Object Details
- Creator
- Rorimer, James J. (James Joseph), 1905-1966
- Subject
- Valland, Rose
- Rorimer, Katherine S.
- Allied Forces. Supreme Headquarters. Monuments, Fine Arts and Archives Section
- Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.). Board of Trustees
- Cloisters (Museum)
- Place of publication, production, or execution
- United States
- Physical Description
- 2.3 Linear feet
- Arrangement
- The collection is arranged as 7 series: Series 1: Biographical Materials, 1942-1946 (Box 1, 4; 8 folders) Series 2: Correspondence, 1927-1982 (Box 1; 0.1 linear feet) Series 3: Writings, circa 1946-1950 (Box 1; 0.8 linear feet) Series 4: Financial Records, 1943-1946 (Box 1; 1 folder) Series 5: Administrative Files, 1940 (Box 1; 1 folder) Series 6: Photographic Materials, 1921-1966 (Box 1-2, 4; 0.7 linear feet) Series 7: Printed Materials, 1923-1966 (Box 3-4, OV 5-6; 0.7 linear feet)
- Access Note / Rights
- Use of original papers requires an appointment.
- Summary
- The papers of curator and museum director James J. Rorimer measure 2.3 linear feet and date from 1921 to 1982, with the bulk from 1943-1950. The papers include documentation of James J. Rorimer's World War II service in the Monuments, Fine Art and Archives Section of the U.S. Army and his activities protecting historic and cultural sites from bombing, and locating and recovering art work and cultural icons stolen by the Nazis. Found within the papers are scattered biographical materials and correspondence, writings include draft versions of Rorimer's book Safe-Keeping or Survival: The Salvage and Protection of Art in War , financial records, photographic materials including a photo album containing photographs of European art work and cultural sites where Rorimer worked, newsclippings and additional printed materials, and one scrapbook of clippings dating from World War II.
- Citation
- James J. Rorimer papers, 1921-1982, bulk 1943-1950. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
- Additional Forms
- Portions of the collection are available on 35 mm microfilm reels 2800-2802 at the Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan. Researchers should note that the arrangement of the material described in the container inventory does not reflect the arrangement of the collection on microfilm.
- Portions of the collection are available on 35 mm microfilm reels 2800-2802 at the Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan. Researchers should note that the arrangement of the material described in the container inventory does not reflect the arrangement of the collection on microfilm.
- Funding
- Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Samuel H. Kress Foundation.
- Use Note
- The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
- Related Materials
- Among the holdings of the Archives of American is an oral history interview with Anne Rorimer, James' daughter, conducted in 2010 by the Archives of American Art. The Archives also holds the papers of several members of the World War II Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives (MFAA) Section of the U.S. Army, including S. Lane Faison, Walker Hancock, Walter Horn, Thomas Carr Howe, George Stout, and Otto Wittman. as well as oral history interviews with some of them.
- The official government records for James Rorimer's service during World War II in the MFAA Section of the U.S. Army are maintained by the National Archives and Records Administration.
- James J. Rorimer Papers, 1927-1966, are also located at Metropolitan Museum of Art Libraries.
- Biography Note
- James J. Rorimer (1905-1966) was a museum director and curator of medieval art working in New York City. Rorimer was the primary force and first director of The Cloisters at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. During World War II, Rorimer served in the U.S. Army Monuments, Fine Art and Archives Section protecting cultural sites and recovering stolen art work.
- James J. Rorimer was born in Cleveland, Ohio in 1905 and attended the University School there until he left in 1921 in order to study abroad in Europe. He studied at the Ecole Gory in Paris for two years, then returned to the United States to finish his studies at the University School in Cleveland. In 1927, Rorimer graduated from Harvard University with a B.A. Soon after, he began working at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City where he worked his way up from a position as an assistant to Head Curator of Medieval Art, a position he filled from 1934 to 1955, director of The Cloisters, and eventually director and trustee of the museum.
- Rorimer was heavily involved with the planning and development of The Cloisters, working closely with the architect Charles Collens. When The Cloisters opened in 1938, Rorimer worked there as a curator and later became the first director in 1949. During this time, Rorimer developed a professional relationship with John D. Rockefeller, Jr., who donated to New York City a large tract of land, a portion of which was given to the Metropolitan Museum as a location to build The Cloisters. The Cloisters' collections evolved into a world renown collection of medieval art under Rorimer's curatorship and directorship.
- As the director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art from 1955-1966, Rorimer nearly doubled membership and attendance, raised a substantial amount of endowment funding, renovated almost half of the galleries, and increased the exhibition space.
- Rorimer married Katherine Newton in 1942. They had two children, Anne and Louis.
- During World War II, from 1943 to 1946, Rorimer served in the U.S. Army's Monuments, Fine Art and Archives (MFAA) Section. The "Monuments Men" of the U.S. Army were charged with locating and protecting historical sites, monuments, artwork, and buildings from Allied bombing. Towards the end of the war, the section led recovery efforts to locate and retrieve Nazi stolen art works and other cultural heritage items. Rorimer served as a MFAA officer in Normandy and Paris, and, while in Germany, was promoted to chief of the MFAA Section of the 7th Army Western Military District.
- While in Paris, Rorimer worked closely with Rose Valland, an employee of the Jeu de Paume Museum in Paris who spied on the Nazis and recorded in detail the movements of artwork stolen by members of the Nazi party, including Hermann Wilhelm Goering and Joseph Goebbels. With Valland's assistance, Rorimer discovered a large cache of stolen and confiscated artwork at the Neuschwanstein Castle in the Bavarian Alps. He and his team also recovered other artwork, European antiquities, and cultural icons that were stored in nearby salt mines. Rorimer and the other Monuments Men arranged the recovery and removal of the cache of stolen goods.
- Rorimer received numerous awards for his work during World War II including, the French Cross of War in 1945, Chevalier in 1947, and officer of the French Legion of Honor in 1957. Rorimer wrote about his work as a Monuments Man in his book Survival: The Salvage and Protection of Art in War , published by Abelard Press in 1950. James J. Rorimer died in 1966.
- Language Note
- The collection is in English, French and German.
- Provenance
- The James J. Rorimer papers were donated to the Archives of American Art by his wife, Katherine Serrell Rorimer, in 2 installments in 1983.
- Location Note
- Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, 750 9th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20001
- Record number
- (DSI-AAA_CollID)8384
- (DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)210558
- AAA_collcode_rorijame
- Type
- Scrapbooks
- Photographs
- Theme
- Research and writing about art
- Archives of American Art
- Topic
- Art treasures in war -- France
- Art treasures in war -- Germany
- Museum directors -- New York (State) -- New York
- Art thefts -- Germany -- History -- 20th century
- Cultural property -- Protection -- Europe -- History -- 20th century
- Curators -- New York (State) -- New York
- World War, 1939-1945 -- Art and the war
- Theme
- Research and writing about art
- Record ID
- AAADCD_coll_210558
