Looted art in focus: The dark history of Nazi art confiscation

Looted art in focus: The dark history of Nazi art confiscation

In the final phase of the Second World War, the National Socialist regime developed a systematic strategy to concentrate cultural assets in the so-called “Alpine Fortress”. Loud uni-heidelberg.de These art treasures were intended to serve as a bargaining chip for upcoming peace negotiations with the Allies. In a lecture, Prof. Kerstin von Lingen, an expert in contemporary history at the University of Vienna, will illuminate the methodological approaches to organized art theft that Nazi authorities pursued in this final phase of the war.

In her lecture, von Lingen cites two important cases as examples. On the one hand, valuable art treasures were stolen from the “Uffizi Gallery” in the South Tyrolean Passeier Valley. On the other hand, cultural assets from the stolen Jewish removal goods were in the free port of Trieste. The topic of atonement for the National Socialist art theft is dealt with in depth in the context of the Allied post-war justice system.

Insights into coming to terms with the history of art theft

The Ruperto Carola Lecture Series at the University of Heidelberg, entitled “1945: Epoch Threshold and Space of Experience,” highlights the end of the war in Europe 80 years ago. This series of lectures was given by Prof. Dr. Manfred Berg designs and aims to present socially relevant research questions to a broader public. Anyone interested can view recordings of the nine lectures on heiONLINE, the central portal of Heidelberg University.

The effects of the Second World War on art and cultural assets in Germany are profound. The National Socialist regime's state strategy of looting art, which was carried out from 1933 to 1945, led to a massive loss of cultural treasures. Loud ardkultur.de Terms such as “Nazi-looted art”, “degenerate art” and “looted art” are central to the discussion around these topics.

Nazi looted art refers to the unlawful confiscation of private property, which particularly affected Jewish owners. This persecution led not only to forced sales but also to government confiscations without any compensation. The “Degenerate Art” campaign, launched in the 1930s, targeted works of art that did not conform to Nazi ideals, resulting in the confiscation and destruction of many works.

Restitution efforts and cultural heritage

The mention of the art collector Hans Fürstenberg illustrates the personalized dimension of art theft. The director of the Berlin trading company collected valuable books and art, including the bronze sculpture “Resting Woman,” created by Fritz Huf in the 1920s. After 1933, as a Jew, Fürstenberg had to give up large parts of his assets and fled abroad with his wife. After the war, his sculpture was discovered in the garden of Schönhausen Castle, Wilhelm Pieck's official residence. In 2022, after a detailed search for clues, the statue was restituted and bought back. It can be seen today in Schönhausen Castle.

The return and compensation of unlawfully confiscated works of art are complex issues. bpb.de reports that after World War II, over 2.6 million works of art and more than six million books were confiscated by the Red Army. To this day, many Jewish-owned art and cultural assets are still available in museums and libraries in Germany.

The legal regulation for the return of confiscated property was made after 1945 by the Western Allies and the Federal Republic of Germany. In contrast, the GDR had no settlement regulations. The 1998 “Washington Principles” call for the identification of confiscated works of art and the establishment of a central registry. The Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation has since processed numerous restitution applications.

German-Russian negotiations over art and cultural assets have been stagnating since 1995, and many claims appear difficult to enforce. Political change in Europe remains crucial for future solutions, which require clarification of provenance and access to the affected art and cultural assets.