About the Collection
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Teodoro Vidal: The Collector
The life and work of the cultural visionary.
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Puerto Rican History
Art, artifacts, and archival documents illustrating the island’s history.
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Everyday Life
Objects, photographs, and aspirations of working men and women on the island.
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Religion
The art and traditions of the Catholic folk culture of Puerto Rico.
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Carnival
The revelers, masks, and artisans who make the Carnaval de Ponce.
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Music
The musical instruments and traditions of bomba, música jíbara, and plena.
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The Great Puerto Rican Family
Portraits of Puerto Ricans during an era of dramatic economic and social change.
About the Collection
In 1992, curator Marvette Pérez contacted Puerto Rican collector Teodoro Vidal Santoni after learning that he was interested in donating his extensive collection of Puerto Rican material culture. In 1997, after several visits and conversations over the course of five years, Mr. Vidal agreed to donate his entire collection to the National Museum of American History. This became one of the largest gifts by an individual to the Museum. One of the most important collections of Puerto Rican material culture in the world, it consists of more than 3,200 objects which date from the 17th to the 20th centuries.
Teodoro Vidal and a Fishing Net Maker
This Web site is based on "A Collector's Vision of Puerto Rico," an exhibition that was on view at the National Museum of American History in the 1990's. The purpose of that exhibition, and this Web site, is to look at the history of Puerto Rico through the eyes of a collector who captured the island's history with the wonderful objects that he collected.
