William Randolph Hearst Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! === Art collection === [[File:Landscape with Huntsman and Dead Game 1697 Jan Weenix.jpg|thumb|''Allegory of the Sense of Smell'' by [[Jan Weenix]], a 1697 portrait once owned by Hearst]] Hearst was renowned for his extensive collection of international art that spanned centuries. Most notable in his collection were his Greek vases, Spanish and Italian furniture, Oriental carpets, Renaissance vestments, an extensive library with many books signed by their authors, and paintings and statues. In addition to collecting pieces of fine art, he also gathered manuscripts, rare books, and autographs.<ref name=Seely>{{cite journal|last=Seely|first=Jana|title=The Hearst Castle, San Simeon: The Diverse Collection of William Randolph Hearst|journal=Southeastern Antiquing and Collecting Magazine|url=http://www.go-star.com/antiquing/hearst_collection.htm|access-date=July 13, 2012|archive-date=June 14, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120614160417/http://www.go-star.com/antiquing/hearst_collection.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> His guests included varied celebrities and politicians, who stayed in rooms furnished with pieces of antique furniture and decorated with artwork by famous artists.<ref name=Seely /> Beginning in 1937, Hearst began selling some of his art collection to help relieve the debt burden he had suffered from the Depression. The first year he sold items for a total of $11 million. In 1941 he put about 20,000 items up for sale; these were evidence of his wide and varied tastes. Included in the sale items were paintings by [[Anthony van Dyck|van Dyke]], crosiers, chalices, [[Charles Dickens]]'s [[sideboard]], pulpits, stained glass, arms and armor, [[George Washington]]'s waistcoat, and [[Thomas Jefferson]]'s Bible. When Hearst Castle was donated to the State of California, it was still sufficiently furnished for the whole house to be considered and operated as a museum.<ref name=Seely /> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page