There are pre-Columbian pieces from Peru and Mexico, including two rare Mayan manuscripts (có-di-ces), replete with the mysterious symbols and delightful illustrations that have long fascinated scholars.

The collection also contained pre-Columbian pieces, rocks, minerals, and coins.

This vessel and another one - an anthropomorphic jar with a quizzical face and large hands - are similar to many pre-Columbian pieces from other regions of Latin America.

"We're receiving a very important collection of textiles, including an outstanding 17th-century Turkish towel, pre-Columbian pieces, and a remarkable Italian velvet," said Frank Robinson, director of the museum.

During a belated honeymoon in Mexico in 1952, the couple picked up several pre-Columbian pieces, which they resold in New York for a profit.

I studied the pre-Columbian pieces in my town that came from the burial mounds, and I used the ancient techniques.

Seven of the halls are dedicated to pre-Columbian pieces.

Artist Identified Mr. Parker said the discovery does not cast doubt on every pre-Columbian piece, but does create substantial questions about Veracruz artifacts.

The Codex Zouche-Nuttall is an accordion-folded pre-Columbian piece of Mixtec writing, now in the British Museum (Add.

The museum's Denholm collection, given to the Mint in 1966, contains 2,000 pieces of historic pottery and porcelain, as well as pre-Columbian pieces that are more than 4,500 years old.