Otto Brendel papers, 1940s-1970

Summary Information

At a Glance

Description

Scope and content

The collection consists of drafts of lectures, unpublished essays, and reprints by Brendel primarily on Etruscan art as well as a complete transcript of Symbolism of the Sphere. Notably, the collection also contains a dossier on the Etruscan Diana scuplture forgery purchased by the The City Art Museum of St. Louis in 1953. Brendel was one of the experts declaring the sculpture to be authentic. The sculpture was later delcared to be a forgery most likely created by Alceo Dossena. The dossier on the forgery contains correspondence, photographs, and reports.

Publication Date

1940s-1970

Using the Collection

Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library

Restrictions on Access

This collection is available for use by appointment in the Department of Drawings & Archives, Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library, Columbia University. For further information and to make an appointment, please email avery-drawings@library.columbia.edu.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Source of acquisition--The collection was donated by Maria Weigert Brendel.

About the Finding Aid / Processing Information

Columbia University Libraries, Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library

Subject Headings

The subject headings listed below are found in this collection. Links below allow searches at Columbia University through the Archival Collections Portal and through CLIO, the catalog for Columbia University Libraries, as well as ArchiveGRID, a catalog that allows users to search the holdings of multiple research libraries and archives.

All links open new windows.

Subject

History / Biographical Note

Biographical / Historical

Otto Brendel (1901-1973) was an art historian and scholar of Etruscan art and archaeology. He held many academic positions in Europe and the United States, the last of which was as a professor at Columbia University, and he was the author of many fundamental books on ancient art.