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- Acknowledgements
The Rev. Dr. James Menzies family collection is amazing for its diversity and antiquity. Nearly four thousand years of Chinese art is represented in this exhibition by more than two hundred objects (not all of which are illustrated in this catalogue) ranging from oracle bones, and ancient bronze and jade objects of the Shang dynasty (16th-11 th century B.C.) to a painting by the last Qing emperor�s brother, Pu Ru, dated 1928 A.D.
The vast majority of Rev. Dr. James M. Menzies� Chinese art collection was donated to the Royal Ontario Museum in 1960, but a sizeable portion of the collection has been left in the care of his son, Arthur R. Menzies, and his two daughters, Mrs. Marion Menzies Hummel and Mrs. Frances Menzies Newcombe.
I first had the privilege of meeting Mr. Arthur Menzies in 1977 when he was Canada�s Ambassador to China and I was an exchange student studying in China. Upon my return to Canada, while working as a research assistant in the Far Eastern Department of the Royal Ontario Museum, I became very familiar with the tremen�dous legacy his father had given to that museum. In the years following, I have had several opportunities to renew my acquaintance with Mr. Menzies during meetings in Victoria and Ottawa^ and in 1985 I accompanied him and his wife, Sheila, on an Art Gallery fundraising tour to China. In theyears since, I have also had the pleasure of making the acquaintance of both of his sisters; Mrs. Marion Menzies Hummel and Mrs. Frances Menzies Newcombe. After seeing the Chinese artifacts still in the possession of the Menzies family, I felt there were enough rare and interesting archaeological objects to organize this small, but fascinating, exhibition.
It is with a deep sense of gratitude that we would like to express our appreciation to the Menzies family�Mr. Arthur R. Menzies, Mrs. Frances Menzies Newcombe and Mrs. Marion Menzies Hummel and her son, James Menzies Hummel�fortheir generosity and willingness to share their treasures with the Canadian public. It is hoped that this catalogue and exhibition will serve as a modest tribute to Rev. Dr. James M. Menzies as a keen collector and teacher of Chinese archaeology, and to his family.
We would like to extend a special thanks to Mr. Arthur R. Menzies for the biography he has prepared on his father.
The assistance of the following staff members has been vital to the exhibition: Mary Csizmazia, Ann McMurdo, Chris Russell, Brian Patten, and John McIntosh. Also thanks must go to Paula Swart for her suggestions and proofreading, and to Bob Matheson for much of the photography. Photos of the Menzies family are courtesy of Mr. Arthur R. Menzies.
Barry Till March 1989
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