Purchases from local antique dealers in the collection of Bamberg’s municipal museum (Bamberg Historical Museum)—provenance research on objects acquired between 1933 and 1945

Initial questions and project objectives

Bamberg Historical Museum was set up in 1938 as the “Fränkisches Heimatmuseum” (Franconian Museum of Local History). In the new museum, the municipal art collections, which had existed since 1838/39, were exhibited together with the collections of the Historischer Verein Bamberg (Bamberg Historical Society). To expand the holdings, extensive new acquisitions were made, particularly from the mid-1930s onward. A large proportion of these came into the museum’s holdings from local and national art dealers, or were passed on to the museum by other administrative offices in the city.

Against the backdrop of this acquisition history, the objective of the project was to examine objects acquired between 1933 and 1945, especially objects formerly owned by Jewish citizens, to determine whether any were cultural goods that had been seized as a result of persecution. First of all, possible suspicious objects were identified and arranged together in various object groups based on the likelihood of them being assets lost through Nazi persecution. Systematic provenance research was then carried out on the suspicious objects.

As well as clarifying the provenance of the objects, the project had the further research aim of examining the role of local art dealers and the municipal administrative authorities in relation to the theft of cultural property.

The research findings were incorporated into the special exhibition “Jüdisches in Bamberg” (November 26, 2013–June 1, 2014) and also into its re-conception as a permanent exhibition (since April 2015). The aim was to clearly present the socio-historical dimension of the interconnection between museum history and National Socialist looting policy to a wide target audience.

The project in numbers

In the examination of the collection objects acquired between 1933 and 1945 (approx. 1,500), 651 were identified as works suspected of having been obtained as a result of Nazi persecution. These were subjected to in-depth provenance research and 215 works were found to have a lawful provenance. For 412 objects, it has not been possible to conclusively clarify the provenance between 1933 and 1945, due in part to the current records. There are gaps in the provenance of these works, which means confiscation as a result of Nazi persecution cannot be ruled out. For three of the examined objects, the provenance is questionable and further investigations are urgently needed. For 21 objects, an acquisition context involving Nazi persecution was confirmed by the research. These include a drinking vessel in the shape of a lion which belonged to the collection of Heinrich and Emma Budge. It was acquired by art dealer Anton Rauh on behalf of the city of Bamberg on October 4, 1937, at the auction of the Budge collection conducted at the H. W. Lange auction house in Berlin. Following completion of the restitution negotiations, this piece—an important masterpiece for the collection—was bought back and preserved for the inventory thanks to financial support from the Cultural Foundation of the German Federal States, the Oberfrankenstiftung, the Stiftung Weltkulturerbe Bamberg and the Hans-Friedrich-Oskar-Deis-Gedächtnis-Stiftung.

Of the 21 objects classified as seized through Nazi persecution, 16 works come from a Jewish private collection from Bamberg, for which reparation proceedings had already been conducted between 1952 and 1958. These 16 art objects were not returned to the heirs of their former owner at that time. They are currently the subject of a restitution process that will be concluded in the near future.

Another restitution process for a drawing has been proactively initiated. In addition, contact has been made with the heirs of the former owner of three further works acquired as a result of Nazi persecution.

List of persons and institutions that are historically relevant to the project

An investigation of the art trade is of key importance for provenance research into acquisitions by the Museen der Stadt Bamberg which came into the holdings between 1933 and 1945. With regard to the local art market, acquisitions from the art and antique dealers Wolfgang Boxleidner, Karl Förtsch, Oswald Lehmann and Anton Rauh must be documented in particular. A large amount of objects were also purchased from the national art market. The galleries most prominently associated with the Bamberg Museum include the Josef Oberdorfer antique dealership in Augsburg; the Josef Altmann and Rolf E. Heise antiquarian bookshops in Berlin; the Hildebrandt Gurlitt and Konrad Zimmermann galleries in Berlin; the August Hase art antiquarian bookshop in Frankfurt; the Friedrich Otto antiquarian bookshop in Mannheim; and the Karl Büchs, Karl Gerlinghaus, M. Rauscher, Jacob Spaeth, Adolf Weinmüller and Alfred Willi galleries in Munich.

Purchases and donations from private individuals, mainly from residents of Bamberg or the surrounding region, constitute another important acquisition channel. Among these, acquisitions from the collections of Angelo Wassermann and Willy Lessing must be emphasized in particular.

Only a few art objects came into the collection holdings from auctions. One exception is the drinking vessel purchased on behalf of the city of Bamberg at the auction of the Budge private collection in 1937, conducted by H. W. Lange.

Equally, not that many objects were acquired as transfers from city institutions like the municipal asset management department, the municipal pawn office or the city council.

Transparency

The provenance research project and results, such as successfully completed restitution procedures, were published in the local daily press (Fränkischer Tag, 181st vol., no. 207 of September 8, 2014, p. 13; Bamberg Stadt & Land, 19th vol., no. 36 of September 6, 2014, p. 11); in the city of Bamberg’s staff newspaper “ZEBRA” (ZEBRA July 27, 2014, pp. 17–18) and on the city of Bamberg’s website and the Museen der Stadt Bamberg’s website in the “provenance research” section.

Reports on the restitution and successful re-purchase of the lion cup, an important object for the collection, did not only appear in the local daily press (incl. Fränkischer Tag,

181st vol., no. 251 of October 30, 2014, p. 9; Bamberg Stadt & Land, 19th vol., no. 37 of September 13, 2014, p. 4; Nürnberger Nachrichten, 70th vol., no. 251 of October 30, 2014, p. 8; der Standard of October 29, 2014)—an article was also published in Arsprototo, the magazine of the Cultural Foundation of the German Federal States (Arsprototo April 2014, p. 16).

As part of the special exhibition “Jüdisches in Bamberg”, the accompanying exhibition catalog contained the essay “Die Sammlungen Wassermann und Federlein – Provenienzforschung an den Museen der Stadt Bamberg” (Saalmann, Timo/Schneider, Anne-Christin: Die Sammlungen Wassermann und Federlein – Provenienzforschung an den Museen der Stadt Bamberg, in: Hanemann, Regina (ed.): Jüdisches in Bamberg [Schriften der Museen der Stadt Bamberg, no. 51], Petersberg 2013, pp. 189–199).

The museum director Regina Hanemann also presented the Museen der Stadt Bamberg’s provenance research project in the essay “Provenienzforschung in der Provinz” in the journal of the Landesstelle für die nichtstaatlichen Museen in Bayern (Museum heute 46/July 2014, pp. 43–47) [link].

After the completion of restitution negotiations and the acquisition of the lion cup, plans were made to exhibit the masterpiece in the Ludwig Collection in the Old Town Hall (October 2014–April 2015) to mark its re-purchase. In October, Bamberg citizens were able to view the cup free of charge and find out more about the background to the successful research into its origin. A flyer was designed which provided key information about the masterpiece and the provenance research. This continued to be used after the presentation, as the masterpiece has been exclusively displayed as part of the new permanent exhibition “Jüdisches in Bamberg” in the Alte Hofhaltung since April 2015.

Specific research cases like that of the lion cup have been shown to an interested museum audience in special guided tours, e.g. on Museum Night and on International Museum Day. They have also been presented in cooperation with the project “Domberg – Museen um den Bamberger Dom” (Domberg—museums around Bamberg cathedral) as part of the series “Kunstsnacks in der Mittagspause” (Art snacks in your lunch break). Bayerischer Rundfunk produced a report on the last of these for its “Heimatspiegel” show (BR, May 2, 2015, 7:30 a.m.). The provenance research project was presented as part of the German Museums Association’s conference in 2015 in Essen, where it featured in the “Geschichtsmuseen” specialist group. The findings obtained during the provenance investigations have been incorporated where possible into the new permanent exhibition “Jüdisches in Bamberg”, which was launched at the Historical Museum in April 2015.

Finally, the results of the project will be published in the reports of the Historischer Verein Bamberg.

© Museen der Stadt Bamberg