Determination of the whereabouts of art objects from the collection of Felix and Marie Busch, née von Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, confiscated by the Gestapo, in particular in public institutions. Determination of the purchasers of objects – in particular public institutions – from the collection at the compulsory auction held at Harms auction house in November 1940. Reconstruction based on examples

Confiscated and diminished in value by being labelled “consumer goods”, the art collection of Felix and Marie Busch, née von Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, was sold off in November 1940 by the auctioneer Gerhard Harms on behalf of Moabit West tax office. Some items were sold via Harms by the tax office to the Berlin State Museums separately from the auction. It has only been possible to restitute two items from the dispersed art collection to date. The aim of the project is to identify works of art from the collection and their purchasers by analysing the files that have recently been identified. An investigation will also be carried out as to whether there are any fresh indications of where items may be located in public facilities.

Having been involved in researching patronage and collections for many years in connection with its studies on European-Jewish cultural history, the Moses Mendelssohn Center Potsdam follows in the tradition of the representatives of the philosophical ideals of the Jewish Enlightenment, whose proponents included Moses Mendelssohn and David Friedländer. Felix and Marie Busch were descendants of the prominent ancestors of its director, Prof Dr. Julius Schoeps. Since Felix and Marie Busch’s art collection was looted under National Socialism, research into it is key to establishing a sense of identity not just for the heirs but also for the institute itself. For the Moses Mendelssohn Center, whose primary aim is to conduct research into European-Jewish cultural history, this means there is a public interest in clarifying the circumstances of the confiscation and dispersal of the art collection.

© Moses Mendelssohn Zentrum Potsdam