The Pierpont Morgan Library – New York
The Morgan Library and Museum was founded as the personal library of the financier Pierpont Morgan. As early as 1890, Morgan had begun to collect illuminated manuscripts, drawings and prints by ancient masters.
Between 1902 and 1906, near his residence in New York between Madison Avenue and Thirty-sixth Street, his library was built, designed by the architect Charles McKim: the structure of the building resembles an Italian Renaissance palace, divided into three large rooms on the inside.
In 1924, Pierpont Morgan’s son, J. P. Morgan, Jr., eleven years after his father’s death decided to turn the library into a public institution, donating it to the municipality.
The collection of the Pierpont Morgan Library grew over the years thanks to acquisitions and donations, so much so that nowadays the structure is different from the original because of the enlargement works occurred over the years, the last of which dates back to 2006 designed by Renzo Piano.
Art collections today are not limited to books and manuscripts, but range from Egyptian art to Renaissance paintings to Chinese porcelain.
