COLLECTING, AS SEEN THROUGH THE STORY OF ISTVAN MEZO (1877—1967)

Abstract

It is more than 45 years since the great collector Istvan Mezo donated his collection to the Museum of the Sarajevo: an extremely heterogenous collection of artefacts assembled by Mezo throughout his life and donated as a whole to the Museum.  Recognizing the human passion to collect, and how it compares with the basic function of a museum, many authors have discussed the issue, all of whom agree that it forms the basis of what museums are about, and that it should be encouraged, for no matter how systematically museums may approach their task, they can never cover the entire cultural heritage.