Private Collection

In addition to the Merrin Gallery's Provenance list for the amphora, Roberta Olson suggests in a letter to Mr. and Mrs. Hirschland that the amphora spent 15 years in the hands of a private Swiss Collection. Olson was informing the Hirschlands of the amphora's provenance because of their assistance as art consultants during Wheaton's purchase.

However, the suggestion that the amphora was in a private Swiss Collection places it in private hands from at least 1965-1980. This is unlikely, as Elie Borowski, a veteran of World War II, did not become a known collector and dealer until much later in his life. The amphora being part of a 15 year Swiss collection suggests that Borowski bought and sold the amphora by 1965.

The letter of Provanence from the Merrin Gallery was not received by Roberta Olson until a month after her declaration to the Hirschlands that the amphora belonged to a Swiss private collector. In the Watson Gallery Notes that accompanied the exhibition of the amphora in 1983, the private collection is accredited to Elie Borowski, eliminating the private collection entirely from the Merrin Gallery's Provenance list. Since the Merrin Gallery did not include dates or locations, it is hard to either confirm or deny the existence of the private collection.

Text Sources:

"Antiquities Collector Elie Borowski, 89, Dies." ArtDaily.org, http://artdaily.com/index.asp?int_sec=2&int_new=3761&b=kunsthistorisches#.Uycdc_mPGSq (Accessed March 17, 2014).

Merrin, Edward. Edward Merrin to Roberta Olson, New York, NY, March 24, 1981.

Olson, Roberta. Roberta Olson to Dietrich von Bothmer, New York, NY, February 18, 1981.

Olson, Roberta. Roberta Olson to Mr. and Mrs. Paul Hirschland, New York, NY, February 23, 1981.

Wheaton College. Watson Gallery Notes, Vol. 3, Num. 1, Spring 1983.

Image Source:

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:OrteliusWorldMap1570.jpg, Accessed April 22, 2014.