University of Michigan (UM) alumnus William Weese recently gave a gift of art and endowment with a combined value of around 5 million dollars to UM Museum of Art (UMMA).

Part of the gift Weese gave to UMMA, which is valued at 3.35 million dollars, are more than 1,000 ceramics and decorative arts from China's Neolithic period to the Ming and Qing dynasties, with some pieces dating back to as early as 3,000 BC.

Another part of the gift is a 1.7-million-dollar William C. Weese MD Endowment for Ceramic Arts, which is aimed to "develop, promote and implement programs to further the education, appreciation and understanding of ceramic arts."

"I have been studying and collecting Chinese art and ceramics since the early 1980s-the craftsmanship and history of the works has fascinated me my entire life," Weese said. "My goal in gifting this collection to the University of Michigan is both to preserve it for generations to come, but also to help foster that same love and passion for the exploration of technique and history that I've developed over the years. I hope students embrace this love. I hope the community comes out to see it as well."