Paus Collection

The Paus collection () is a collection of classical sculpture that mostly forms part of the National Museum of Norway, and previously of its predecessor, the National Gallery. The collection was created in the late 19th and early 20th centuries by papal chamberlain and count Christopher Tostrup Paus, who lived in Rome at the time; it was moved to his Swedish estate Trystorp during the First World War and later partly to his estate Herresta. At the time it was mostly possible to export antique objects from Italy. Previously the largest private collection of classical sculpture in the Nordic countries, it was largely donated to the Norwegian government by Paus between 1918 and 1929 as the intended foundation of a Norwegian museum or department of classical sculpture. Some objects from the Paus collection were also acquired by other museums, including Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek.

History

The collection was created by Christopher Tostrup Paus (1862–1943) in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and was the largest private collection of classical sculpture in the Nordic countries at the time. Paus was heir to one of Norway's largest timber companies (Tostrup & Mathiesen) and was a papal chamberlain and count, who lived for several years in Rome, where he acquired the collection with the assistance of several Scandinavian art historians. In the late 19th century, as Italy transitioned from feudalism to a modern economy, Rome's rapid urban expansion and construction uncovered numerous antiques. Concurrently, long-established noble families, now facing financial hardship in this changing society, were compelled to sell their historic collections of these objects. It was also relatively easy to export antique objects from Italy. This situation made it possible for wealthy foreign art collectors – such as Paus and Carl Jacobsen, founder of Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek – to build extensive collections. During the First World War Paus moved his collection to his Swedish estate Trystorp and it was later partly moved to his estate Herresta. Most of the collection was donated by Paus to the National Gallery between 1918 and 1929. It was intended as the foundation of a Norwegian museum or department of classical sculpture, as Paus wrote in a letter to the government in 1918, and formed the core of the National Gallery's classical sculpture collection. Prior to Paus' decision to donate most of the collection to the National Gallery, Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek had attempted to acquire it.

Archaeologist Siri Sande notes that

The bust of Trajan was given to the National Gallery in 1923 and was the first original Roman imperial portrait in Norwegian ownership. Samson Eitrem wrote that "it excellently complements the other portraits of the Paus collection, busts which for the most part belong to the earliest imperial period."

The collection was on display in the first floor of the old National Gallery building from 1918 to 2019, before the National Gallery moved to the newly completed National Museum building in 2022. Several of the works are from 2022 on display in Room 1 in the new National Museum. Paus was appointed as a Knight First Class of the Order of St. Olav for services to art museums in 1919 and was later promoted to Commander.

Some objects from the Paus collection were also acquired by other museums, including Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek.

Works

The collection includes at least 60 sculptures mainly from Ancient Rome and some from Ancient Greece, especially Roman works from the period 100 BC to 200 AD, but also some older works from the first millennium BC. It includes busts of emperors such as Galba, Trajan, Lucius Verus, and (probably) Commodus, empress Julia Domna, Ptolemy of Mauretania, and numerous Roman women. Samson Eitrem wrote a review of the collection in 1919 and a comprehensive catalogue in 1927. Several of the works have been described as being of very high quality and characteristic of their era.

The following is a partial list:

References

{{Paus family

Collections of classical sculpture
Collection of the National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design
Paus family