The Columbian Exposition of 1893 opened an opportunity for the women of The University Guild to form the nucleus for the collection of art and culture that they wished to assemble.  A committee was appointed for the secure rare objects that the foreign exhibitors would sell rather than ship them abroad again.  Our files contain several bills of sale from English, Danish, Italian, German, Swedish and Oriental agents, made out to the Guild president or the University.

    Many pieces of sculpture and porcelain were acquired at the World’s Fair through the association of Miss Cornelia Gray Lunt, one of the founders of the Guild, with Mrs. Potter Palmer, chairman of the Fair’s Women’s Committee.  Since that time members and friends have enlarged the Collection to include many special art objects of historical value and interest.   

A small portion of the collection is displayed in the Guild Lounge at any one time. The displays are changed regularly. Because 2017 is the 125th anniversary of the Guild the current items chosen to be displayed have been selected from the nucleus collection secured from the Columbian Exposition.

There are pictures of some samples of the Guild Collection [here.]