Search Request | Collection
Collection of Prof. Rafał (Rafael) Schermann
Lost Art-ID
633290
Name
Collection of Prof. Rafał (Rafael) Schermann
Description
Collection of Prof. Rafał (Rafael) Schermann (1879–1945), consisting of approximately 400 catalogued paintings, 350 clocks and watches, 300 bells, 100 snuff boxes, numismatic and archaeological objects, as well as furniture, carpets, glass, and silverware. According to Zofia Schermann’s letter (Kraków, 7 January 1947), the art collection included original works attributed to Rembrandt, Velázquez, David Teniers, and Jan van Eyck, together with paintings and drawings by Central European artists such as Józef Mehoffer, Jacek Malczewski, Wojciech Weiss, Ferdynand Ruszczyc, and Jan Rosen. The works represented portraiture, allegory, and Symbolist subjects typical of the Vienna and Kraków Secession circles of the early twentieth century. The collection also contained numerous items of decorative art and a substantial graphological archive comprising thousands of handwriting analyses and expert reports prepared by Schermann in the course of his professional work.
History
The collection was assembled by Prof. Rafał Schermann, a Polish-born graphologist and artist active in Vienna and Kraków, during the early decades of the twentieth century. In 1936, Schermann returned permanently to Poland, bringing his collection from abroad and installing it in his Warsaw apartment at 19 Koszykowa Street.
According to Zofia Schermann’s testimony (District Commission for the Investigation of German Crimes in Poland, file IPN Gk 196/50), the apartment and its contents were plundered in late 1939 under the orders of Ludwig Leist, German District Commissioner of Warsaw, acting through subordinates including Lt. Lutenberg-Laturski, who oversaw the removal of artworks and furnishings over several months. Witnesses described the confiscation as systematic and extensive, involving appraisers and transport of the artworks to Leist’s offices and residence.
Following the war, Zofia Schermann (Rosenstrauch) attempted to trace the collection through Polish authorities and provided testimony in the postwar proceedings against Ludwig Fischer and Ludwig Leist in Warsaw. The present collective entry is based on her documentation and photographs of the Kraków apartment preserved in those case materials, together with ongoing research by the Schermann family.
According to Zofia Schermann’s testimony (District Commission for the Investigation of German Crimes in Poland, file IPN Gk 196/50), the apartment and its contents were plundered in late 1939 under the orders of Ludwig Leist, German District Commissioner of Warsaw, acting through subordinates including Lt. Lutenberg-Laturski, who oversaw the removal of artworks and furnishings over several months. Witnesses described the confiscation as systematic and extensive, involving appraisers and transport of the artworks to Leist’s offices and residence.
Following the war, Zofia Schermann (Rosenstrauch) attempted to trace the collection through Polish authorities and provided testimony in the postwar proceedings against Ludwig Fischer and Ludwig Leist in Warsaw. The present collective entry is based on her documentation and photographs of the Kraków apartment preserved in those case materials, together with ongoing research by the Schermann family.
Contact
David Sherman
E-Mail