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The Robert L. Grover Collection of Roman-Egyptian Coinage
Previously Held By The Art Institute of Chicago
The collection of Alexandrian coins of the Roman emperors offered in the present catalogue
was donated to The Art Institute by Robert L. Glover between 1978 and 1984, and is noteworthy for
containing approximately 180 pieces that derive from the Giovanni Dattari Collection, the most
complete collection of Roman Alexandrian coins ever assembled. Dattari, an Italian businessman
living in Cairo, formed his collection between c. 1891 and his death in 1923. His daughter offered the
collection to the Italian state in the early 1950s, but it was eventually dispersed on the European and
American market in the 1970s. In 1901 Dattari published a catalogue of his collection as then
existing, with detailed descriptions of every type and variant but very few illustrations. 323 plates of
pencil rubbings, obviously showing his complete collection up to the uncertain date when the
rubbings were made, turned up in Trieste in the 1990s and were published first in 1999, and then
again, with additions (now 380 plates), in 2007.
The Art Institute of Chicago, founded in 1879, is a world-renowned art museum housing one
of the largest permanent collections in the United States. An encyclopedic museum, the Art Institute
collects, preserves, and interprets works in every medium from all cultures and historical periods.
With a collection of approximately 300,000 art works and artifacts, the museum has particularly
strong holdings in Impressionist and Post-Impressionist painting, contemporary art, early 20th
century European painting and sculpture, Japanese prints, and photography. The museum’s 2009
addition, the Modern Wing, features the latest in green museum technology and 264,000 square feet
dedicated to modern and contemporary art, photography, architecture and design, and new museum
education facilities. In addition to displaying its permanent collection, the Art Institute mounts more
than 30 special exhibitions per year and features lectures, gallery tours, and special performances on
a daily basis.
April 5-8 - Chicago Cultural Center -
www.coinexpo.org