Archives Scrapbooks

Ctrl-C, Ctrl-V. Rinse, repeat.

Fogg Art Museum Scrapbooks, May 1947-February 1950

ARCH.2003.30, Rendition: 802773

Qwen, Qwen/Qwen2.5-VL-7B-Instruct

The image appears to be a vintage news clipping or advertisement. It is divided into two sections.

  1. The top section contains contact information for a company named "Burrelle's Press Clipping Bureau." The information includes the company's name, establishment year (1888), telephone number (BARclay 7-5371), and the address (165 Church Street, New York). There is also a mention of the "New York Times" with circulation figures (Daily: 531,458, Sunday: 851,982).

  2. The bottom section is a news clipping from the New York Times. The headline reads "Fogg Shows Photos of Murals." The clipping provides details about an exhibition of rare, full-scale photographs of twelve ancient mural paintings displayed at the Fogg Museum of Art at Harvard University. It mentions that these photographs were originally taken of murals in the Golden Hall of the Horyuji Monastery in Japan, which was destroyed by fire on January 26th. The clipping is dated January 30th.

Qwen, Qwen/Qwen2.5-VL-72B-Instruct

This image shows a clipped article from the New York Times, dated January 30, 1949, and pasted onto a piece of paper with a header from "Burrelle's Press Clipping Bureau," a company established in 1888. The article is titled "Fogg Shows Photos of Murals" and is about an exhibition at the Fogg Museum of Art at Harvard University. The exhibition features rare, full-scale photographs of twelve ancient mural paintings that previously adorned the Golden Hall of the Horyuji Monastery in Japan. The original murals were destroyed in a fire that swept the monastery on January 26. The clipping is marked with a date stamp indicating it was clipped and processed on January 31, 1949.

Qwen, qwen.qwen3-vl-235b-a22b

This image displays an archival press clipping from early 1949, mounted and preserved as part of a collection from “Burrelle’s Press Clipping Bureau.” The item consists of two distinct parts: the clipping itself and its accompanying “slip” or folder from the clipping service.


Burrelle’s Service Slip

The top portion is a light-blue, vertically oriented card from Burrelle’s, a press clipping service established in 1888. The logo features the name “Burrelle’s” in a flowing script, with a pair of scissors creatively integrated into the letterforms—symbolizing clipping and editing.

The card includes the following information:

  • Established 1888
  • Phone Number: BArclay 7-5371
  • Business: Press Clipping Bureau
  • Address: 165 Church Street – New York
  • Client: NEW YORK, N.Y. TIMES
  • Circulation Data: Circ. D. 531,458 – S. 851,982 (day and Sunday circulation figures for the newspaper)
  • A stamped date at the bottom: JAN 31 1949

The Press Clipping

Attached below the Burrelle’s card is a faded, yellowish newspaper clipping dated January 30, 1949, from Cambridge, Massachusetts.

The headline reads:

Fogg Shows Photos of Murals

The article reports that:

  • The Fogg Museum of Art at Harvard University opened an exhibition of rare, full-scale photographs of twelve ancient mural paintings.
  • These murals were originally located in the Golden Hall of the Horyuji Monastery in Japan.
  • The original murals were destroyed on January 26, 1949, when a fire swept through the monastery.
  • The exhibition, made possible by the existence of these photographs, serves as a record of the lost cultural treasures.

Historical and Cultural Context

This clipping is historically significant:

  • It documents an early 20th-century effort to preserve and exhibit cultural heritage through photographic documentation.
  • The Horyuji fire of January 26, 1949, was a major cultural disaster in Japan—the Golden Hall murals, dating from the 7th century, were among the oldest Buddhist paintings in the world and a National Treasure.
  • The Fogg Museum’s exhibition, occurring just days after the fire, highlights the global impact of the loss and the role of Western institutions in preserving and disseminating knowledge of world heritage.

Overall Description

The item is a carefully preserved newspaper clipping from 1949, mounted on a Burrelle’s clipping bureau slip, serving both as a primary source document and as a piece of archival ephemera. It reflects mid-20th-century media practices, cultural diplomacy, and the vital role photography played in preserving art after catastrophic loss. The combination of the service’s branding and the urgent news content creates a poignant historical artifact.


In summary: This is not just a news clipping—it’s a tangible piece of cultural history documenting the aftermath of the destruction of Japan’s ancient Horyuji murals and the immediate global response to preserve their memory through photographs displayed at Harvard’s Fogg Museum.

Amazon, amazon.nova-pro-v1:0

The image is a clipping from a newspaper, featuring a press release from the "Burrelle's Press Clipping Bureau." The clipping is dated January 1949 and is from the New York Times. The press release announces an exhibition of rare, full-scale photographs of twelve ancient mural paintings that were previously located in the Golden Hall of the Horyuji Monastery in Japan.

The top section of the clipping includes the logo and contact information for "Burrelle's Press Clipping Bureau," which was established in 1888 and is located at 165 Church Street, New York. The bureau's contact details include a circulation department number (Circ. D. 531,458) and a subscription number (S. 851,982).

Below this, the main body of the press release announces the exhibition, stating that it is being held at the Fogg Museum of Art at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The exhibition opened on January 30 and features photographs of murals that had adorned the Golden Hall of the Horyuji Monastery in Japan until the previous week. The original murals were destroyed on January 26 when a fire swept through the monastery.

The press release provides details about the exhibition, emphasizing the rarity and historical significance of the murals, which are now only available in photographic form. The text is concise and informative, aimed at informing the public about the exhibition and its importance.

The clipping is a rectangular piece of paper with slightly curled edges, typical of newspaper clippings. The text is printed in black ink on a light-colored background, and the edges of the clipping are uneven, indicating that it was cut from a larger page.

Amazon, amazon.nova-lite-v1:0

A press clipping from Burzelle's Press Clipping Bureau in New York City is shown on the image. The clipping is from the New York Times and is dated January 30, 1949. The clipping features an article about an exhibition of rare, full-scale photographs of ancient mural paintings that was opened at the Fogg Museum of Art at Harvard University. The article states that the original murals had been destroyed in a fire at the Golden Hall of the Horyuji Monastery in Japan, and that the photographs were the only remaining record of the murals. The clipping includes the full text of the article, which provides details about the exhibition and the history of the murals.

Amazon, us.amazon.nova-2-lite-v1:0

The image depicts a vintage press clipping from the New York Times, dated January 30, 1949. The clipping is from the Burrelles Press Clipping Bureau, established in 1888, located at 165 Church Street, New York. The header of the clipping prominently displays the name "Burrelles" in elegant cursive script, accompanied by a pair of scissors graphic and the establishment date.

The main article headline reads: "Fogg Shows Photos of Murals", indicating that the Fogg Museum of Art at Harvard University had opened an exhibition. The article details that the exhibition featured rare, full-scale photographs of twelve ancient mural paintings. These murals had previously adorned the Golden Hall of the Horyu-ji Monastery in Japan. Tragically, the original murals were destroyed when fire swept through the monastery on January 26, 1949. The photographs now serve as the only surviving record of these artworks.

The clipping includes the circulation numbers of the New York Times: Circ. D. 531,458 - S. 851,982, and it is marked with the date JAN. 30, 1949. The overall design and layout reflect the typographic style of mid-20th-century newspaper clippings, with clean, structured text and a muted green background. The item appears to be a preserved press clipping, likely used for archival or reference purposes.

OpenAI, gpt-4

This is an image of a vintage document, specifically a press clipping from a company called "Burrelle's". The document is a combination of printed text and handwriting. At the top, there is a logo featuring a pair of scissors with the text "Burrelle's ESTABLISHED 1888". Below the logo, the address "165 Church Street - New York" and the phone number "BArcIay 7-5371" are printed alongside the location "NEW YORK, N.Y." and what appears to be circulation or reference numbers for the "TIMES". The body of the document features a news article snippet mentioning "Fogg Shows Photos of Murals". The article details an exhibition at the Fogg Museum of Art at Harvard University, which opened an exhibition of rare, full-scale photographs of twelve ancient mural paintings that were once at the Horyuji Monastery in Japan. The text notes that the original murals were destroyed by a fire on January 26. The clipping is dated January 30, but the year is not visible. There is also a handwritten note at the top left corner, but it is partially cropped and not fully legible.

OpenAI, gpt-4o-2024-11-20

This image shows a press clipping from Burrelle's Press Clipping Bureau, established in 1888. The bureau's branding appears on a blue background, with an illustration of scissors incorporated into the logo. Below the branding, the clipping bureau's phone number ("BArclay 7-5371") and a New York address ("165 Church Street - New York") are listed.

Additionally, the clipping is labeled as coming from the New York Times, with circulation numbers included. Below this, there is a dated newspaper article (marked January 31, 1949) stating that the Fogg Museum of Art at Harvard University opened an exhibition featuring photographs of ancient murals that were previously housed in the Golden Hall of the Horyuji Monastery in Japan. It notes that the original murals were destroyed on January 26 in a fire that swept through the monastery.

OpenAI, gpt-4.1-mini-2025-04-14

The image shows a small note or clipping from Burrelle's Press Clipping Bureau, located at 165 Church Street, New York. The top portion of the note includes the company's logo with a pair of scissors and details such as being established in 1888, and a phone number "BArclay 7-5371." It also mentions the New York Times with circulation numbers for daily and Sunday editions.

Below this, there is a newspaper clipping with the headline "Fogg Shows Photos of Murals." The text details that the Fogg Museum of Art at Harvard University is exhibiting rare, full-scale photographs of twelve ancient mural paintings that had adorned the Golden Hall of the Horyuji Monastery in Japan. The originals were destroyed by a fire on January 26, just days before the exhibition was announced on January 30.

OpenAI, gpt-5-nano-2025-08-07

  • A small vintage press clipping mounted on a light gray page.
  • The top piece is a blue-green card from Burrelles Press Clipping Bureau with a decorative script logo “Burrelle’s,” a pair of scissors, and lines of contact info (Established 1888, 165 Church Street, New York, Times, etc.). There’s a faint date stamp (likely January 1949) on it.
  • A beige newspaper clipping is attached at the bottom with a headline: “Fogg Shows Photos of Murals.” The article mentions the Fogg Museum of Art at Harvard opening an exhibition of rare photos of twelve mural paintings once at the Golden Hall of the Horyuji Monastery in Japan, noting the originals were destroyed by fire on January 26.
  • Overall, it looks like a mid-20th-century press clipping bundle with archival notes.