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December 23, 2020 - Droog Magazine periodical for investigative journalism

 The Hitler Forgery Industry

to Hitler Forgery Industry main page - to Droog Magazine

2018  | 'Hitlers' |  Certificates of Authenticity


The strange business of selling fakes, forgeries and other concoctions attributed to Adolf Hitler (1889-1945) and other Nazi criminals.

Introduction (global anual turnover)

"Naturally, exact figures are hard to come by, but the market’s annual global turnover is estimated to be in excess of £30m." [= €35 /$39 million] - Guardian, June 24, 2015.

"Despite the trade of Nazi antiquities being banned or strictly regulated in many countries, the market’s annual global turnover is expected to be in excess of $47 million." [= €42 / £36 million] - New York Post, June 27, 2015.


Alex Preston. The man who sleeps in Hitler's bed. [Article on Kevin Wheatcroft ]. The Guardian, London, June 24, 2015.

Copy of this article, with higher estimation of the turnover:
Alex Preston. This man owns the largest collection of Nazi artifacts. The New York Post, New York, June 27, 2015.

The estimation originates via The Hitler Virus, a book from the American journalist Peter Wyden (1923-1998) from Stern Magazine, October, 1984. Wyden: "The Stern writers participated in one of the many auctions of "militaria" that have kept galleries flush with a business said to be grossing $40 million a year."

With inflation correction this amount would be equal to $127.3  million / £97.3 million / € 114.17 million anno 2019.

Yet, the prices and numbers of Nazi militaria items have only risen since 1984. This would logically mean that the annual turnover in 2019/2020 is much higher than was estimated before. 


Peter Wyden. The Hitler Virus. The insidious legacy of Adolf Hitler. Arcade Publishing, New York, 1998. Reprint 2011.
Valuta rates October 2, 1984. Nederlands Dagblad, 02-10-1984.
Calculation inflation correction. Waarde van de gulden/euro. [Value of the guilder/euro]. International Institute for Social History, Amsterdam, 06-01-2020.

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'Hitlers' at auctions, dealers and musea, 2018


A 'Hitler' in Beek (Limburg, NL)
Six 'Hitlers' in Florida (USA)
Twenty-two 'Hitlers' in Nuremberg (BRD)
 'Hitler' at Alexander Historical Auctions (USA)
Two 'Hitlers' in Munich (BRD)
A 'Hitler' from Spain (E)


A Hitler in Beek (Limburg, NL)

January 2018 – Wim Seelen, the director of the private Eyewitness WWII Museum in Beek (Limburg, the Netherlands) claims to own a real Hitler. The work originates from a Hermann Historica auction in 2014. It is just as fake as any other 'Hitlers' sold by several dubious auction houses and militaria dealers in Germany.

In an interview with the regional broadcasting company 1Limburg museum director Wim Seelen stated that he bought the work for "nineteen thousand euros" plus "a few thousand euros extra" from a private seller who in his turn had bought the work at the Munich based auction house Hermann Historica for nineteen thousand euros.

Hermann Historica stated this about the work:


“Pasted to the back is the invoice for framing from the gilding and framing company Georg Zaglmaier owned by Max Lottner addressed to Frau Direktor Hoffmann in Solln with payment receipt dated "9. II. 1920" together with a bookplate from Hermine Hoffmann.


Cf. a very similar watercolour from the estate of the Munich arms manufacturer Adam Schork who purchased the watercolour from Hitler in 1914. Hermann Historica auction 57 lot 6249 hammer price 63 000 euros. Hermine Hoffmann Lindenallee 26 in Solln Munich.


Hermine Hoffmann (1857 - 1945) was the widow of an Oberstudiendirektor to whom the Völkischer Beobachter newspaper referred as Frau Direktor Hoffmann. She was an early supporter of the NSDAP. By her own account Hermine Hoffmann joined the DAP with the "old no. 10" which may well be the case as contrary to the widespread claim that only the numbers 501 and higher were assigned lower numbers have also been documented. However it is an undisputed fact that she was already a party member by the end of 1919. During World War I she was assigned to raise the morale of Gefreiter Adolf Hitler by knitting socks and sending parcels to him in the field.


She placed her apartment at the party's disposal during the Beer Hall Putsch in November 1923. Throughout Hitler's incarceration in Landsberg there were five documented visits from Hermine Hoffmann. When the NSDAP was re-founded in the Bürgerbräukeller in February 1925 she was formally accepted into the party with a handshake from Hitler and assigned membership number 584. On 2 January 1934 according to the Bavarian State Archives Hitler awarded her the Golden Party Badge. CF. A. Joachimsthaler Hitlers Liste p. 133. In 1935 she was appointed honorary Gauleiter of the National Socialist Women's League.”


This is, as so many times, a mixture of thruth and concoctions. There's no evidence at all that Hermine Hoffmann had known Hitler before 1923. So there's also no evidence at all she knotted socks for him during WWI. The Hermine Hoffmann bookplate seems to be a a recently fabricated forgery. And the watercolor itself is probably copied from the book with color reproductions of alleged Hitlers, Die Aquarelle Hitlers (1984), to be specific, a copy of Florence 19.

Left, the believed to be authentic München, Standesamt, since 1946 in Italian custody; right the version in Beek. Click on the photos for larger versions.

The reverse side of the Beek 'Hitler'. Forgers often attach important looking documents etc. on the reverse side as proof for the authenticity. But such documents, in this case an invoice and a book plate (ex libris) work merely as forgery indicators. Because why glue an invoice and a book plate on the reverse side of a painting? Click on the photos for larger versions.

This work is not the only fake object to be found in this museum. Numerous obvious replica uniforms and even concentration camp clothing are exhibited as “authentic”.


Sources

Jaap van den Born & Bart FM Droog. Hermine Hoffmann. Sokken breien voor korporaal Hitler? Droog Magazine, Eenrum, 31-01-2018.
https://www.bartfmdroog.com/droog/niod/hoffmann-hermine.html
Jaap van den Born & Bart FM Droog. Museum Eyewitness, Beek (Limburg). Vervalsingen- of oorlogsmuseum? Droog Magazine, Eenrum, 31-01-2018.
https://www.bartfmdroog.com/droog/niod/beek.html
Volker Ullrich. Adolf Hitler. Biographie. Band 1. Die Jahre des Aufstiegs 1889-1939. S. Fischer Verlag GmbH, Frankfurt am Main, 2013, blz. 138 v., 189, 303.
Peter Fleischmann. Festungshaft Adolf Hitlers in Landsberg, 1923/24. Historisches Lexikon Bayerns. [Gezien 24-01-2018].
https://www.historisches-lexikon-bayerns.de/Lexikon/Festungshaft_
Adolf_Hitlers_in_Landsberg,_1923/24
Auktionslos 6113. Hermann Historica. 12 Dez. 2014. [De Limburg-aquarel] The Saleroom.com, 2014.
https://www.the-saleroom.com/de-de/auction-catalogues/hermann-historica-ohg/catalogue-id-srher10000/lot-0aedcd54-7cdb-4fff-87bf-a40100df81fb
Auktionslos 6114. Hermann Historica. 12 Dez. 2014. [De collectie Hermine Hoffmann]. The Saleroom.com, 2014.
https://www.the-saleroom.com/de-de/auction-catalogues/hermann-historica-ohg/catalogue-id-srher10000/lot-ecd00e78-558d-4800-b769-a40100df8291
Lot 6113: DRITTES REICH ZEITGESCHICHTE - Adolf Hitler - a watercolour "München Standesamt" (tr. Munich Registry Office). Invaluable.com.
https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot/drittes-reich-zeitgeschichte-adolf-hitler-a-w-FA5755C481#
Schilderij Hitler voor het eerst te bewonderen in museum Beek. 1Limburg, 22-01-2018
https://www.1limburg.nl/schilderij-hitler-voor-het-eerst-te-bewonderen-museum-beek
Museum in Beek tikt schilderij van Adolf Hitler op de kop. L1, 22-01-2018.
https://l1.nl/hoe-komt-een-museum-in-beek-aan-een-schilderij-van-hitler-138445/
ANP. Limburgs oorlogsmuseum stelt aquarel Hitler tentoon. NOS, 23-01-2018.
https://nos.nl/artikel/2213398-limburgs-oorlogsmuseum-stelt-aquarel-hitler-tentoon.html
Eyewitness Museum Beek. Heemkundebeek.nl, [Gezien 24-001-2018].
http://www.heemkundebeek.nl/index.php/musea/eyewitness-museum-wo2
Eliana Lopes da Costa, veilinghuis Hermann Historica, München. E-mail aan Jaap van den Born, 24-01-2018. 15.44 uur.
Caspar Naber. Schilderij van de hand van Hitler te zien in Oorlogsmuseum. AD, 26-01-2018.
https://www.ad.nl/binnenland/schilderij-van-de-hand-van-hitler-te-zien-in-oorlogsmuseum~a1ebdd84/
Eyewitness. Oorlogsmuseum Beek (Limburg), 2018.
http://www.eyewitnesswo2.nl/
Eric van Dost. Beladen aquarel Hitler draait rond in Beek. De Limburger, 28-01-2018.
https://www.limburger.nl/cnt/dmf20180127_00054886/beladen-aquarel-hitler-draait-rond-in-beek
Limburgs museum en onderzoekers botsen over 'nep-aquarel' van Hitler. NOS, 29-01-2018
https://nos.nl/artikel/2214416-limburgs-museum-en-onderzoekers-botsen-over-nep-aquarel-van-hitler.html
Onderzoekers stellig: 'Hitler-schilderij is nep'. 1Limburg, 29-01-2018.
https://www.1limburg.nl/onderzoekers-stellig-hitler-schilderij-nep
Eric van Dorst. Aquarel van Adolf Hitler: topaankoop of geflest? De Limburger, 30-01-2018
https://www.limburger.nl/cnt/dmf20180129_00054993/aquarel-van-adolf-hitler-topaankoop-of-geflest
Museum Beek vraagt hulp NIOD in Hitler-aquarelrel. 1Limburg, 30-01-2018.
https://www.1limburg.nl/museum-beek-vraagt-hulp-niod-hitler-aquarelrel
Frank van Vree. E-mail aan Jaap van den Born. 01-02-2018.


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Six 'Hitlers' in Florida


Six "Hitler" drawings were auctioned in Florida on March 8, 2018, Each was was accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity (CoA) from CoA swindler Frank P. Garo – which in itself is a strong forgery indicator.



The mere fact that none of these works resembled any known authentic Hitler drawing, didn't stop the collector. The works were all sold, for $20,800 in total.



Premier Military Firearms and Edged Weapons. Affiliated Auctions & Realty LLC. Live auction, Tallahassee, FL, US. March 8, 2018 9:00 AM EST
https://www.invaluable.com/catalog/245t4ebok0
Ryan Dailey. Tallahassee auction will sell what could be some of Hitler's early sketches. Tallahassee Democrat, 09-02-2018.
http://www.tallahassee.com/story/news/2018/02/09/tallahassee-auction-sell-what-could-some-hitlers-early-sketches/308012002/
Aaron J. Hill. "If the sketch stinks, it's probably by Hitler. Aaron Hill's Notebook, 11-02-2018
https://aaronjhill.wordpress.com/2018/02/11/if-the-sketch-stinks-its-probably-by-hitler/
Jake Stofan. Hitler artwork in Tallahassee. Capitol News Service. WCTV, 12-02-2018.
http://www.wctv.tv/content/news/Tallahassee-art-collector-to-put-Hitlers-paintings-for-auction-473830323.html
Jake Stofan. Art sketched by Adolph Hitler to soon go up for sale. News4jax.com, 12-02-2018.
https://www.news4jax.com/news/art-sketched-by-adolph-hitler-to-soon-go-up-for-sale

Jaap van den Born & Bart FM Droog. The Tallahassee Auction. Droog Magazine, Eenrum, 24-06-2018.
http://www.bartfmdroog.com/droog/niod/th.html



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Twenty-two 'Hitlers' in Nuremberg


At auction 2150, April 14, 2018, auction house Weidler (Nuremberg, Germany) offered seventeen watercolors, four oil paintings and one ink drawing attributed to Hitler. All these works were blatant forgeries.

This didn't prevent the Reuters news agency from reporting extensively about this auction, without any critical note. News media all over the world followed suit.

The 'masterpiece' was an oil painting portrait 'from 1916' of a woman said to be Charlotte Lobjoie. The controversial Hitler biographer Werner Maser claimed that she and Hitler had a relationship in 1916, from which a son was born. These fabrications were convincingly refuted in 1989 by the German historian Anton Joachimsthaler.

Further evidence that Hitler never made oil paintings is Hitler's ban on the publication of photos of his watercolors:  "Der Führer hat gestern grundsätzlich angeordnet, dass eine Veröffentlichung seiner Aquarelle nicht erfolgen dürfe." (March 30, 1939).

He didn't bother to ban the publication of oil paintings, simply because he never made such works.




Lot 6800. Oil painting, signed "A.Hitler 1916(?). Allegedly depicting Charlotte Lobjoie".
63 x 48 cm. Sold for €60,000.




 Lot 6801. Watercolor signed "A.Hitler '09". Titled "Hoher Markt mit Vermählungs-brunnen". 19,5 x 26,5 cm. With CoAs from Priesack (1983) and Rudolf Pfeiffer-Bechstein (1992). Sold for €56,000.
 Lot 6802. Watercolor signed "A.Hitler". Titled "Piaristenkirche Maria Treu Wien. 15,9 x 10 cm. "Untersuchungsbericht Mag. A. Strohhammer Linz." Passed or sold for less than €500.



Lot 6815. Watercolor, signed "A.Hitler".Titled "Bergsee". 24 x 18 cm. Sold for €1,800.
CoA from Frank P. Garo.



 Lot 6816. Watercolor, signed "A.Hitler", dated 1911. Titled "Votivkirche Wien". 30 x 24 cm.
"Aus dem Nachlaß eines US-Militärs". Passed or sold for less than €500.

Lot 6817. Watercolor, signed "A.Hitler 1910". Titled "Brüssel Kathedrale St. Michael / St. Gudula". 35 x 25 cm. "Aus dem Nachlaß eines US-Militärs". Sold for €6,800.




Lot 6806. Watercolor, signed "A.Hitler", dated 1908. Titled "Altes Kriegsministerium am Hof". 18 x 26 cm. With CoA from Peter Jahn, dated August 1, 1983. Sold for €11,000.

 Lot 6805. Watercolor, signed "A.Hitler". Titled "Romantische Landschaft". 19,5 x 27,5 cm. With CoA from Hans O.A. Horváth. Passed or sold for less than €500.




Lot 6804. Watercolor, signed "A.Hitler". Titled "Schloss am Strom". 12,5 x 17,5 cm. With CoA from Hans O.A. Horváth. Sold for €5,000.

 Lot 6803. Watercolor, signed "A.Hitler". Titled "Perchtholdsdorf". 17 x 21,9 cm. With CoA from Hans O.A. Horváth, 1991. Sold for €5,000.


Lot 6809. Watercolor, signed "A.Hitler 1909". Titled "2 Turmspitzen/ Kirchen". 13 x 20,5 cm.
CoA from Frank P. Garo. Sold for €1,650.


 Lot 6812. Mixed techniques, signed "A.Hitler". Titled "Landschaft mit Bäumen und Häusern". 23 x 31 cm. "Aus müncher Privatbesitz." Passed or sold for less than €500.




Lot 6810. Watercolor, signed "A.Hitler 1910". Titled "Häuser in Landschaft". No dimensions given. Sold for €10,000. Lot 6811. Watercolor/pencil, signed "A.Hitler 1909". Titled "Stadtpalais". No dimensions given. Passed or sold for less than €500.




Lot 6814. Oil painting, signed "A.Hitler 1911". Titled "Gebirgslandschaft mit Bäumen". 37,5 x 53 cm. Sold for €2,200.


 		Lot 6818. Ink drawing, signed "A.Hitler 1910". Titled "Wasserschloss mit Dampfer". 15 x 20 cm. "Aus dem Nachlaß eines US-Militärs". Passed or sold for less than €500.





Lot 6807. Watercolor, signed "A.Hitler 19??". Titled "Bergfels mit Blumen". 28 x 15 cm. "Aus Nachlass von Peter Jahn." Sold for €1,600.

 Lot 6819. Oil painting, signed "A.Hitler 1911". Titled "Mühle am Fluss". 46 x 35,5 cm. Sold for €2,500.


 Lot 6808. Watercolor, unsigned. Titled "Heiliger Kreuzerhof Wien. 23,5 x 18 cm. Sold for €830. "It. EL v. A.H. aus Nachlass von Peter Jahn (AH-Experte)."



Lot 6820. Oil painting, signed "A.Hitler". Titled "Soldat vor Kirche". 32 x 38,55 cm. Sold for €1,500. Document with seal on reverse of "Soldat vor Kirche". Fake documents like these often accompany fake Hitlers.




Lot 6822. Mixed techniques/watercolor, unsigned. Titled "See mit Landschaft/Haus". No dimension given. Passed or sold for less than €500.
Lot 6813. Watercolor, signed "A.Hitler 1909". Titled "Karlskirche". 34 x 30 cm. CoA from Frank P. Garo. Sold for €8,000.

A number of watercolors were accompanied by 'Certificates of Authenticity' (CoA) issued by Frank P. Garo, Dr. August Priesack, Peter Jahn and Hans O.A. Horvath, all known CoA swindlers. Their CoAs are a strong indication that the works are forgeries.

If the works auctioned by Weidler are compared with the few authentic Hitlers, one notices that the Weidler works differ greatly in subject matter and hand from the authentic Hitlers. Most works lack any checkable provenance. Again very strong indications that the works are forgeries.

Already in 1936 it was established that Hitler made no landscapes, only citysights of Vienna 91910-1913) and Munich (1913-1914) - making many of the Weidler-Hitlers obvious fakes. It has also been established that Hitler started to make watercolors for sale in 1910, and that he disn't produce any watercolors at all in 1908 and 1909.

So, of the twenty-two alleged Hitlers auctioned by Weidler in 2018 only three (6802, 6808 and 6816) have some of the basic characteristics of an authentic Hitler, but even these three are in all likelihood forgeries, as the provenance is unknown or can't be checked.

Nevertheless most of the works were sold, for a total of €173,880 (plus 23.8% commission).

Sources

Catalog auction 2150. Auktionshaus Weidler, Nürnberg, 12/14-04-2018.
 http://www.auktionshausweidler.de/de/kataloge/2018/2150/compressed-A2150-Foto_WEB.pdf
https://web.archive.org/web/20201223075016/https://www.auktionshaus
weidler.de/de/kataloge/2018/2150/compressed-A2150-Foto_WEB.pdf
Preiskatalog 2150. Auktion.
Auktionshaus Weidler, Nürnberg, 12/14-04-2018.
https://www.auktionshausweidler.de/de/kataloge/2018/2150/A2150-PK_WEB.pdf
Ergebnisliste der Auktion [A2150] ab 12.04 bis 14.04.2018. Auktionshaus Weidler, Nürnberg,2018
https://www.auktionshausweidler.de/de/kataloge/2018/2150/E2150.pdf

Oberpolizeirat Dr. Spring. Bundes Polizeidirektion Wien, Sicherheitsbureau, s.B. 17105/36, November-December 1936. NSDAP Hauptarchiv NS 26/2599; Bundesarchiv Berlin.  

Aktenvermerk für Pg. Schulte Strathaus. Betrifft: Veröffentlich8ung der Aquarelle des Führers. Hauptarchiv der NSDAP, eingekommen 31. Mrz. 1939. Bundesarchiv, NS
26/19-33.

A. Joachimsthaler. Korrektur einder Biographie. Adolf Hitler 1908-1920. Mit 67 Textabbildungen und 69 Fotos. Herbig, [München], [1989]. Pages 65, 84, 87, 162-163, 278, 285.
http://www.bartfmdroog.com/droog/niod/joachimsthaler.html

Sanya Khetani. The weird story of Adolf Hitler's 'illegitimate French son'. Business Insider, 17-02-2012
http://www.businessinsider.com/jean-mari-loret-hitler-nazi-2012-2?international=true&r=US&IR=T
Charley-Kai John en Joseph Nasr. Hitler's portrait of a lover to go up for auction. Reuters.com, 05-04-2018.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-germany-auction-hitler/hitlers-portrait-of-a-lover-to-go-up-for-auction-idUSKCN1HC1MO
Aquarellen en olieverfschilderijen van Adolf Hitler op veiling. NOS, 05-04-2018.
https://nos.nl/artikel/2225932-aquarellen-en-olieverfschilderijen-van-adolf-hitler-op-veiling.html
Reuters. Painting by Hitler to be auctioned off in Germany. The Jerusalem Post, 05-04-2018.
http://www.jpost.com/International/Painting-by-Hitler-to-be-auctioned-off-in-Germany-549001
Hitlers portret van jeugdliefde wordt geveild. RTL Nieuws, 06-04-2018.
https://www.rtlnieuws.nl/buitenland/hitlers-portret-van-jeugdliefde-wordt-geveild
Olga Kronsteiner. Handel mit Bildern aus Hitlers Hand floriert. Der Standard (Oostenrijk), 16-04-2018.
https://www.derstandard.de/story/2000077874832/handel-mit-bildern-aus-hitlers-hand-floriert
bik/eg (Reuters, dpa). Hitler's portrait of a lover auctioned in Germany. Deutsche Welle, 16-04-2018.
http://www.dw.com/en/hitlers-portrait-of-a-lover-auctioned-in-germany/a-43387069

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'Hitler' at Alexander Historical Auctions (USA)


The American auction house Alexander Historical Auctions sells on August 1, 2018 this watercolor attributed to Hitler for $ 18,450:



Auctioneer Bill Panagopulos describes it in this way:

"Watercolor painting by Adolf Hitler. Original watercolor painting on heavy rag paper, 6 ¾" x 8 ½" [17.15 x 21.6 cm] ,executed by future dictator ADOLF HITLER (1889-1945) and with the best provenance obtainable. The work depicts the "Heiligenkreuzerhof". (...) This view is an exact copy of that presented on a 1910-dated postcard, also present here,eliminating only three human figures in the foreground.

The frame is backed with period German newspaper and is stamped"Haupt-Archiv der N.S.D.A.P." ("Main Archive of the NSDAP"). It further bears the accession number "Nr. 3a 38"in pencil."



Hold on, that is this stamp print (at left):



(Our apologies for the bad quality of these photo's)

At right an authentic Hauptarchiv stamp print, from the NSDAP Hauptarchiv files in the Bundesarchiv, Berlin. Normally “Haupt-Archiv” was spelled as one word, “Hauptarchiv” (as can be seen on the photo below, also from the Bundesarviv), but apparently sometimes the Haupt-Archiv version was also used.




Back to the auctioneer's decription:


"Provenance is provided by a period T.L.S. in German, 2pp. 4to., Kronenburg, Sep. 15, 1938, from painter, art professor and Privy Councilor of the Prussian State WERNER PEINER (1897-1984), to ERICH UTRECHT (1879-1960) clerk to Rudolf Hess and head archivist of the "Hauptarchiv der NSDAP", where he oversaw the collection and storage of all material related to the history of the Party.

Peiner writes, in part: "… As already discussed by telephone, I hereby send you the Fuhrer's work' Heiligen-kreuzerhof' for further evaluation and archiving. My colleague Dr. Weigant in Trier has given me this work for inspection. According to his statements this piece is family-owned, and was bought during a vacation in the Burgenland [the most south-eastern province of Austria].

Of special interest for your colleague [NSDAP archivist and expert on Hitler's art Dr. August] Priesack should be that fact that the original postcard which served as the template [for this painting] is also present. As is well known, the Fuhrer often used postcards as [models]. As I already mentioned, in my opinion the origin and originality are above all doubt, as well as the artistic execution..." Peiner signs at the conclusion in black ink.

At this time, Peiner served as the head of the "Hermann-Goring-Meisterschule fur Malerei" ("Hermann Goring Master School of Painting") at Kronenburg, an art academy dedicated to propagating the artistic styles and values of the NSDAP. Interestingly, works by Peiner were seized in 1937 as part of the NSDAP crackdown against "degenerate art", which included the Expressionist and Functionalist aesthetics utilized by Peiner in his earlier works.

Despite this, he would become one of the Reich's most successful official painters, with Hitler himself purchasing one of his paintings for display at the Berlin Academy in 1938.

Besides the postcard described above, the lot includes a 12mo. booklet (Konigsberg: Kanter-Verlag), 1940, reproducing 60 of Peiner's works, as well as short biographies of Peiner and Utrecht, a photo of Peiner later in life, and a short history of the "Hermann-Goring-Meisterschule fur Malerei". Exceptional provenance!"

This story sounds very convincing, but... the work is not to be found on the NSDAP Hauptarchiv list 'Aquarelle des Führer' (watercolors by the Fuehrer), which was composed no earlier than than May 11, 1939 (Bundesarchiv, NS 26/ 34-43/31).

August Priesack had been only a junior staff member of the NSDAP Hauptarchiv in the 1930s. He was certainly not an expert on Hitler's art in those years.

The story about the original postcard, allegedly used by Hitler, is simply over the top, as it suggests that whenever Hitler sold this work, he sold the postcard too, and watercolor and postcard supposedly remained together for more than 25 years.

The story of the provenance has al the characteristics of an elaborate swindler's scheme, more so because an almost identical but unsigned work surfaced at the Weidler Hitler auction, a few months earlier.
Lot 6808 at Weidler, April 2018. Watercolor, unsigned. Titled "Heiliger Kreuzerhof Wien. 23,5 x 18 cm. Legacy Peter Jahn. Alexander Historical Auctions. Watercolor, signed "A. Hitler, '11". Titled "Heiligenkreuzerhof Wien. 17.15 x 21.6 cm.

And now it's getting even more confused. In Price, the forger's catalog, another very similar looking version of Heiligenkreuzerhof is depicted, #200a, signed “A. Hitler”, bottom right, dated at 1910.

Weidler, April 2018. 23,5 x 18 cm. Price, 1983. 14,8 x 10,5 cm. AHA, August 2018.
17.15 x 21.6 cm.

Click here for a larger photo of the three versions; the differences are clearly visible.

Then, the signature on the Alexander Historical Auctions 'Hitler'. Comparison with two believed to be authentic Hitler signatures (on two Hitlers in custody of the US Army, shows this:
Signature on AHA 'Hitler', August 2018.


 Signature on "Ratzenstadl" (1910-1913), courtesy US Army Center for Military History.



Signature on "Alter Hof" (1914), courtesy US Army Center for Military History.

Even though signatures on various watercolors from one maker can vary from each other, it is strange that the letters on the AHA version are standing upright, where the letters on the authentic watercolors lean over to the right.

Which of these Heiligenkreuzerhof watercolors is an authentic Hitler one?

In all likelihood none of the three. The NSDAP Hauptarchiv registered in 1938 one version of "Heiligenkreuzerhof". But that one was a completely different version:



This was signed "A.H.", and was bought in 1936 or 1937 by the German journalist Alrted Detig from or via Peter Jahn (then known as Franz Jahn). Jahn had been then already eleven times convicted for all kinds of fraudulent affairs - so its highly questionable if this version was an authentic Hitler.

It is depicted in Price as number 201, page 137.

Jahn was also mentioned in connection with the unsigned Weidler "Heiligenkreuzerhof". Which gives to think.

Did Hitler make more versions of one work?

Jakob Altenberger, who had been in 1910-1913 Hitler's main customer, stated in 1936, during the police investigation into the forgeries made by Reinhold Hanisch, that it was not known to him that Hitler made several paintings of one subject. Something which Hanisch apparently did.

It was during this investigation also established that Hanisch, just like Hitler had done in 1910-1913, copied his watercolors from postcards; so the postcard accompanying the AHA-version, is no evidence at all. 

Conclusion

Given all this probably all Heiligenkreuzer versions (in Price two more versions are depicted) are fakes. Who really made them will probably remain a mystery forever.  


Sources

Lot # 649, August 1, 2018. Alexander Historical Auctions, online auction catalog, 2018
http://www.alexautographs.com/lot-32817.aspx [defunct]

Oberpolizeirat Dr. Spring. Bundes Polizeidirektion Wien, Sicherheitsbureau, s.B. 17105/36, November-December 1936. NSDAP Hauptarchiv NS 26/2599; Bundesarchiv Berlin.

Billy F. Price [= August Priesack and Peter Jahn]. Adolf Hitler als Maler und Zeichner. Ein Werkkatalog der Ölgemälde, Aquarelle, Zeichnungen und Architekturskizzen. Gallant Verlag, Zug, 1983.
https://www.bartfmdroog.com/droog/niod/price.html

Jaap van den Born & Bart FM Droog. Report on CCN 2.53.50 ("Alt-Wien Ratzenstadl") / Ratzenstadl, owned by U.S. Army Center for Military History, 2018.

Jaap van den Born & Bart FM Droog. Report on CCN 2.54.50 ("Alter Hof"),   owned by U.S. Army Center for Military History, 2018.

Jaap van den Born & Bart FM Droog. List of Lists. List of watercolors, oil paintings, drawings and sketches allegedly made by Adolf Hitler and known to be in existence before May 1945. Bureau Droog, Nijmegen / Eenrum, 2020.

Jaap van den Born & Bart FM Droog. Report on the Certificates of Authenticity issued by Peter Jahn. Bureau Droog, Nijmegen / Eenrum, 2020.


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Two Hitlers in Munich


The Munich based auction house Hermann Historica (HH) offered on November 5, 2018, two more Hitlers at auction 76r. HH and it's predecessor Graf Klenau probably launched over the years more alleged Hitler artworks than Hitler ever made.

Hitler 1

Lot 7095: Adolf Hitler - A watercolour, "Propyläen' (tr. Propylaea), 1913/1914. Starting price 15.000 euro.



The HH-version, lot 7095.
Signature on HH 'Hitler', allegedly originating from 1913-1914. Signature on "Alter Hof" (1914), courtesy US Army Center for Military History.



Lettering on HH 'Hitler'.

 Lettering on "Alter Hof" (1914), courtesy US Army Center for Military History.

The lettering on the HH work is unlike any lettering we've seen on believed to be authentic Hitlers. as painted letters are made in a different way than written letters, the different kind of lettering are no hard evidence, however.

In the 1930s one "Propyläen" version, clearly different from the HH one, was registered by the NSDAP Hauptarchiv:


It's also depicted in Price, as number 383. Dimensions, according to NSDAP-HA: 34,9 x 21,2 cm.

HH told a long, yet uncheckable story about the provenance of lot 7095. Without doubt some elements in this story are true, but one wonders if Ernst Röhm really would have given this painting as a present to the Bavarian general-major Albert Schenk in 1920. One wonders too what the relevance is of the documents “relating to a journey to Vienna in 1888, undertaken by Joseph Bauerschubert, a friend of Albert Schenk's, Oberst and Commander of the 19th Bavarian I.R.”



Watercolour on textured paper, signed "A Hitler" in brownish ink at the bottom right and labelled "München Propyläen" (tr. Munich Proplyaea) on the left. Under glass, framed. A handwritten owner's label on the back reads "Herrn Generalmajor a.D. Schenk - Solln b. München - Terlanerstr. 19". Dimensions of the watercolour 16.5 x 24.5 cm, framed 42.5 x 48.5 cm. Painted during Hitler's Munich period from May 1913 to August 1914. (Tr.)

"Hitler used to paint typical city scenes like the Propylaea, the Asam Church, the Hofbräuhaus, the Hoftheater, the Sendlinger Tor or the Alte Hof. He would spend several days on each picture. Once completed, he would set off with the painting and initially try to sell it in highly frequented places, like the Hofbräuhaus. In April 1914, he received circa 15 to 25 Marks for the watercolours "Das Alte Rathaus" and "Der Alte Hof" from Zehme's millinery on Marienplatz. In time, he managed to expand his clientele and even obtained orders for paintings of specific motifs. With an average monthly income of circa 100 Marks, he was no better off than a worker, but hardly any worse off either." (Extract taken from Peter Miesbeck, Hitler und München 1913 – 1918, München – Hauptstadt der Bewegung, 1993/94).

Albert Schenk, Bavarian Generalmajor (1852 – 1930). Schenk was head of the department for invalids' pensions and Landtag commissioner in Bavaria's War Ministry. He was promoted to Oberst and Commander of the 18th Bavarian I.R. in 1901. Also a respected military author, Schenk wrote the book (tr.) "The Bavarian Army over three centuries, 1618 – 1914", among others.

Includes a typewritten family chronicle by his daughter, Annette Schenk, whose husband was the painter Emil Thoma (pp. 1-9 are missing). This chronicle corroborates the provenance on pages 17 and 21. Also, various newspaper cuttings, a photograph (presumably of his daughter Annette with the painter Emil Thoma) and a pencil portrait by the painter Emil Thoma, depicting Albert Schenk's son, Walter Schenk. In a folder labelled "Annette Schenk verh. Thoma" (damaged). Moreover, documents relating to a journey to Vienna in 1888, undertaken by Joseph Bauerschubert, a friend of Albert Schenk's, Oberst and Commander of the 19th Bavarian I.R. Cf. other lots from the estate of Generalmajor Albert Schenk and his family in the Bavaria section, particularly T 236961.A rare watercolour, painted by Hitler during his creative period in Munich and of particular significance as it was a gift from Ernst Röhm to Generalmajor Albert Schenk of Bavaria. Exceptionally well documented watercolour by Adolf Hitler, including its provenance since 1920. Presented to Generalmajor a.D. Schenk by Ernst Röhm at Königsplatz in Munich, shortly before the official ceremony for the Citizens' Defence in 1920. Schenk's son Walter was a friend of Ernst Röhm's and held an important post in the Organisation Escherich."




The alleged “handwritten owner's label ” on the back. The coat of arms seems to be a colored in and cut out pencil drawing, glued on the card. Rather atypical for a major-general.




Part of the typed text, allegedly written by the general-mojor's daughter, Annette Schenk. In translation: “A close comrade of my brother Walrter, Ernst Röhm, had given Father some weeks before a watercolor of the “The Propyläen” at the Königsplatz (King's Square). We learned only much later that the artist who made this cityview had been the young Adolf Hitler."

This again makes no sense, as Hitler's name was painted on the work.

Conclusion

It seems that the persons who made this contraption spent considerable more effort in fabricating a provenance story, than in the painting itself. The works should be considerd to be a fake, as there's no solid evidence for its authenticity at all.

Hitler 2

Lot 7096: Adolf Hitler - "Karl 'der Schöne' von Zimmer 21 - Res.Laz. B", humoristisches Portrait 1916/17. Starting price 2500 euro.


                      
Watercolor
                            on postcard, addressed to Fritz Müller, Munich,
                            Theresienstr. 75 und
                            Barerstr. 21. Hitler allegedly made this when he was
                            in a hospital,
                            late 1916/begin 1917. 

                      

                      

                      

                      
The
                                  postcard allegedly originates from the legacy
                                  of a in 1855 born
                                  asistent doctor Emil Schidlowsky. Yet in the
                                  Hitler literature
                                  neither a Fritz Müller nor an Emil Schidlowsky
                                  can be traced. 

                                  

                                  Conclusion on HH Hitler 2

                                  

                                  This work is as fake as fake can be.

                      

                      

                      

                      
                      
Sources
                            

                            

                            Katalog Auktion 76r, Hermann Historica,
                            München,
                            2018.

                      
A.
                            Joachimsthaler. Korrektur einer Biographie.
                              Adolf Hitler
                              1908-1920. Mit 67 Textabbildungen und 69
                            Fotos. Herbig,
                            [München], [1989].

                            

                            Thomas Weber. Hitler's First War,
                            Oxford University Press, 2010.

                            

                          Jaap van den Born
                                  & Bart FM Droog. List of Lists. List of
                                  watercolors, oil paintings,
                              drawings and sketches allegedly made by Adolf
                              Hitler and known to be in
                                existence before May 1945. Bureau Droog,
                              Nijmegen / Eenrum, 2020. 

                      

                      

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                              of page.

                          
                      


                           
                      
A 'Hitler' from Spain 
                      

                      

                      

                      


                            

                            At
                            auction site www.todocoleccion.net
                            (registered in Spain) yet another 'authentic Hitler'
                            was offered. It
                            was bought for $1000 by an American collector.
                            Alarmed by news
                            reports about forged Hitlers, the collector
                            contacted us. We told her
                            she had bought an authentic fake, which resembled in
                            nothing the
                            believed to be authentic Hitlers.

                      
 

                            

                            On
                            the back of the work the forger had applied two
                            stamp prints. One of
                            them these had the words “Privat Bezitz', private
                            property. Yet in
                            German this is always spelled as one word,
                            “Privatbesitz”.

                      


                        

                      
                                      

                          

                          © Compilation Bart FM Droog, 2020.

                          

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