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Gallery Text

A Legacy of Generosity and Service: Daniel A. Pollack (1939–2019)

Daniel A. Pollack (Harvard College A.B. ’60, University of Oxford M.A. ’62, Harvard Law School LL.B. ’65) pursued his education and passions with remarkable aplomb. One of the foremost trial lawyers in the United States, he also painted watercolors and collected early American paintings and silver. He served on many boards and advisory groups for the Harvard Art Museums, including as longtime chair of the American Art committee until his death. This arcade gallery bears his name along with his wife’s, Susan F. Pollack (Harvard College A.B. ’64, Harvard Law School LL.B. ’67), as a testament to their unflagging support of art and art education.

In 2020, Susan Pollack made a transformative gift of her husband’s collection of 18th-century American silver, to honor his life and his support of American art at Harvard. Most of the works from the gift are in the neighboring case. Six works of ecclesiastical silver are on view in the silver cabinet (Gallery 2340) on this floor. We are grateful for Daniel Pollack’s legacy of generosity and service, which has allowed us to tell a nuanced and hemispheric story of design, global luxury, international trade, and labor.

[2020.185, 2020.188, 2020.190, 2020.191, 2020.192, 2020.193, 2020.196, 2020.198, 2020.199, 2020.201, 2020.202, 2020.204]

Identification and Creation

Object Number
2020.185
People
Benjamin Burt, American (Boston, MA 1729 - 1805 Boston, MA)
Title
Cream Jug
Classification
Vessels
Work Type
vessel
Date
c. 1765
Places
Creation Place: North America, United States, Massachusetts, Boston
Culture
American
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/369960

Location

Location
Level 2, Room 2410, South Arcade
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Physical Descriptions

Medium
Silver
Dimensions
9.5 cm (3 3/4 in.)
85 g
Inscriptions and Marks
  • maker's mark: under base, stamped: B[pellet]BURT [mark of Benjamin Burt]
  • inscription: under base, engraved: G / PA

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
Mr. and Mrs. Eddy Nicholson, sold [through Christie's, New York, January 27-28, 1995, lot 611]. [Firestone and Parson, Boston]. [Sotheby's, New York, January 18, 2003, lot 839]. Daniel and Susan Pollack, gift; to Harvard Art Museums, 2020

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, The Pollack Collection, gift of Daniel A. Pollack AB ’60 and Susan F. Pollack AB ’64
Accession Year
2020
Object Number
2020.185
Division
European and American Art
Contact
am_europeanamerican@harvard.edu
Permissions

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Descriptions

Description
Pear-shaped vessel with a scalloped rim. Trefid feet and handle with opposing scrolls

Publication History

  • The Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Eddy Nicholson, auct. cat., Christie's, New York (New York, January 27, 1995), pp. 21-22, lot no. 611, repr.
  • Jeanne Sloane, Early American Silver in the collection of Daniel A. Pollack, Privately Published (Boston [?], 2019), cat. no. 14, repr.
  • "Harvard Art Museums Receive Important Gift of American Silver", Artfixdaily Artwire ([e-journal], March 22, 2022), https://www.artfixdaily.com/artwire/release/6573-harvard-art-museums-receive-important-gift-of-american-silver, accessed March 24, 2022

Exhibition History

  • 32Q: 2410 South Arcade, Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 07/25/2022 - 01/01/2050

Related Works

Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of European and American Art at am_europeanamerican@harvard.edu