Born Mary Sutherland Maxwell, to May Bolles Maxwell and Sutherland Maxwell. In 1937 she became the wife of Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of the Bahá'í Faith. Their marriage ‘cemented' the ‘union of East and West proclaimed by [the] Bahá'I Faith'.22 Appointed by the Guardian as liaison between the International Bahá'í Council and the Guardian, she was named a Hand of the Cause of God in 1952. She served as the Guardian's secretary during his lifetime. Since his death, she has written his biography, The Priceless Pearl (1969) and has undertaken extensive journeys, giving public lectures and visiting villagers and tribal peoples in many parts of the world. She resides in the House of ‘Abdu'l-Bahá in Haifa and is a member of the International Teaching Centre.†