Rosenbach acquires portraits of Gratzes

On Tuesday, visitors to the Rosenbach Museum and Library will see what museum officials call their most important acquisitions in many years - a Thomas Sully portrait of Rebecca Gratz, Philadelphia's renowned 19th-century Jewish American educator, philanthropist and social activist, and a portrait of her brother, Joseph Gratz, by G.P.A. Healy.

The Rosenbach now has two of Sully's three portraits of Rebecca Gratz, as well as portraits of other Gratz family members, and major holdings of family papers and artifacts.

"We are very excited," said museum director Derick Dreher. "It's the most significant purchase in my 12 years as director, both in terms of dollars paid and the intrinsic value of the work to audiences in Philadelphia."

Dreher declined to disclose the price of the paintings, which were acquired from a Canadian member of the far-flung Gratz clan. He said donors who wish to remain anonymous helped the museum complete the transaction.

The portraits join the Rosenbach's already considerable holdings of Gratz family materials, including other paintings, decorative furniture, personal accessories, books, and manuscripts.

Several of those items, including another Thomas Sully portrait of Rebecca Gratz, are currently on loan to the new National Museum of American Jewish History on Independence Mall, which opens to the public on Nov. 26.

The latest acquisition, said Judith Guston, the Rosenbach's curator and director of collections, just happened to come to fruition around the time of the museum's opening; details of the loan had been under discussion since spring.

The paintings were acquired from Henry Walkem Joseph, a Canadian descendant of Sara Gratz Moses Joseph, niece of Rebecca Gratz.

"My family and I believe this is the right time for the portraits of Rebecca and Joseph to return to Philadelphia," where they were painted, he said in a statement. "Our hope is that the public will be able to enjoy and learn about these great portraits and understand the contributions this early American Jewish family made to Philadelphia's history."