Bernard Berenson (1865-1959) was the world's foremost expert on Italian Renaissance art. His expertise resulted in the acquisition of some superb works of art for American collectors and dealers.

Bernard Berenson was born on June 26, 1865 in the Lithuanian village of Butrimonys, near the larger city of Vilnius. His father, Albert Valvrojenski (name later changed to Berenson) and his mother, Judith Mickleshanski, were married in 1864. At the time of their marriage his father was 19; his mother 17. Bernard was their first child, followed three years later by his sister, Senda. In 1873, his brother Abraham was the last of the Berenson children born in Europe. His sisters, Rachel and Elizabeth, were born in Boston after the family moved to America.

According to Ernest Samuels, in Bernard Berenson: The Making of a Connoisseur,, Berenson was "an extraordinarily precocious child with large eyes, beautiful features, and long delicate fingers," quickly becoming the favorite...