In 1905, Franz
Mayer (1882-1975), a young German businessman, moved to Mexico
City. There he became a successful stock broker and businessman,
an financial advisor to government officials. Today his legacy
to the people of Mexico and beyond lies in the outstanding art
collection that he built in his lifetime, and the museum established
by his estate after his death. He focused his collecting on Mexico's
viceregal period, 1521 to 1821, when Mexico was a Spanish colony.
While little is known about Franz Mayer's own life, his collection
of paintings, sculptures, church objects, and furniture, ceramics,
and other objects used in daily life, provide a marvelous window
into the life of viceregal Mexico.
