Walter Ames Compton

Walter Ames Compton
Born	Walter Ames Compton (1911-04-22)April 22, 1911 Elkhart, Indiana, U.S.
Died	October 11, 1990(1990-10-11) (aged 79) Elkhart, Indiana, U.S.
Alma mater	Princeton University Harvard University
Occupation(s)	Pharmacy researcher, Japanese sword collector

Walter Ames Compton; (April 22, 1911 – October 11, 1990^[1]), was an American medical doctor, pharmacy researcher,^[2] and avid Japanese sword collector. He was the president of Miles Laboratories.^[2] Because he bought and returned several Japanese sword such as Bizen-Saburou Kunimune (備前三郎国宗) to Terukuni jinja, one of the National Treasures of Japan, he received 4th Class of Order of the Rising Sun from Government of Japan.^[3] Compton was an honorary member of The Society for Preservation of Japanese Art Swords.^[4]

Relevant literature

• Compton, Walter Ames (1973), Serving needs in health and nutrition : the story of Miles Laboratories, Inc., New York: Newcomen Society in North America, OCLC 723098
• Christie's (31 March 1992), Japanese Swords & Sword Fittings from the Collection of Walter A. Compton, part I, Christie's Auction Catalog, NY, OCLC 908835316
• Christie's (22 October 1992), Japanese Swords & Sword Fittings from the Collection of Walter A. Compton, part II, Christie's Auction Catalog, NY, OCLC 171299854
• Christie's (17 December 1992), Japanese Swords & Sword Fittings from the Collection of Walter A. Compton, part III, Christie's Auction Catalog, NY
• Compton, Walter A. (1976), Nippon-tō art swords of Japan: the Walter A. Compton Collection, New York: Japan Society, ISBN 0913304050, OCLC 908835380
• Izzard, Sebastian., ed. (1992), One hundred masterpieces from the collection of Dr. Walter A. Compton : Japanese swords, sword fittings, and other accoutrements, New York, NY: Christie, Manson & Woods International, ISBN 1880907003
• Mino, Yutaka; Robinson, James (1983), A collector's choices : Asian art from the collection of Dr. Walter A. Compton, Indianapolis, Ind.: Indianapolis Museum of Art, ISBN 0936260084

References

1. Undergraduate Class of 1933. "Memorial Walter A. Compton '33". Princeton Alumni Weekly. The Trustees of Princeton University. Archived from the original on 2020-07-24. Retrieved 2020-07-24.
2. Foderaro, Lisa W. (1990-10-14). "W. A. Compton, 79, A Doctor Who Rose To Head Miles Labs". The New York Times. p. 33. Retrieved 2020-07-24.
3. あきみず「刀剣は凶器にあらず。日本刀を壊滅の危機から救った、悲劇と絆の物語」『和樂web』Shogakukan、2020-06-17. Archived from the original on 2020-07-09. Retrieved 2020-07-09.
4. 毎日新聞社; 日本美術刀剣保存協会編「海外最大の日本刀コレクター ウォルター・A・コンプトン博士」『日本名刀展 英米からの里帰りと国内の名作』1970年。NCID BN05192753。