Germany returns looted Painting
Germany is returning a painting by Friedrich von Amerling to its rightful owners. The work, "Portrait of a Young Man," is to be restituted to the heirs of the Jewish antiquarian and art dealer Jacques Rosenthal and his wife Emma, as announced by the Bavarian State Painting Collections in Munich.
The restitution is the result of intensive provenance research and "another important step in coming to terms with Nazi looted art."
According to documents, after the National Socialists seized power in 1935, Rosenthal received an order from the Reich Chamber of Culture to close his antiquarian bookshop within four weeks. He decided to sell the business before the forced closure.
While some family members went into exile, Jacques and his wife Emma Rosenthal remained in Munich and moved into a hotel after selling their house. "All their furniture was sold or sold far below value," the Bavarian State Painting Collections announced regarding the results of their provenance research.
The Rosenthals consigned the Amerling painting to an art dealer, from whom it then found its way to the Munich Pinakotheken through an exchange. Emma Rosenthal received 350 Reichsmarks for the painting, which at the time was said to be worth at least seven times that amount.
“With the return of the artwork, the Free State of Bavaria and the Bavarian State Painting Collections are honoring the persecution suffered by the Rosenthal family,” said Anton Biebl, head of the State Painting Collections. “Even more than eight decades after the Nazi regime, coming to terms with National Socialist injustice remains a lasting obligation,” said Bavaria’s Minister of Art, Markus Blume.
Main Image: Friedrich von Amerling "Bildnis eines jungen Mannes", 1833 Foto: Bayerische Staatsgemäldesammlungen