Mead Art Museum. Mead Art Museum houses the fine art collection of Amherst College in Amherst, Massachusetts.
Opened in 1949, the building is named after architect William Rutherford Mead, of the prestigious architectural firm McKim, Mead & White. His wife, Olga Kilyeni Mead, left her entire estate to Amherst College.
The museum, a member of Museums10, is free and open to the public. The Mead holds the Amherst College art collection, which includes: American and European paintings.
Thomas P. Whitney collection of Russian art. Mexican Ceramics.
Tibetan scroll paintings. 17th century English paneled room. Ancient Assyrian carvings. West African sculpture. Japanese prints. The Mead Art Museum has a wide ranging collection of approximately 19,000 items. The works in the Museum's collection can be searched on the database maintained by the Five College Museums/Historic Deerfield. In 1857, Amherst College acquired panels from the palace of Ashurnasirpal II in Nimrud. In the palace built around 879 B.C.E., the walls of the ceremonial halls and corridors were decorated with monumental relief carvings. The king Ashurnasirpal II is shown in the central panel wearing a fringed robe and royal headdress. In his right hand, he carries a shallow cup used for pouring offerings to the gods, and in his left hand he holds his bow, symbol of his bravery and military might. The central panel is flanked by panels de