Cc iobei 
1919 
Saithsonian Press Statement c 
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X 
01 
UP 
PJeasereturn enclosed earl.. 
OT FHBSR ART GALLERY AT WASHINGTON* 
On® of the most generous and complete gifts ever made tc. the 
Government is that of the late Mr, Charles L. Freer, of Detroit. 
who presented to the United States, to be administered by the Smith- 
unique 
sonian Institution, his extremely/and valuable art collection of 
over 5000 items, and $1,000,000 in cash for the erection of a suit¬ 
able building to house the collection. The original gift was made 
in 1906, but the building was not begun until 1916* It is now prac¬ 
tically completed and is expected to be ready in a few months for 
the installation of tbe collections. 
Mr. Freer 1 s collection was brought together with a definite 
purpose, and contains besides American paintings and sculpture, 
oriental paintings, pottery, bronzes, jades, and textiles. In mak-^ 
ing this gift to. the nation, Mr. ?reer prefaced his offer as fol¬ 
lows : 
"These several collections include specimens of very widely 
separated periods of artistic development, beginning before the 
birth of Christ, and ending today. No attempt has been mde to se¬ 
cure specimens from unsympathetic sources, my collecting haying 
been confined to American and Asiatic schools. My great desire has 
b een to unite modern work with masterpieces of certain periods oi 
h igh civilization harmonious in spiritual and physical suggestion , 
having the power to broaden esthetic culture and the grace to ele¬ 
vate the human mindT" 
The building is located on the Mall in Washington, near the 
Smithsonian Building. The style of architecture is eminently suit¬ 
able for an art gallery, and makes a splendid addition to Washing¬ 
ton^ aggregation of public buildings, which it is hoped will some 
day make the vista from the Capitol building to the Monument, known 
as the Mall, the most beautiful thing of its kind in the world. 
