Uploaded September 2022 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Belle da Costa Greene began working as J. Pierpont Morgan’s librarian in 1905. After Morgan’s death in 1913, Greene maintained a similar role as the institution’s first director, opening the private treasure-house to the public in 1924. Her professional correspondence, cataloged only recently, offers new insight into how Greene maneuvered in a world of books and manuscripts dominated by men.
Greene’s legacy is powerful and far-reaching. During her decades-long career as a library executive, she not only acquired countless significant collection items but also made immeasurable contributions to bibliography and scholarship, mentored colleagues at the Morgan and elsewhere, facilitated widespread collection access through object loans and ambitious photographic services, and promoted the work of distinguished women scholars and librarians.
Greene was not only a director but also a mentor and friend. Her story and legacy will be the subject of a major exhibition in 2024 to mark the Morgan’s 100th anniversary as a public institution. In this video, Erica Ciallela discusses this upcoming exhibition and her role as the Belle da Costa Greene Curatorial Fellow.
Erica Ciallela, Belle da Costa Greene Curatorial Fellow, and Philip Palmer, Robert H. Taylor Curator of Literary and Historical Manuscripts, discuss Belle da Costa Greene’s enduring legacy and their ongoing research on her work as the director of the Morgan Library & Museum.
Video by SandenWolff.
Belle da Costa Greene began working as J. Pierpont Morgan’s librarian in 1905. After Morgan’s death in 1913, Greene maintained a similar role as the institution’s first director, opening the private treasure-house to the public in 1924. Her professional correspondence, cataloged only recently, offers new insight into how Greene maneuvered in a world of books and manuscripts dominated by men.
Greene’s legacy is powerful and far-reaching. During her decades-long career as a library executive, she not only acquired countless significant collection items but also made immeasurable contributions to bibliography and scholarship, mentored colleagues at the Morgan and elsewhere, facilitated widespread collection access through object loans and ambitious photographic services, and promoted the work of distinguished women scholars and librarians.
Greene was not only a director but also a mentor and friend. Her story and legacy will be the subject of a major exhibition in 2024 to mark the Morgan’s 100th anniversary as a public institution. In this video, Erica Ciallela discusses this upcoming exhibition and her role as the Belle da Costa Greene Curatorial Fellow.
Erica Ciallela, Belle da Costa Greene Curatorial Fellow, and Philip Palmer, Robert H. Taylor Curator of Literary and Historical Manuscripts, discuss Belle da Costa Greene’s enduring legacy and their ongoing research on her work as the director of the Morgan Library & Museum.
Video by SandenWolff.
