Walter Bornheim Explained

Walter Bornheim (born August 23, 1888 in Cologne; died 1971) was a German art dealer deeply involved in Nazi looted art.^[1]

Walter Bornheim attended grammar school in Cologne and worked for the Lempertz auction house in Cologne, and later for Bihn, a graphics dealer in Paris. He worked as an art dealer in London and Brussels. A corporal in the First World War as a corporal, he was taken prisoner in France, and released in 1920. He then worked as an art dealer in Cologne, specializing in prints.

Nazi era

In 1936/37, he acquired the art dealership A. S. Drey in Munich in the course of "Aryanization", which he renamed "Galerie für Alte Kunst G.m.b.H.".^{[2] [3] [4]} Together with Kajetan Mühlmann, he was one of the largest German art dealers involved in the looting of art by the National Socialists (Nazis). He acquired art for the Nazi Hermann Göring from 1938 onwards.^[5] He did much business with French dealers during the occupation.

The OSS Art Looting Investigation Unit considered Bornheim a major player in the Nazi looted art business, and dedicated a Detailed Interrogation Report to him in 1945^[6] in addition to mentioning him numerous times throughout their list of art looting Red Flag Names.^[7]

Postwar

After the war, Bornheim continued to work as an art dealer in Gräfelfing near Munich. From 1932 he was an advisor to Otto Schäfer.

Research projects

Art that was looted from Jewish collectors or sold under duress to Bornheim is the object of numerous ongoing research projects.^{[8] [9] [10] [11]}

Literature

• Günther Haase: Kunstraub und Kunstschutz. Eine Dokumentation. 2. Auflage. 2008, S. 249–253.
• Kenneth D. Alford: Herman Göring and the Nazi art collection. The looting of Europe's art treasures and their dispersal after World War II. McFarland, Jefferson, NC/London 2012, ISBN 978-0-7864-6815-7, S. 28–30.

External links

• Records of the American Commission for the Protection and Salvage of Artistic and Historical Monuments in War Areas (The Roberts Commission), 1943–1946 › Detailed Interrogation Reports › D. I. R. # 11 - Walter Bornheim
• Walter Bornheim lostart.de
• Walter Bornheim im Dictionary of Art Historians

See also

• List of claims for restitution for Nazi-looted art
• The Holocaust
• Monuments Men
• Nazi Germany

References

1. Web site: Bornheim, Walter Proveana . 2024-03-02 . www.proveana.de.
2. Web site: Durón . Maximilíano . 2021-04-26 . Bavarian State Restitutes Nazi-Looted Medieval Painting to Heirs of German-American Art Dealers . 2024-03-02 . ARTnews.com . en-US.
3. Web site: Binding opinion Kunsthaus A.S. Drey / Rotterdam City Council . 2024-03-02 . Restitutiecommissie . en-US.
4. Book: Selig, Wolfram . "Arisierung" in München: die Vernichtung jüdischer Existenz 1937 - 1939 . 2004 . Metropol Verlag . 978-3-936411-33-1 . Berlin.
5. Web site: HCPO Gallery: Hermann Wilhelm Göring - biography . 2024-03-02 . Department of Financial Services . en . In his capacity as Plenipotentiary for the Implementation of the Four-Year Plan, Göring controlled several agencies well suited for plundering -- Haupttreuhandstelle Ost, Devisenschutzkommando, and the Abteilung Feind Vermögen. In addition, Göring employed and utilized a number of art experts to assist with both acquiring works and maintaining his collection – Walter Andreas Hofer, Bruno Lohse, Walter Bornheim, Kajetan Mühlmann, Karl Haberstock, and Aloys Miedl. Confiscated works of art from "enemies of the Reich" constituted a large part of Göring collection. From the ERR alone, Göring obtained approximately 700 artworks. Always mindful of appearances, Göring masked his looting by offering token payments or promise of compensation..
6. Web site: No. 11 Walter Bornheim, September 1945 (ca. 30 pp) . dfs.ny.gov.
7. Web site: Art Looting Intelligence Unit (ALIU) Reports 1945-1946 and ALIU Red Flag Names List and Index . 2024-03-02 . www.lootedart.com.
8. Web site: Ermittlung der Provenienz von zwei Werken aus der Sammlung von Lemmers-Danforth, Tischuhr in Form eines Elefanten, Spieltisch der Diane de Portiers Proveana . 2024-03-02 . www.proveana.de.
9. Web site: Provenance research on Old German paintings from the Schäfer collection in the Veste Coburg art collections Proveana . 2024-03-02 . www.proveana.de.
10. Web site: Projekt zur Erforschung der Provenienzen von Kunstwerken aus der sogenannten Sammlung Göring am Bayerischen Nationalmuseum München Proveana . 2024-03-02 . www.proveana.de.
11. Web site: Die Erwerbungen der Graphischen Sammlung des Wallraf-Richartz-Museums zwischen 1933 und 1945 Proveana . 2024-03-02 . www.proveana.de.

[[Category:Men]] [[Category:1971 deaths]] [[Category:1888 births]] [[Category:German people]] [[Category:German people of World War I]]