Existing comment:
Thomas Whittemore 1871–1950
The archaeologist Thomas Whittemore played a leading role in the conservation of the magnificent Byzantine church of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul. While teaching English literature at Tufts University, he became interested in ancient and medieval art, developing a passion for Byzantine art. Whittemore persuaded patrons on both sides of the Atlantic to support projects he developed in Europe and the Middle East. The first of these was the Committee for Relief of Refugees in Russia, which he established in 1916, with the support of Henry Higginson (whose portrait is displayed in the adjacent corridor).
In 1930, Whittemore founded the Byzantine Institute of America in Boston, which later merged with Dumbarton Oaks in Washington, D.C. Whittemore was also an avid collector of early manuscripts and coins, and he gave a large part of his collection to the Fogg Art Museum at Harvard University, where he served as keeper of coins.
Charcoal on paper, 1922
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston; gift from Thomas Whittemore to Isabella Stewart Gardner, 1922–24
This is the National Portrait Gallery sign in the exhibit. |