Paintings & Art Objects Collection May 4, 2008

The paintings and art objects that remain in The Morgan Library & Museum were, with a few exceptions, acquired by its founder Pierpont Morgan. The collection represents the merest fraction of his original holdings, most of which were sold or given away following his death in 1913. The largest group, chiefly consisting of several thousand ancient and medieval objects, was given to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1917. The Wadsworth Atheneum in Morgan's native city, Hartford, was another important beneficiary. The pieces that have remained in the Morgan's collection however, were many of Pierpont Morgan's favorite objects.