Gisela Richter
Gisela Marie Augusta Richter ( born August 14, 1882 in London, † December 24, 1972 in Rome) was a German -born American classical archaeologist who has worked more than 40 years at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
Gisela MA Richter was born in an art-loving family. A native of Dresden father Jean Paul Richter was friends with, among others, Giovanni Morelli, her mother was the writer Louise Schwaab. The father and sister Irma Richter employed as an art historian with the Renaissance. Morelli should have a lasting influence on Gisela Richter. Her first years were spent judges with her family in Florence and Rome. 1892 the residence was moved to London, where Gisela Richter visited near their place of residence the Maida Vale High School and graduated. For a stay in Rome she attended with her father not only the city's museums, but also heard at Rome University a lecture by Emanuel Loewy and made the decision to become an archaeologist. 1901 she went to Girton College, Cambridge. There, the archaeological lectures were held by external lecturers, the judge claims, however, were not enough, so they gave up after three years of specialization in college after graduation. At the University of Cambridge her a more extensive study, however, was a failure as a woman. She went in 1904 for one year at the British School at Athens, where she and her docile nature could inspire not only the director Robert Carr Bosanquet. Richter was the only student at the institution. As a woman judge could not stay in school, but had to move into a private pension. There she met American colleagues know, including the already well-known at the time Harriet Boyd Hawes -.
Boyd - Hawes was not only a role model and friend, but also paved the way for career judges. 1905 she accompanied Boyd - Hawes in the U.S., where contacts with Edward Robinson, the newly appointed shortly afterwards vice-director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York produced. This operation after calling the systematic development of the Greco -Roman collection, which quickly found work for judges. First, they should write only a catalog of antique vases of the collection, but soon her body was permanent. Judge should spend the rest of their academic career at the Metropolitan Museum. From 1906 she was first assistant, then Assistant Curator from 1910 and finally from 1922 extraordinary curator. From 1925 to 1948 she served as curator of the antiquities department of the museum and was by Sara Yorke Stevenson the second woman in the U.S. who could achieve such a position. As a curator of judges was responsible for some of the most important acquisitions of the museum, including about a stand of the vase painter Kleitias, a crater of the vase painter Lydos and a portrait of the Roman emperor Caracalla. After her retirement in 1948 she remained until her death honorary curator. 1946 she cared for her successor and took Dietrich von Bothmer to the museum. In 1917 she became a U.S. American citizen, but still maintained close contacts to Europe and spent nearly a year their summer vacations there. In 1952 she moved to Rome and lived for 20 years in the " Eternal City ".
Richter was an expert in the field of Gemmenforschung and renowned scientist in the field of Etruscan art, conducted research on Greek pottery to antique jewelry and antique furniture. However, She is best known for her work on the New York kouros. After had been doubted in parts of the professional world the authenticity of the sculpture that stood at the beginning of the big plastic sculpture in Ancient Greece, judges began to intensively deal with the Kuroi and was able to prove the authenticity of the New York kouros. Further research she ran around to the Attic grave reliefs or Greek portrait. Judge publication list includes more than 200 entries both scientific and popular scientific nature. Several works they published together with her sister Irma Richter. She taught in addition to the museum work at Columbia University, Yale University, Bryn Mawr College and Oberlin College.
Her estate is found in the American Academy in Rome, apart from the part to the Metropolitan Museum, which is kept there. It rests on the Cimitero acattolico in Rome.
Writings
- Handbook of Greek art. Phaidon, Cologne 1966