Type: Art Museums



Library Collection Highlights: Extensive art history collection focusing on Walters' art objects. There are over 50,000 monographs, 250 periodical titles, and 25,000 auction catalogs in the Library.
Library Collection Strengths: Ancient Art, Asian Art, Renaissance and Baroque Art, 18th and 19th century European and American Art, Iluminated Manuscripts and Rare Books, Islamic Art, Medieval Art
Library History: The Library was established by Dorothy Miner, the Walters original curator of manuscripts and rare books. The Research Library soon grew to be a separate entity from the curatorial area of manuscripts. The Library moved into its current space in 1974.
Contact: Nancy Patterson
Title: Head Librarian
E-mail: npatterson@thewalters.org
Telephone: 410-547-9000, x274
Fax: 410-752-4797
Mailing Address: 600 North Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21201-5185



Institution Highlights: The Walters Art Museum is internationally renowned for its collection, which was amassed substantially by two men, William and Henry Walters. The collection presents an overview of world art from pre-dynastic Egypt to 20th-century Europe, and counts among its many treasures Greek sculpture and Roman sarcophagi; medieval ivories and Old Master paintings; Art Deco jewelry and 19th-century masterpieces.
Institution Strengths: Ancient Art, Asian Art, Renaissance and Baroque Art, 18th and 19th century European and American Art, Iluminated Manuscripts and Rare Books, Islamic Art, Medieval Art
Institution History: During the 19th and early 20th centuries, William Thompson Walters and his son, Henry, assembled a diverse range of artworks from around the world from European master paintings and decorative arts to Greek and Roman antiquities and Far Eastern ceramics. Together, they collected nearly 22,000 works of art, building the foundation for a museum that offers an extraordinary survey of 55 centuries.

In September 1900, Henry bought the three houses adjoining the property his father had owned to house and display his collection. He had the site transformed into a palazzo-like building, which opened to the public in 1909. He died in 1931, leaving the building and its contents to the mayor and city council of Baltimore "for the benefit of the public."

The Walters Art Gallery now the Walters Art Museum opened its doors for the first time as a public institution on November 3, 1934. In 1974, a new, larger wing was opened on the corner of Centre and Cathedral streets, adding dramatically to the museum's gallery space. In 1991, the museum opened another building, Hackerman House, which holds the collection of Asian art.

In 1998, the Walters began a major, three-year renovation of its Centre Street Building. The $24-million project was completed in October 2001 and has resulted in an extensive transformation of the largest of the museum's three buildings.
Institution Web site: http://www.thewalters.org