Overview of the Collection
The Art Library is pleased to announce the receipt of an important gift from a very distinguished benefactor. Mrs. George
Levitine has generously donated to the University of Maryland Libraries the 2,000-volume collection belonging to her late
husband Dr. George Levitine, distinguished scholar of art history and founding chair of the Department of Art History at
the University of Maryland. While the Art Library will be the primary beneficiary of this gift, Special Collections will
receive several hundred valuable rare books.
Emblematic devices and their significance were a major area of research for Dr. Levitine, and his collection of emblem
books became the centerpiece in his impressive library. The Levitine Collection is also rich in titles, mostly from France
in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, concerning art, artists, cultural analysis, and the discussion of matters of
tastes and esthetics. These books will be a valuable addition to the University of Maryland Libraries' already strong
holdings in French art, history, literature, drama, and music.
