| description | This article published in The Museum Journal, volume 9, nos. 3 and 4 (Sept.-Dec. 1918) describes the Patty Stuart Jewett Collection of native American basketry, housed in the University of Pennsylvania's University Museum in Philadelphia. Pomo basketry forms the most prominent and distinctive portion of the collection. Curator B. W. Merwin writes, "The late Mrs. H. K. Jewett, of Pasadena, California, a daughter of George H. Stuart, of Philadelphia, was for many years before her death, which took place in 1917, an ardent collector of Indian basketry, beadwork, weavings and silverwork. An admirer of the arts and crafts of the American Indian, Mrs. Jewett assembled her collections with a discriminating consistency, applying to every article a strict test of artistic merit. This critical restraint that guided her choice in each instance makes itself known in the content of the collection, which is one of great excellence. It was Mrs. Jewett's wish that her collection should go to her home city of Philadelphia, and she selected the University Museum to be its permanent custodian. After her death, her husband, Mr. Jewett, carrying out her wishes, presented the collection to the Museum, where it is now exhibited. It will be known permanently as The Patty Stuart Jewett Collection in honor of the lady who created it to illustrate the arts and crafts of the American Indian. It will appeal especially to artists and to students of design, but it illustrates also the wealth of Indian legend, folklore, symbolism and traditions that were crystallized in customs soon to be forgotten." (page 225)
Extracted from the Museum Journal, v. 9, no. 3-4, Sept. Dec. 1918 |
