„Scene from the Italian campaign“ or the On-going Battle for Restitution
Apr 27, 2020 | JMW News
Despite the abundance of bureaucratic hurdles and thanks to Iggie Ephrussi’s contacts to the Allied Commission for Austria, Viktor Ephrussi’s four children were able to assert their restitution claims. In 1949 and 1950, most of their possessions stolen in 1938 under the Nazi Regime were returned to them. Among these items was the Netsuke collection, made famous by Edmund de Waal’s best-selling novel, The Hare with the Amber Eyes.
The recovery of their stolen property directly after the end of World War II did not signal the definitive end to the Ephrussi family’s restitution case. Over the years, objects seized from Viktor Ephrussi by the Gestapo in 1938 were constantly re-surfacing. Such was the case in 2019 while researching for our exhibition, The Ephrussis. Travel in Time. The painting, “Scene from the Italian campaign 1848/49,” by painter Franz Adam, known for his depictions of equestrian and battle scenes, was originally part of the Ephrussi collection. According to the official order from 1948, this painting should have already been returned to the family. This, however, never did happen.
In 1950, the Heeresgeschichtliches Museum (HGM, Museum of Military History) wanted to stop the export of a painting by August Pettenkofen, which was part of the Ephrussi family possessions. This artwork was, however, already restituted to Iggie Ephrussi. For this reason, according to a documental record, the president of the Bundesdenkmalamt (Federal Monuments Office) assured the HGM that, instead of their desired Pettenkofen painting, an embargo would be placed on the Franz Adam piece. The painting was then given over to the Österreichische Galerie (Austrian National Gallery) and was subsequently entrusted to the HGM as a loan. This artwork remained part of the HGM collections until 2019. Upon our findings, we turned to the management of the HGM, which quickly undertook further research into the case. Since the acquisition of the Adam painting occurred “in close connection to the processing for the export of the Pettenkofen painting,” the Kunstrückgabebeirat (Art Restitution Advisory Board) approved the restitution of the painting to the heirs of Viktor Ephrussi on April 12, 2019. Of the countless possessions belonging to Viktor Ephrussi, many remain lost to this day, including nineteen paintings of collection that once consisted of seventy works of art.
Memo to the oil painting by August Pettenkofen owned by Viktor Ephrussi, Vienna, July 10, 1950 © BDA
Memo to the oil painting by August Pettenkofen owned by Viktor Ephrussi, Vienna, July 10, 1950 © BDA
Memo to the oil painting by August Pettenkofen owned by Viktor Ephrussi, Vienna, July 10, 1950 © BDA
Paintings by Franz Adam and August Pettenkofen at the exhibition The Ephrussi. Travel in Time
© wulz.cc