdTin tapest'
having been woven about 1925, and
~ in the STYLE OF the early Renaissance,
The design was created by the Fler
" ing who created more famous tapes
n ,,ies than any other designer. Bernar
n van Orley. The border Is especially In
J.. ,eresting, being composed Of flower an
fr,,it motives. In dan,asse effect ana ir
i ,ermediate In width between the narro
= ,ats Gothic borders and those OF III
full Renaissance.
q, saint Veronica, Ike the Mazarin tai
- .s,rv. is late Gothic in style and w
IS woven a. about the same time,
Ie ia absolutely perfect in every deta
n even 10 the brocaded gold letters thi
designate Vespasian and the Face
Christ. The border is exceptionally del
- cate, ,, -,
$, Other important pieces, which. III
~ tho saint Veronica and Dollfus 'ruc
axion. come from the Knoe collectio
mr.. the Tournament and the Knight
1i n,.,,.ntsrcc. huge panels which measu
"a ,hirteen feet six inches IN height
|" ,~,nty-,hree fee, In length. The on
Is Other Gothic tapestries In any 9th
III American museum to compare with the
-e ,,e the two in the Boston Museu
~ NJ Fine Arts. one given and one lie
y, by Mrs. John II. Wright.