Curt Maury Papers
name: label: Creator
content: Maury, Curt
place: label: Place
content: Gujarat (India)
label: Place
content: Karnataka (India) -- Social life and customs
label: Place
content: Kerala (India)
label: Place
content: Maharashtra
label: Place
content: Rajasthan (India)
label: Place
content: India
topic: label: Topic
content: Art, Hindu
label: Topic
content: Indian art
label: Topic
content: Cave temples
label: Topic
content: Taj Mahal (Agra, India)
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: The papers were donated to the Archives after Curt Maury's death in 1989 by his brother, Hans Tischler.
creator: label: Creator
content: Maury, Curt
setName: label: See more items in
content: Curt Maury Papers
abstract: label: Summary
content: The Curt Maury papers, dating from 1953 to circa 1985, measure 12.7 linear feet and include writings and notes for planned and published books; travel files and expense ledgers for trips to India; photograph ledgers; and extensive photographs and slides of India.
bioghist: label: Biographical note
content: Curt Maury (1909-1989) was a writer, social services administrator, and scholar of Indian art. He was born in Germany, earned a PhD in German Literature from the University of Vienna in 1935, and immigrated to the United States in 1939. While pursuing a literary career through the publication of novels, plays, and poems, Maury developed an interest in India, which he visited many times from the 1950s through the 1970s. He conducted research on Indian folk art, and kept extensive photographic records.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 12.7 Linear feet
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1953-circa 1985
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives
identifier: label: Identifier
content: FSA.A1989.05
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Photographs
label: Type
content: Dye coupler transparencies
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: The collection is arranged as 3 series.

Series 1: Writings and Notes, circa 1960s-circa 1970s [3.7 linear feet; Boxes 1-5, 7-11]

Series 2: Travel Files, 1953-1975 [0.4 linear feet; Box 5, 1 OV Folder]

Series 3: Photographic Material, circa 1960-circa 1985 [8.5 linear feet; Boxes 6, 12-44]
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: The collection was archivally processed and a finding aid prepared by Anna Rimel in 2017 with funding provided by the Smithsonian Institution's Collections Care and Preservation Fund. For this collection, minimal level processing was implemented, which included arrangement to the series, subseries and folder levels, adhering to the creator's
original arrangement as much as possible. Generally, folder contents were simply verified with the original folder titles, but items within folders were not arranged further. All materials were rehoused in archival folders and boxes for long-term stability, but staples and other fasteners have not all been removed.
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Photographs -- 1950-1960 -- Black-and-white photoprints -- Silver gelatin
label: Genre/Form
content: Dye coupler transparencies
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: The Curt Maury papers, dating from 1953 to circa 1985, measure 12.7 linear feet and consist of writings and notes for planned and published books; travel files and expense ledgers for trips to India; photograph ledgers; and extensive photographs and slides of India.

The collection was created by Maury primarily in preparation for an unpublished book to be titled, "India's Folk
Tradition as the Mirror of Mankind's Religious History." Materials include manuscript and typescript drafts
and notes for this book, as well as for published book, Folk Origins of Indian Art (1969). Travel files include printed maps of India, Maury's sketched map outlines of cities in India, and five travel expense ledgers. Photographic materials consist of black and white prints and slides depicting Indian folk art, including religious artifacts and structures, and Indian cultural activities and surroundings. Nine photograph ledgers describe images and locations of photographs and slides with roll and image number.