REPORT OF THE SECRETARY 57 



Curatorial work within the collection has as usual included the 

 documentary study of inscriptions on the new purchases fruni the 

 Far East, as well as those upon objects already in the collection. 

 Many objects and reproductions of objects have been submitted by 

 other institutions and by private owners for expert opinion or for 

 translation of inscriptions in Chinese, Japanese, or Tibetan. The 

 total number of such reports made by tlie curator embraces 834 

 objects and 185 photorjraphs of objects. 



Durin<r the winter a large group of paintings in the Near Eastern 

 section, which was purchased en hloc in 1907 from its then owner, 

 Col. H. B. Hanna, and which comprised a miscellany of Mughal, 

 Rajput, and Persian paintings, has undergone complete revision and 

 reclassification. In this work the curator has had the expert assist- 

 ance of Dr. A. K. Coomara-swamy, of the Museum of Fine Arts, 

 Boston. The entire collection of Near Eastern i)ainting and manu- 

 script leaves is now in process of being remounted and stored in 

 boxes of an iiupro\ed type made in the Freer Gallery shop for this 

 pur]jose. The collection of Chinese bronzes, also, has been given 

 a new and improved type of storage so arranged as to be most easily 

 accessible to the student. 



The care and preservation of objects in the collection has this 

 year included work that can be itemized as follows: 



(1) Remounted: 



2 Chinese panel paintings. 



1 Chinese scroll paintinpr. 



3 Japanese panel paintings. 



2 Japanese screen paintings. 



(2) Restored and rebacked. 



2 Chinese velvet wall hangings. 



(3) Repaired: 



11 pages of Egyptian calligraphy on parchnjent. 

 7 Persian paintings. 



Changes in exhibition have involved a total of 243 objects as 

 follows : 



49 Whistler etchings. 

 ATi Whistler lithographs and llthotlnLs. 

 4G Whistler water-color paintings. 

 13 Whistler pastel drawings. 

 2 Chinese bronze vesssels. 



2 Chinese bronze mirrors. 



1 Chinese bronze and gold mirror. 



1 Chinese bronze sword. 

 G Chinese jades. 



3 |»ieces of riiinese silver. 



2 pieces of Chine.se silver-gilt. 



