Archives of American Art
Perry Townsend Rathbone papers
Rathbone, Perry Townsend, 1911-2000
AAA.rathperr
Archival Resource Key
6.1 Linear feet
1929-2022
The papers of museum director Perry Townsend Rathbone measure 6.1 linear feet and date from 1929 to 2022. The papers document Rathbone's career as museum director of the City Art Museum of St. Louis and the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, and his later work with Christie's New York office. Found within the papers are biographical materials, correspondence with friends and colleagues, writings, professional and project files, printed materials, and photographs, mostly of exhibitions.
There is a 1.8 linear foot unprocessed addition to this collection donated in 2023 that includesfiles on exhibitions, speeches, lectures; files on artists; slides and photographs of works of art; correspondence; writings by Belinda Rathbone and others. Materials date from circa 1940-2022.
The bulk of the collection is in English. Other languages include Arabic, Danish, English, French, German, Greek, Italian, Japanese, Russian, and Spanish, most of which are in the travel records.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged as 7 series.
Missing Title
- Series 1: Biographical Materials, 1930-1982 (0.1 linear feet; Box 1)
- Series 2: Correspondence, 1940-1985 (1.1 linear feet; Box 1-2)
- Series 3: Writings, 1929-1967 (0.8 linear feet; Box 2)
- Series 4: Professional Files, 1938-1984 (2 linear feet; Box 2-4, OV 6)
- Series 5: Printed Materials, 1954-1975 (0.2 linear feet; Box 4-5, OV 6)
- Series 6: Photographs, 1936-1972 (0.1 linear feet; Box 5)
- Series 7: Unprocessed Addition, (1.8 linear feet; Box 7-9)
Scope and Contents
The papers of museum director Perry Townsend Rathbone measure 6.1 linear feet and date from 1929 to 2022. The papers document Rathbone's career as museum director of the City Art Museum of St. Louis and the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, and his later work with Christie's New York office. Found within the papers are biographical materials, correspondence with friends and colleagues, writings, professional and project files, printed materials, and photographs, mostly of exhibitions.
Biographical materials contain curriculum vitae, biographical sketches, citations for honorary degrees and for Rathbone's appointment as Chevalier of the French Legion of Honor, a passport, a transcript of an interview with Rathbone and articles written by others about Rathbone, including one by S. Lane Faison.
Correspondence is with Rathbone's friends and colleagues. Notable correspondents include Max Beckmann, Xavier Gonzalez, Hanns Swarzenski, Curt Valentin, Jane Sabersky, William R. Valentiner, and Marian Willard, among others. Rathbone knew several art historians and conservators who served in the U.S. Army as members of the Monuments, Fine Arts and Archives Section, also known as the Monuments Men. Correspondence with these colleagues is arranged together as a subseries and includes correspondence with S. Lane Faison, Thomas Carr Howe, Lamont Moore, Charles Parkhurst, Andrew Ritchie, George Leslie Stout, and Otto Wittman. Most of the correspondence with other Monuments Men is post World War II.
Writings by Rathbone consist of student papers, typescript drafts of articles and entries for exhibition catalogs, notes and notebooks from European trips, and lectures.
Professional files encompass a range of documents related to Rathbone's museum directorships, projects, travels and professional affiliations. The folders about his work at the City Art Museum of St. Louis and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston include correspondence, reports, meeting minutes, press releases and notes. There are also folders on specific projects such as the renovation of the historic Dederer-Blodgett House and Rathbone's membership on various art commissions and committees. Also found within this series are correspondence, notebooks, receipts, itineraries and vouchers for Rathbone's business trips to Europe and other locations while working for the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.
Printed materials include news clippings, articles, press releases, a few art magazines and exhibition catalogues, and invitations to events. There are also black and white photographs of exhibitions, including a Max Beckmann exhibit, and a few images of Rathbone.
There is a 1.8 linear foot unprocessed addition to this collection donated in 2023 that includesfiles on exhibitions, speeches, lectures; files on artists; slides and photographs of works of art; correspondence; writings by Belinda Rathbone and others. Materials date from circa 1940-2022.
Preferred Citation
Perry Townsend Rathbone papers, 1929-2022. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Perry Townsend Rathbone donated his papers to the Archives of American Art in 1977 and 1988. Additional material donated by the heirs to Parry T. Rathbone represented by his daughter, Belinda Rathbone, in 2023.
Terms of Use
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
Biographical / Historical
Perry Townsend Rathbone (1911-2000) was a prominent museum director who worked primarily in Boston and New York City. He was an early supporter of German Expressionism in America.
Rathbone was director of the City Art Museum of St. Louis from 1940-1955, moving on to direct the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston from 1954-1972, where he led a period of extensive reform. After retiring from the museum, he worked for one year for the Chase Manhattan Bank as an art consultant. Rathbone worked as director and senior vice president of Christies USA auction house from 1973-1987. After 1987, he continued working at Christies as a consultant.
Rathbone was born in Germantown, Pennsylvania on July 3, 1911 and grew up in New Rochelle, New York. He attended Harvard College, majoring in Art History and graduating in 1933. He then completed the graduate "museum course" taught by Professor Paul Sachs in 1934. The Paul Sachs museum course was famous for cultivating future directors at some of this country's most prestigious museums. After Harvard, Rathbone was appointed as curator of Alger House (later renamed the Grosse Pointe War Memorial), a branch of the Detroit Institute of Arts. Rathbone directed the ''Masterpieces of Art'' exhibit at the 1939 New York World's Fair. The success of the exhibit led to his appointment as director of the City Art Museum of St. Louis, Missouri in 1940 at the age of 29, making him the youngest American museum director at the time.
During World War II, Rathbone served in the U.S. Navy from late 1942-1945. He was a commissioned officer in charge of the Navy Art and Poster Section, Office of Public Relations in Washington, D.C. He supervised five Navy "combat artists," who painted naval battles and depicted the daily lives of soldiers. He also served as an officer in New Calcedonia. He separated from service as a Lieutenant Commander in late 1945. This collection does not contain records directly related to his military service. In 1945 Rathbone married Euretta de Cosson while on leave in Washington, D.C. They had three children together: Peter, Eliza, and Belinda.
Rathbone resumed his position as the director of the City Art Museum of St. Louis after the war. The Detroit Institute of Arts director William R. Valentiner introduced Rathbone to German Expressionism. Rathbone helped the German Expressionist painter Max Beckmann, labeled a ''degenerate artist'' by Hitler, and his wife immigrate to America and then arranged a teaching position for Beckmann at Washington University. Rathbone and Beckmann became close, and in 1948, Rathbone organized a Beckmann retrospective at the City Art Museum. Beckmann made a portrait of Rathbone and one of his wife Euretta. Rathbone gave the eulogy at Beckmann's funeral in 1950.
In 1955 Rathbone became the director of the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) in Boston. During his tenure there he expanded the museum by 80,000 square feet, doubled the staff, and oversaw the renovations of 57 of the Museum's 189 galleries. He mounted exhibitions of Rembrandt, Matisse, Modigliani, Cezanne, van Gogh and Courbet. The Boston Museum's first acquisitions of Pablo Picasso, Alexander Calder, Constantine Brancusi, Paul Klee, Alberto Giacometti and other works by 20th-century artists occurred under Rathbone's directorship. Rathbone also served as curator of paintings and wrote the catalog essays for many of the museum's exhibitions. Working with Frances Weeks Hallowell, he established the first "Ladies Committee" for the museum, which substantially increased membership. He was appointed as Chevalier de Légion d'Honneur by the French government in 1964.
In 1969, the Museum of Fine Arts purchased what was believed to be a Raphael portrait of Eleonora Gonzaga, 1505, from a Genoa art dealer. The work was meant to be the highlight of the museum's centennial celebration. However controversy arose when the Italian government alleged that the work was smuggled out of the country and the museum was forced to return the painting to the Italian government. The situation caused Rathbone to resign in 1972.
At the request of David Rockefeller, Rathbone became an art consultant to Chase Manhattan Bank for one year. In 1973, he became director of Christie's auction house in New York and senior vice president in 1977, working there until 1987, when he retired but still worked as a consultant.
Perry Townsend Rathbone died on January 22, 2000 at the age of 88.
Processing Information
This collection was fully processed by Rihoko Ueno in October 2012 with funding provided by the Samuel H. Kress Foundation.
Related Materials
The Archives of American Art also holds an oral history interview of Perry Townsend Rathbone conducted in 1975-1976 by Paul Cummings for the Archives of American Art's oral history program.
Conditions Governing Use
The donor has retained all intellectual property rights, including copyright, that they may own in the following material: Art is for Everyone: The Life and Times of Perry T. Rathbone by Belinda Rathbone, 2022.
Transcripts
Photographs
Interviews
Museum directors -- Massachusetts -- Boston
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
Wittmann, Otto, 1911-2001
Allied Forces. Supreme Headquarters. Monuments, Fine Arts and Archives Section
Ritchie, Andrew Carnduff
Stout, George L. (George Leslie)
Faison, S. Lane (Samson Lane), 1907-2006
Howe, Thomas Carr, 1904-1994
Valentiner, Wilhelm Reinhold, 1880-1958
Gonzalez, Xavier, 1898-1993
Willard, Marian, 1904-
Swarzenski, Hanns, 1903-1985
Valentin, Curt, 1902-1954
Sabersky, Jane, 1911-1983
Christie, Manson & Woods International Inc.
Beckmann, Max, 1884-1950
City Art Museum of St. Louis
Moore, Lamont
Parkhurst, Charles
Biographical Materials
Series 1
Archival Resource Key
0.1 Linear feet
Box 1
1930-1982
Scope and Contents
This series contains Rathbone's curriculum vitaes; a Harvard textbook; biographical and autobiographical sketches; citations for honorary degrees from various universities and for his appointment as Chevalier of the French Legion of Honor; a passport and passport photographs; a transcript of an interview with Rathbone; articles about his professional achievements; and an obituary for his mother Beatrice Connely Rathbone.
Arrangement
The documents are arranged chronologically with the curriculum vitae grouped together at the start of the series.
Curriculum Vitae
Archival Resource Key
circa 1940
1
1
Curriculum Vitae
Archival Resource Key
1945
1
2
Curriculum Vitae
Archival Resource Key
circa 1967
1
3
Curriculum Vitae
Archival Resource Key
circa 1982
1
4
Harvard Fine Arts 1d Textbook
Archival Resource Key
1930
1
5
Commemorative Poems
Archival Resource Key
circa 1956
circa 1972
1
6
Short Bio for Harvard's 25th Annual Report
Archival Resource Key
1958
1
7
Northeastern University Honorary Degree
Archival Resource Key
1960
1
8
Beatrice Connely Rathbone Obituary
Archival Resource Key
1960
1
9
Scope and Contents
Beatrice Connely Rathbone was Perry T. Rathbone's mother.
Passport Photos
Archival Resource Key
circa 1962
1
10
Passport
Archival Resource Key
1962-1967
1
11
Who's Who in America Biographical Sketch
Archival Resource Key
1962
1966
German.
1
12
Chevalier of the Legion of Honor Citation
Archival Resource Key
1965
1
13
"How to Become an Art Collector" by Leona Rubin
Archival Resource Key
1966
1
14
Scope and Contents
Article about Perry T. Rathbone.
Transcript of Interview with Perry Rathbone
Archival Resource Key
1967
1
15
Short Bio for Harvard 35th Anniversary Report
Archival Resource Key
circa 1968
1
16
Suffolk University Honorary Degree
Archival Resource Key
1969
1
17
"MFA Boston: The Rathbone Years" by S. Lane Faison
Archival Resource Key
circa 1971
1
18
National Cyclopedia of American Biography Profile
Archival Resource Key
circa 1972
1
19
Professional Profile for WBOS Radio
Archival Resource Key
1972
1
20
Correspondence
Series 2
Archival Resource Key
1.1 Linear feet
Box 1-2
1940-1985
Scope and Contents
Correspondence is with friends, colleagues, and members of U.S. Army's Monuments, Fine Arts & Archives Section who went on to successful careers in the arts after World War II. The bulk of the correspondence is related to Rathbone's work as a museum director and dates from after the war. Correspondents include the German Expressionist painter Max Beckmann, Detroit Institute of the Arts director William R. Valentiner, Harvard professor Paul Sachs, Boston Museum of Fine Arts curator Hanns Swarzenski, and many others. A letter from Beatrice Connely Rathbone, Rathbone's mother, is the only family correspondence. Also found here are scattered letters from fellow art historians who served as Monuments Men during World War II, although the bulk of the letters post date the war.
Arrangement
Correspondence is arranged in alphabetical order according to surname. Correspondents with fewer than three letters are grouped in general alphabetical folders at the end of the subseries. The last folder of unidentified correspondence contains letters from individuals whose names were illegible or their surnames were not included in the text.
Attwill, J. Sanger
Archival Resource Key
1955
1
21
Bachrach, Bradford
Archival Resource Key
1970
1
22
Bartholet, E. Ives
Archival Resource Key
1965
1
23
Beckmann, Max and Quappi
Archival Resource Key
1947-1955
1
24
Bickford, Nathaniel J.
Archival Resource Key
1969-1970
1
25
Boggis, B. S.
Archival Resource Key
1954
1940
1
26
Carre, Louis
Archival Resource Key
1972-1973
1954-1955
1
27
Cavallo, Adolph S.
Archival Resource Key
1954
1972
1
28
Coates, Thomas
Archival Resource Key
1970
1
29
Cogswell, Margaret
Archival Resource Key
1963-1965
1
30
Congdon, William
Archival Resource Key
1951
1
31
Coolidge, John
Archival Resource Key
1973-1975
1
32
Coremans, Paul
Archival Resource Key
1955
1
33
Cox, Jan
Archival Resource Key
1973-1976
1
34
Crawford, (Lord)
Archival Resource Key
1972
1
35
Cummings, Willard W.
Archival Resource Key
1961-1969
1
36
Cunningham, Charles C.
Archival Resource Key
1954
1972-1980
1
37
Deely, James Sedgwick
Archival Resource Key
1970-1972
1
38
DeNormandie, Alice
Archival Resource Key
1969
1
39
Dmitri, Ivan
Archival Resource Key
1964-1965
1
40
Douglas, R. Langton
Archival Resource Key
circa 1940
1
41
Eastman, John, Jr.
Archival Resource Key
1969-1972
1
42
Eaton, Violet
Archival Resource Key
1964-1965
1
43
Ede, H. S.
Archival Resource Key
1951-1954
1971-1982
1
44
Eisendrath, Willliam N., Jr.
Archival Resource Key
1954-1955
1972
1
45
Evans, Arthur R., Jr.
Archival Resource Key
1972
1
46
Faison, S. Lane
Archival Resource Key
1970
1
47
Fenton, John E.
Archival Resource Key
1969
1
48
Fourcade, Xavier
Archival Resource Key
1967
1
49
Goepel, Erhard
Archival Resource Key
1953-1955
1
50
Griswold, James W.
Archival Resource Key
1973
1980
1
51
Hallstein, Walter
Archival Resource Key
1957
1
52
Harriman, Marie N.
Archival Resource Key
1940
1
53
Harris, Paul S.
Archival Resource Key
1954-1955
1971-1972
1
54
Hatch, Francis W.
Archival Resource Key
1965-1973
1
55
Hayes, Bartlett H.
Archival Resource Key
1946-1954
1969
1
56
Hofer, Phil
Archival Resource Key
1954
1
57
Hood, Gilbert H.
Archival Resource Key
1968-1969
1
58
Howe, Thomas Carr
Archival Resource Key
1954-1957
1969-1972
1
59
Hurwitz, Sidney
Archival Resource Key
1967
1
60
Jerichow, John H.
Archival Resource Key
1972-1973
1
61
Katz, Ralph
Archival Resource Key
1967
1
62
Kefauver, Nancy P.
Archival Resource Key
1965-1967
1
63
Kelleher, Patrick J.
Archival Resource Key
1969
1
64
Kennedy, Edward M.
Archival Resource Key
1970
1
65
Kligerman, Joshua
Archival Resource Key
1965-1966
1
66
Kokoschka, Oskar
Archival Resource Key
1954
1946
1
67
Ladd, S. Parker, II
Archival Resource Key
1965
1
68
Lenart, Gertrude
Archival Resource Key
1954
1
69
Leylan, Robert M.
Archival Resource Key
1954-1955
1972
1
70
Lipman, Jean
Archival Resource Key
1946
1964-1965
1
71
Loevenich, Karl
Archival Resource Key
1970-1971
1
72
Low, Frank H.
Archival Resource Key
1960-1961
1
73
Luckey, Laura
Archival Resource Key
1973-1977
1
74
Marini, Marino
Archival Resource Key
1954
1
75
McAndrew, John
Archival Resource Key
1970
1972
1
76
McCrae, Stephen R.
Archival Resource Key
1971-1972
1
77
McIlhenny, Henry P.
Archival Resource Key
1969-1973
1
78
Mittwer, Henry
Archival Resource Key
1970
1
79
Moore, Fanny H.
Archival Resource Key
1955
1972
1
80
Moore, Henry
Archival Resource Key
1971-1975
1954
1
81
Moore, Lamont
Archival Resource Key
1954
1
82
Muller, Rene
Archival Resource Key
circa 1940
1
83
Nagel, Charles
Archival Resource Key
1972
circa 1950-1954
1
84
Osgood, William B.
Archival Resource Key
1970-1978
1
85
Parkhurst, Charles P.
Archival Resource Key
1954
1
86
Peabody, James
Archival Resource Key
1975
1973
1
87
Phillips, Charles F.
Archival Resource Key
1963
1
88
Plaut, James S.
Archival Resource Key
1940-1957
1982
1
89
Plaut, James S.
Pope, John and Annemarie
Archival Resource Key
1954
1966-1973
1
90
Price, Lucien
Archival Resource Key
1955
1
91
Proctor, Dorothy
Archival Resource Key
1963-1968
1
92
Rathbone, Beatrice Connely
Archival Resource Key
circa 1954
1
93
Read, Helen Appleton
Archival Resource Key
1972
1954
1
94
Redmond, Roland L.
Archival Resource Key
1972-1973
1
95
Ritchie, Andrew
Archival Resource Key
1954
1
96
Robinson, Frederick B.
Archival Resource Key
1940-1972
1
97
Roth, Frank
Archival Resource Key
1975
1
98
Ross, Marvin C.
Archival Resource Key
1954
1
99
Sabersky, Jane
Archival Resource Key
circa 1942-1954
1971
1
100
Sachs, Paul J.
Archival Resource Key
1954-1955
1
101
Sayre, Eleanor
Archival Resource Key
1973-977
1
102
Schaeffer, H. S.
Archival Resource Key
1954
1
103
Schmidt, A. W.
Archival Resource Key
1962-1963
1
104
Schmidt, Robert
Archival Resource Key
1968-1973
1
105
Schroeder, Margaretta Oliver
Archival Resource Key
1963
1
106
Seldis, Henry J.
Archival Resource Key
1973
1
107
Sere, Claude
Archival Resource Key
1969-1973
1
108
Seybolt, George C.
Archival Resource Key
1969-1972
1
109
Sickman, Laurence
Archival Resource Key
1954
1
110
Sizer, Theodore
Archival Resource Key
circa 1940
1954-1955
1
111
Speyer, Gerard W.
Archival Resource Key
1962-1963
1
112
Stoll, Germaine
Archival Resource Key
1968
1
113
Stout, George Leslie
Archival Resource Key
1954-1971
1
114
Swarzenski, Hanns
Archival Resource Key
1971-1985
1954-1956
1
115
Taylor, Francis Henry
Archival Resource Key
1954
1
116
Trovato, Joseph S.
Archival Resource Key
1961-1962
1
118
Thiry, Gertrude
Archival Resource Key
1957
1
117
Valentin, Curt
Archival Resource Key
circa 1940-1954
1
119
Valentiner, William R.
Archival Resource Key
circa 1940-1942
1954
1
120
Vermeule, Cornelius C.
Archival Resource Key
1972-1973
1
121
de Vries, A. B.
Archival Resource Key
1968-1972
1
122
Whitehill, Walter Muir
Archival Resource Key
1954-1955
1
123
Willard, Marian
Archival Resource Key
1944
1
124
Wittman, Otto
Archival Resource Key
1969-1973
1
125
Wragg, Thomas S.
Archival Resource Key
1964-1965
1
126
Yamaguchi, Seiichi
Archival Resource Key
1972-1978
1
127
Yamanaka, Shoji
Archival Resource Key
1973
1969
1
128
A-B
Archival Resource Key
1940-1977
1
129
C-D
Archival Resource Key
1940-1978
1
130
E-G
Archival Resource Key
1954-1982
1
131
H-K
Archival Resource Key
circa 1940-1985
2
1
L-M
Archival Resource Key
circa 1940-1985
2
2
N-P
Archival Resource Key
circa 1940-1985
2
3
R-S
Archival Resource Key
circa 1940-1985
2
4
T-Z
Archival Resource Key
circa 1940-1985
2
5
Unidentified Correspondents
Archival Resource Key
circa 1940-1985
2
6
Scope and Contents
The letter sent by Mike (last name unknown) on September 1, 1980 includes color photographs of Perry T. Rathbone.
Writings
Series 3
Archival Resource Key
0.8 Linear feet
Box 2
1929-1967
Scope and Contents
Writings include Rathbone's student papers from Harvard, both his college courses and graduate "museum course" taught by Paul Sachs; typescript drafts of essays he wrote for exhibition catalogues, magazines, journals and memorial services; and lectures for various events at universities, symposiums, etc.
Arrangement
This series is arranged as 3 subseries:
Missing Title
- 3.1: Student Papers, 1929-1934
- 3.2: Typescript Drafts, 1940-1967
- 3.3: Lectures, circa 1937-circa 1963
Student Papers
3.1
Archival Resource Key
1929-1934
Fine Arts 15b: Exercises in Methods and Progress Papers
Archival Resource Key
1929-1934
2
7
Book Reviews
Archival Resource Key
1929-1934
2
8
"A Winslow Homer at the Fogg"
Archival Resource Key
1929-1934
2
9
"Reports on the Worcester Museum, The Rhode Island School of Design, and Fenway Court"
Archival Resource Key
1929-1934
2
10
"The First Masterpiece of Augustus Saint-Gaudens: A ten minute radio talk"
Archival Resource Key
1929-1934
2
11
"The Problem of Juan de Burgos"
Archival Resource Key
1929-1934
2
12
"Two Panels from the High Altarpiece of Santa Maria del Mar, Barcelona"
Archival Resource Key
1929-1934
2
13
"The Greek Revival in America"
Archival Resource Key
1929-1934
2
14
"Analysis of a Thesis for Professor Post"
Archival Resource Key
1929-1934
2
15
"The History of French Furniture in the 18th Century"
Archival Resource Key
1931
2
16
"The Iconography of Several Paintings in the Fogg Museum and the Boston Museum of Fine Arts"
Archival Resource Key
1932
2
17
"The Style of Carlo Crivelli"
Archival Resource Key
1932
2
18
"The Romanesque Facade in Tuscany"
Archival Resource Key
1933
2
19
"A Catalan Triptych at Fenway Court"
Archival Resource Key
1934
2
20
"The Madonna of Mercy from the Cathedral of Teruel"
Archival Resource Key
1934
2
21
"Siena, Italy"
Archival Resource Key
1934
2
22
"The So-Called Portrait of Ascencio Julia in the Fogg Museum"
Archival Resource Key
1934
2
23
Typescript Drafts
3.2
Archival Resource Key
1940-1967
Scope and Contents
Arranged here are mostly typescript drafts of articles and essays for magazines, journals, newspapers, exhibition catalogues, museum bulletins, and a few memorial speeches for friends and colleagues. Many drafts include edits and marginalia. A few folders hold multiple drafts of an article.
"Landmarks in Modern German Art Expression"
Archival Resource Key
1940
2
24
"The Housekeeper by Nicholas Maes"
Archival Resource Key
circa 1945
2
25
Writings from the City Art Museum, St. Louis
Archival Resource Key
1946-1947
2
26
Writings from the City Art Museum, St. Louis
Archival Resource Key
1948
2
27
Writings from the City Art Museum, St. Louis
Archival Resource Key
1949
2
28
"The Art of the Mississippi"
Archival Resource Key
1949
2
29
"Taste in St. Louis," St. Louis Dispatch 75th Anniversary
Archival Resource Key
1953
2
30
Article for The Christian Science Monitor
Archival Resource Key
1958
2
31
Miscellaneous Forewords
Archival Resource Key
1960-1967
2
32
"George Catlin," Art in America
Archival Resource Key
1961
2
33
Article for Arts of Virginia Spring Issue
Archival Resource Key
1961
2
34
Articles for Boston Museum of Fine Arts Bulletins
Archival Resource Key
1961-1963
2
35
Article about Adelyn Breeskin in the Baltimore Museum News Quarterly
Archival Resource Key
1962
2
36
"The Stylistic Development and Symbolism of Max Beckmann"
Archival Resource Key
1964
2
37
"Copley's Corkscrew," Art in America
Archival Resource Key
1964-1965
2
38
Max Beckmann Biography for the Encyclopedia Americana
Archival Resource Key
1965
2
39
Memo for Sunday Advertiser
Archival Resource Key
1965
2
40
Obituary for Robert Treat Paine
Archival Resource Key
1965
2
41
"Paul J. Sachs as Teacher," St. Louis Post Dispatch
Archival Resource Key
1965
2
42
"Photography in the Fine Arts"
Archival Resource Key
1965
2
43
"Museums in the Boston Area"
Archival Resource Key
1965
2
44
Introduction for the 1968 Scientific Seminar Catalogue
Archival Resource Key
1967
2
45
Article for Boston Institute of Contemporary Art "5 Museum Directors' Selections" Exhibit
Archival Resource Key
1967
2
46
Henry Preston Rossiter
Archival Resource Key
1967
2
47
Andrew Wyeth
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970
2
48
Introduction to Painting Catalogue
Archival Resource Key
1970
2
49
Henry Rossiter Memorial
Archival Resource Key
1977
2
50
George Leslie Stout Memorial
Archival Resource Key
1978
2
51
Max Beckmann Memorial
Archival Resource Key
circa 1955
2
52
Scope and Contents
Handwritten draft
Rogier van der Wyden
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970
2
53
Scope and Contents
Handwritten notes.
Lectures
3.3
Archival Resource Key
circa 1937-circa 1963
Scope and Contents
The lectures in this subseries span the course of Rathbone's career from the Detroit Institute of the Arts and the St. Louis City Art Museum to the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. The lectures are mostly about exhibitions in addition to a few about Max Beckmann. There is one lecture by Max Beckmann at the end of the subseries.
"The Spirit of the Renaissance" at the Detroit Institute of the Arts
Archival Resource Key
circa 1937-1939
2
54
"The City Art Museum of St. Louis"
Archival Resource Key
1940-1955
2
55
Installation of the City Art Museum Period Rooms
Archival Resource Key
1940-1955
2
56
Untitled Lecture about "matching art and music"
Archival Resource Key
circa 1945-circa 1963
2
57
"Max Beckmann"
Archival Resource Key
1949
2
58
"Staging the Mississippi Panorama"
Archival Resource Key
circa 1950
2
59
"Life on the Mississippi" Drafts
Archival Resource Key
circa 1950
2
60
Inauguration of The Friends of the City Art Museum Group
Archival Resource Key
circa 1952
2
61
"Max Beckmann in America"
Archival Resource Key
1962
2
62
"Letters to a Woman Painter"
Archival Resource Key
1948
2
63
Scope and Contents
Lecture by Max Beckmann.
Professional Files
Series 4
Archival Resource Key
2 Linear feet
Box 2-4, OV 6
1938-1984
Scope and Contents
Professional files concern Rathbone's directorship of the St. Louis City Art Museum and the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, business trips abroad, special projects, and his affiliations with various arts commissions and arts organizations. Rathbone took a "European Trip" every year to view artwork and potential acquisitions for the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. These travel folders include receipts, lists of contacts and hotels, notebooks and itineraries. Also found are documents concerning the George Caleb Bingham drawings dispute, the historic Dederer-Blodgett house restoration, the New York World's Fair "Masterpieces of Art" exhibition, and work done in association with the Massachusetts Art Commission and the Chase Manhattan Bank Art Program. The files hold a range of documents such as correspondence, meeting minutes, reports, inventories, and notes.
Arrangement
Files are arranged alphabetically by the museum name or project title, and chronologically within each grouping.
Boston Museum of Fine Arts Files
Archival Resource Key
2
Congratulations Letters
Archival Resource Key
1954-1955
1951
2
64
Critiques by Busch-Reisinger Museum Course Students
Archival Resource Key
1955
2
65
Correspondence
Archival Resource Key
1955-1956
2
66
Correspondence
Archival Resource Key
1960-1970
3
1
Correspondence about Resignation
Archival Resource Key
1971
3
2
Correspondence
Archival Resource Key
1972-1976
3
3
Memorandums
Archival Resource Key
1969-1971
3
4
Press Releases
Archival Resource Key
1971
3
5
Board of Trustees Annual Meeting Minutes
Archival Resource Key
1970-1972
3
6
Board of Trustees Informal Meeting Minutes
Archival Resource Key
1971
3
7
Executive Committee Meeting Minutes
Archival Resource Key
1971-1972
3
8
List of Candidates for New Director Search
Archival Resource Key
1972
3
9
Notes
Archival Resource Key
1955-1972
3
10
Raphael Portrait Correspondence
Archival Resource Key
1969-1975
3
11
Raphael Portrait Multiple Drafts of "Statement of Facts"
Archival Resource Key
1972
3
12
Raphael Portrait Multiple Drafts of "A History of Its Acquisition"
Archival Resource Key
1972
3
13
Boston Museum of Fine Art Annual European Business Trips
Archival Resource Key
3
1956 Trip, Correspondence and Itineraries
Archival Resource Key
1955-1956
3
14
1957 Trip, Correspondence and Itineraries
Archival Resource Key
1957
3
15
1957 Trip, Receipts
Archival Resource Key
1957
3
16
1959-1965 Trips, Correspondence and Itineraries
Archival Resource Key
1959-1965
3
17
1966 Trip, Correspondence and Itineraries
Archival Resource Key
1966
3
18
1966 Trip, Receipts
Archival Resource Key
1966
3
19
1966 Trip, Notebook
Archival Resource Key
1966
3
20
1967 Trip, Correspondence and Itineraries
Archival Resource Key
1967
3
21
1967 Trip, Receipts
Archival Resource Key
1967
3
22
1968 Trip, Correspondence and Itineraries
Archival Resource Key
1968
3
23
1968 Trip, Receipts
Archival Resource Key
1968
3
24
1969 Trip, Correspondence and Itineraries
Archival Resource Key
1969
3
25
1969 Trip, Receipts
Archival Resource Key
1969
3
26
1969 Trip, Notebook
Archival Resource Key
1969
3
27
1970 Trip, Correspondence and Itineraries (1 of 2)
Archival Resource Key
1970
3
28
1970 Trip, Correspondence and Itineraries (2 of 2)
Archival Resource Key
1970
3
29
1970 Trip, Receipts
Archival Resource Key
1970
3
30
Boston Museum of Fine Art Business Trips
Archival Resource Key
3
U.S. Trips
Archival Resource Key
1962-1965
3
31
U.S. Trips
Archival Resource Key
1965-1969
3
32
Scope and Contents
Oversized material housed in OV 6, Folder 1.
U.S. Trips
Archival Resource Key
1970-1972
3
33
Russia Trip: Correspondence
Archival Resource Key
1963
3
34
Russia Trip: Receipts
Archival Resource Key
circa 1966
3
35
Mexico Trip: Correspondence and Itineraries
Archival Resource Key
1967-1968
3
36
Washington Trip
Archival Resource Key
1968-1970
3
37
San Francisco Trip: Correspondence and Itineraries
Archival Resource Key
1968-1970
3
38
Egypt-Switzerland Trip: Correspondence and Itineraries
Archival Resource Key
1970
3
39
Egypt-Switzerland Trip: Receipts
Archival Resource Key
1970
3
40
Greek Cruise
Archival Resource Key
1970-1971
3
41
Japan Trip
Archival Resource Key
1971-1972
3
42
Boston Musem of Fine Arts Vouchers
Archival Resource Key
7 Folders
1955-1961
3
43-49
Boston Museum of Fine Art Vouchers
Archival Resource Key
9 Folders
1962-1970
4
1-9
Brooks Memorial Art Gallery 9th Mid South Exhibition
Archival Resource Key
1964
4
10
Cambridge Arts Council
Archival Resource Key
1979
4
11
Chase Manhattan Bank Art Program
Archival Resource Key
4
Correspondence
Archival Resource Key
1965
1971-1973
4
12
Inventory
Archival Resource Key
circa 1972
4
13
Draft of Final Report
Archival Resource Key
1973
4
14
Final Report
Archival Resource Key
1973
4
15
Miscellaneous
Archival Resource Key
1967
1971-1972
4
16
City Art Museum of St. Louis
Archival Resource Key
1940-1945
1954
4
17
City Art Museum of St. Louis: "Art for Your Sake" Transcript of Interview with Charles Nagel, Jr.
Archival Resource Key
circa 1942
4
18
Scope and Contents
Transcript of radio interview with Charles Nagel, Jr. for the City Art Museum's "Art for Your Sake" program.
Ford Foundation
Archival Resource Key
1969-1971
4
19
George Caleb Bingham Drawings Dispute
Archival Resource Key
1974-1975
4
20
Scope and Contents
Oversized material housed in OV 6, Folder 2.
Gilbert Stuart Portraits Dispute: Correspondence
Archival Resource Key
1979
4
21
Gilber Stuart Drawings Dispute: Fund Raising Speech
Archival Resource Key
1979
4
22
Gilbert Stuart Portraits Dispute: News Clippings
Archival Resource Key
1979
4
23
Hanns Swarzenski Festschrift
Archival Resource Key
1973
4
24
Historic Dederer-Blodgett House Preservation
Archival Resource Key
4
Engineering Report
Archival Resource Key
circa 1979
4
25
Sales Contract
Archival Resource Key
1979
4
26
News Clippings
Archival Resource Key
1979-1982
4
27
Floor Plans
Archival Resource Key
1980
4
28
Scope and Contents
Oversized material housed in OV 6, Folder 3.
Correspondence
Archival Resource Key
1980-1982
4
29
Bryden-Trozze AIA
Archival Resource Key
1981-1982
4
30
Infrared Energy Scanners, Inc. Report
Archival Resource Key
1983
4
31
Insurance Policy
Archival Resource Key
1983-1984
4
32
Rental Agreement
Archival Resource Key
1984
4
33
Massachusetts Art Commission
Archival Resource Key
4
Correspondence
Archival Resource Key
1965-1968
1975-1978
4
34
Scope and Contents
Oversized material housed in OV 6, Folder 4.
Meeting Minutes
Archival Resource Key
1965-1977
4
35
Reports
Archival Resource Key
1964-1966
4
36
News Clippings
Archival Resource Key
1964-1965
4
37
1939 New York World's Fair, "Masterpieces of Art" Exhibition
Archival Resource Key
4
Correspondence
Archival Resource Key
1938-1939
4
38
Lecture
Archival Resource Key
1939
4
39
Meeting Minutes
Archival Resource Key
1939
4
40
Printed Materials
Archival Resource Key
1939
4
41
"Paintings by Horatio Shaw" Exhibition: Copies of Horatio Shaw's Letters
Archival Resource Key
circa 1940
4
42
"Paintings by Horatio Shaw" Exhibition: List and Essay
Archival Resource Key
1940
4
43
Rhode Island School of Design Visiting Committee Reports
Archival Resource Key
1968
4
44
Wellesley College Friends of Art Meeting Minutes
Archival Resource Key
1965
4
45
Oversized Exhibition Poster
Archival Resource Key
1966
OV 6
1
Scope and Contents
Oversized material from Box 3, Folder 32.
Oversized News Clipping
Archival Resource Key
1974
OV 6
2
Scope and Contents
Oversized material from Box 4, Folder 20.
Oversized Floor Plans
Archival Resource Key
1980
OV 6
3
Scope and Contents
Oversized material from Box 4, Folder 28.
Oversized Massachusetts Art Commission Certificate
Archival Resource Key
1965
OV 6
4
Scope and Contents
Oversized material from Box 4, Folder 34.
Printed Materials
Series 5
Archival Resource Key
0.2 Linear feet
Box 4-5, OV 6
1954-1975
Scope and Contents
Printed materials include press releases, news clippings, bulletins, magazines, exhibition catalogues, articles and event invitations.
Catalogue for Exhibition in Memory of Curt Valentin
Archival Resource Key
1954
4
46
News Clippings
Archival Resource Key
1954
1958-1975
4
47
Scope and Contents
Oversized material housed in OV 6, Folder 5.
Lee Gatch Monograph
Archival Resource Key
1960
4
48
Press Releases
Archival Resource Key
1960
4
49
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Bulletin
Archival Resource Key
1961
4
50
Arts in Virginia
Archival Resource Key
1961
4
51
Arts Magazine
Archival Resource Key
1964
5
1
John S. Newberry Biography
Archival Resource Key
circa 1965
5
2
Scope and Contents
Oversized material housed in OV 6, Folder 6.
Magazine Articles by Perry T. Rathbone
Archival Resource Key
circa 1965
5
3
Lee Gatch Exhibition Catalogue
Archival Resource Key
1965
5
4
Programs for Various Events
Archival Resource Key
1966-1972
5
5
Event Invitations
Archival Resource Key
circa 1967-1971
5
6
Skowhegan School 26th Anniversary Dinner Program and Newsletter
Archival Resource Key
1972
5
7
Oversized News Clippings
Archival Resource Key
1968
OV 6
5
Scope and Contents
Oversized material from Box 4, Folder 47.
Oversized John S. Newberry Biography
Archival Resource Key
circa 1965
OV 6
6
Scope and Contents
Oversized material from Box 5, Folder 2.
Photographs
Series 6
Archival Resource Key
0.1 Linear feet
Box 5, 10 folders
1936-1972
Scope and Contents
Found here are photographs of Perry Rathbone and several exhibitions. There is one folder with a handful of portrait photographs of Rathbone. The bulk of the images are of exhibitions including the "Masterpieces of Art" exhibition at the New York World's Fair, a German Expressionist exhibition, and a Max Beckmann exhibition. The exhibitions took place at various galleries such as the Buccholz Gallery, the Curt Valentin Gallery and the Willard Gallery. There is also one photograph of a drawing by Alexander Calder titled "Just 2 Girls from Phillie."
Personal Photographs
Archival Resource Key
1936
1966-1970
5
8
"Masterpieces of Art" Exhibition, New York World's Fair
Archival Resource Key
1939
5
9
Klee Exhibition, Buccholz Gallery
Archival Resource Key
1948
5
10
German Expressionist Exhibition, Curt Valentin Gallery
Archival Resource Key
circa 1950
5
11
Alexander Calder Drawing, "Just 2 Girls from Phillie"
Archival Resource Key
circa 1950-1972
5
12
Max Beckmann Exhibition, Curt Valentin Gallery
Archival Resource Key
circa 1952
5
13
Curt Valentin Exhibition Photographs
Archival Resource Key
circa 1953
5
14
Willard Gallery Exhibition
Archival Resource Key
circa 1954
5
15
Buccholz Gallery Exhibition
Archival Resource Key
circa 1954
5
16
Rathbone Judging Spring Mills 13th Annual Art Contest
Archival Resource Key
1971
5
17
Unprocessed Addition
Series 7
Archival Resource Key
1.8 Linear feet
circa 1940-2022
Unprocessed Papers
Archival Resource Key
7
Unprocessed Papers
Archival Resource Key
8
Unprocessed Papers
Archival Resource Key
9