Paintings hung at the Berghof.

[Doc_001]

Max, I think an excellent source for you is Frau Christa Schroeder, Hitler's longest serving Secretary. On page 193 of her memoirs she states:

"All paintings obtained by Hitler through art dealer's were paid for above board. The money came from the so-called Postage Stamp Fund devised by post minister Ohnesorge. Every stamp bearing Hitler's image brought him a small royalty, especially special stamps with his head commemorating a Nuremberg rally, art exhibitions, the annexations of Austria and the Sudetenland, and his birthdays. The journal of art purchases was kept by Schuab under lock and key although I made the entries in it."

I have attached a report from NARA regards post war interrogations of Heinrich Hoffmann by the US Army Art Restitution Branch. Hoffman states Fanz von Lenbach painted the hallway portrait of Bismark, he did many portraits of Bismark and other figures from the era. Also, he lists Arnold Bocklin's "Battle of the Centaurs" as having been at the Berghof. I notice the previous listing of his work "Die Toteninsel".

[Geoff Walden]

Hi Doc,

Thanks very much for posting the list from Hoffmann's interrogation! I adds some things to what we know about the Berghof artwork.

This must be the "Painting of Andreas Hofer" by Defregger. The subject is obviously Hofer, and it is very similar indeed to a work now in the Tiroler Kaiserjäger Museum in Innsbruck, called "Il congedo di Andreas Hofer" (I don't know Italian, but I think this means "The Departure of Andreas Hofer"). I can't see this painting in any interior shots of the Berhof that I have, but it's in the book of Hitler's personal pieces that is now in the U.S. Library of Congress (that Eingang was kind enough to post earlier on this page).

I also couldn't see the "Battle of the Centaurs" in any Berghof photo, but perhaps it was hung in an area not normally photographed (like maybe even AH's bedroom?).

Geoff

[Geoff Walden]

Here are Feuerbach's "Nanna" and the "Frauenakt" by Paris Bordone, listed by Hoffmann (the latter was titled "Venus and Amor"). "Nanna" moved around in the Great Room, and "Venus and Amor" was hung above the wall bench at the fireplace's left side.

[Geoff Walden]

Here are the portrait of Bismarck by Franz von Lenbach (hung in the corridor outside the Great Room entrance; Lenbach's signature is very clear on the original), and the portrait of Frederick the Great by Perne (sometimes hung over the fireplace in Hitler's Berghof office).

(Who was Perne? I could not find an artist by this name.)

[herd118]

Here are the portrait of Bismarck by Franz von Lenbach (hung in the corridor outside the Great Room entrance; Lenbach's signature is very clear on the original), and the portrait of Frederick the Great by Perne (sometimes hung over the fireplace in Hitler's Berghof office).

(Who was Perne? I could not find an artist by this name.)

I suspect the artist is not "Perne", but Antoine Pesne (1683-1757), who painted several portraits of Frederick the Great.

[Max]

Max, I think an excellent source for you is Frau Christa Schroeder, Hitler's longest serving Secretary. On page 193 of her memoirs she states:

"All paintings obtained by Hitler through art dealer's were paid for above board. The money came from the so-called Postage Stamp Fund devised by post minister Ohnesorge. Every stamp bearing Hitler's image brought him a small royalty, especially special stamps with his head commemorating a Nuremberg rally, art exhibitions, the annexations of Austria and the Sudetenland, and his birthdays. The journal of art purchases was kept by Schuab under lock and key although I made the entries in it."

Thanks for that Doc
I'll try to dig up a copy
Max

[Doc_001]

Ah, Pense! Makes sense Herd118, several typos in the report. I have been reading back through some of my old books for references to art in the Berghof, as you know leads sometimes start from surprising sources.

Your right Geoff, Adolf was just the sort to enjoy a painting like "Battle of the Centaurs" in his bedroom

Great thread all.

- Doc

[Doc_001]

On a quick search I ran accross a "Best of Art International" auction of an original Adolf Ziegler painting of Eva Braun, the other is currently on Ebay and a purported third vanished. It is claimed Ziegler painted these from a sketch of Eva, don't even know where to start on that research. The Ebay listing claims one (of course the one for bid) hung in Hitler's private room in the Berghof.

http://boa-international.de/product_inf ... ucts_id/28

http://cgi.ebay.com/Painting-Portrait-E ... 19c6d1fdd1

The first for a meger 10k Euro and the second a steal at $10k dollars.

- Doc

[Geoff Walden]

Hi Doc,

For myself ... just my own opinion, from just looking at the photos, not the actual paintings ... I would be rather suspicious of these. The one on ebay is simply a copy of a 1942 painting by Wilhelm Hempfing called "Kniender Akt" (Kneeling Nude). The works are the same, except the hair is darker in the copy. I doubt very highly that Ziegler would have copied a work by a contemporary (and perhaps competitive) artist. And Hempfing's original was not meant to portray Eva Braun.

The other one, really I have to say, does not look like the same quality as Ziegler's 1930s works that featured so prominently in the Haus der Deutschen Kunst in Munich. To me, it just doesn't look like the same artist. I have not had a chance yet to compare the signature.

Again, just my opinions. Judging artwork is not really my forte.

Geoff

[Doc_001]

Agree, buyer beware! Although it would be cool if a forum member purchased an authentic painting from the Berg. Some cool talking points. Buyer beware, and I was about to bid ... NOT

[Johnnyrocket]

The two paintings that hung in Hitler's office have been found just recently and are for sale. See link below.

http://www.cgmauctions.com/detail.asp?id=559

Johnny R.

[Johnnyrocket]

FYI:

SOLANA BEACH, CA (KSWB/CNN) - Unique portraits of Adolf Hitler's parents will be up for grabs next month in California after being missing since the end of World War II.

Craig Gottlieb, a note seller of World War II memorabilia, was asked to sell the portraits on behalf of the owners. He said they had been lost for decades.

"These pictures are not rare - they're one of a kind. They're the only two that exist," he said.

The owners of the portraits live in the city of Orange, CA, but are originally from France. They recently asked Gottlieb to help put the portraits up for auction.

"You know, when people ask me, 'How can you sell Hitler's mother and father?' I believe there's an important historical reason and an obligation to preserve them," he said.

But the major question is whether or not the pieces are authentic. Gottlieb pointed to particular brush strokes and said black and white pictures of the portraits had been taken at the time of their creation.

He said the details in the photographs match up.

"Because of the photographs of these paintings taken during the period, I could tell that they were. They matched brushstroke to brushstroke," he said.

A photograph from the Berghof showed the paintings hanging in one of Hitler's rooms.

"Hitler's mother was said to have eyes like Medusa, and when you look at these paintings, and there's more than meets the eye when you look into them. I'm not going to say they're haunted, but they're haunting," Gottlieb said.

Now that the portraits are up for auction, the second question is their value.

"Because they're one of a kind, I can only give an estimate of the true value," Gottlieb said.

He gave a rough estimate of around $100,000, but said he could easily see the price go way up.

"When it's the collector's one opportunity or the museum's one opportunity to acquire something, the sky's the limit," he said.

Gottlieb, who is a Jewish American and a former Pendleton Marine, said he had no issues with selling the portraits.

"War profiteering is selling A-47's in Rwanda. Okay, that's not this. This is representing a very important and relevant part of our human history," he said.

The auction will take place on Gottlieb's website through the first half of September.

[Annelie]

I did notice that the frames are not the same or orginal.

Makes one wonder why such plain frames now and what happened to the original.
If they were taken from the Berghof I would wonder why they were taken out of them?

Hopefully there is a provenance?

[Johnnyrocket]

Frames were probably destroyed but the actual paintings were cut from the original fames in Hitlers office. Easier to get back to France I think, according to the sale site info. I'm sure the provenance is flawless on this sale.

Johnny R.

[Annelie]

Isn't it ironic that this Jewish American man who is selling the paintings says

This is representing a very important and relevant part of our human history," he said.

yet there is no qualms when destroying buildings like the Berghof which had more than the photos
was an important and relevant part of the history of the time?