1) Provenance research at the Oberhausmuseum
Research Project: “The Systematic Provenance Research of Objects Acquired between 1933 and 1945 in the Present-Day Oberhaus Museum” (August 2024 – July 2026)
“Provenance” means “origin” or “history of ownership.” Accordingly, provenance research investigates the origins of objects—in this case, those in the collection of the Oberhaus Museum. The museum was founded in 1932 and, by 1933, already held around 1,000 objects, most of which came from its predecessor institution, the municipal museum in Passau’s Old Town Hall.
During the National Socialist period between 1933 and 1945, an estimated additional 1,400 objects were acquired. In many cases, however, their origins are unknown. An initial survey conducted by the Bavarian State Office for Non-State Museums in 2020 and 2021 identified the first objects whose provenance may be problematic.
As part of a two-year research project (August 2024 to July 2026), funded by the City of Passau, the German Lost Art Foundation (Deutsches Zentrum Kulturgutverluste), and the Bavarian State Office for Non-State Museums, inventories and archival sources relating to acquisitions made between 1933 and 1945 were examined for the first time.
Unfortunately, very few sources were found that provide information on provenance or even precise acquisition dates. While this may not have been the hoped-for outcome, it demonstrates that the history of many acquisitions can no longer be reconstructed. Further discoveries in archival holdings may yet shed light on these gaps. Despite the challenging source situation, it was possible to determine the provenance of approximately 150 objects and to identify a further approximately 300 objects as having been acquired during the critical period between 1933 and 1945. Since not every archival source could be conclusively linked to a specific object, these figures are given as approximations.
The individuals involved with the museum during the National Socialist period were, for the most part, researched academically for the first time within the scope of the project, or existing findings were documented in writing. The research was able to demonstrate that the Ostmarkmuseum (the museum’s historical name during the period) played a role in local National Socialist cultural and political activities.
The project's final report will soon be published on the website of the German Lost Art Foundation at Proveana.de. A summary of the research findings is available here.
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2) Research findings on a number of objects
Vratislav Nechleba: The writer Johanna Tauber (1922)
The oil painting of an unknown woman is part of a collection of works found at the Veste in 1945, the provenance of which was unknown. During the course of a two-year research project, it was established that the woman depicted is the Czech Jewish writer Johanna Tauber (1880–1944), to whom the work also belonged. The painting was stolen in 1942 from a commercial furniture warehouse in Paris, where Tauber had stored it prior to her planned emigration. She and her husband were unable to leave what was then Czechoslovakia; they were arrested by the Gestapo in 1944 and took their own lives to avoid being transported to an extermination camp. Two of their three children survived the Holocaust. The painting is now being returned to their heirs. A report on the research can be found on the blog for provenance researchers at SLUB Dresden: read the blog post.
Ludwig (Louis) Fleischmann: Man in Riding Attire (1888), Woman in Riding Attire (1900)
The two large-scale paintings have been housed at the Oberhausmuseum since 1991. They were found in very poor condition in the attic of the house at Brunngasse 1 in Passau; they had presumably been stored there for decades. As part of the research project, information was first gathered on the painter Ludwig (Louis) Fleischmann, who is mentioned in only one art encyclopaedia, and even there with an incorrect date of birth. Subsequently, the residents of the house on Brunngasse were identified in order to find out who owned the works and who is depicted in them. There was a possibility that they belonged to the Jewish couple Nathan and Gertrud Klein, who were forced to emigrate to Palestine in 1936. This suspicion was ruled out. It is highly likely that the pictures depict two residents of Passau: the wine merchant and member of the municipal council Ludwig Mühlbauer (1856–1912) and his wife Aloisia (1869–1932).
Armour-piercing spear (c. 1500)
The 140 cm long drill sword was acquired in 1934. During the research project, all acquisitions made between 1933 and 1945 were reviewed to ensure that they had been made lawfully and without coercion. The armour-piercing sword was purchased at an auction house in Cologne. By comparing correspondence held at the Bavarian Main State Archive in Munich, contemporary auction catalogues and existing findings by other researchers on the Proveana.de database, it was established that the sword originated from the collection of a well-known Cologne collector. The purchase is therefore above suspicion.
Passauer Tödlein (1673)
One of the most important exhibits at the Oberhausmuseum is the so-called ‘Passauer Tödlein’, a small carved figure made of boxwood. Only a few of these sculptures remain; they depict a skeleton, usually holding an hourglass or a bow and arrow, with scraps of skin artfully carved to appear as though draped over the bones. Until now, it had been assumed that the figure had entered the collection of the then City Museum as early as 1924. However, a review of the museum’s own inventories now appears to confirm an entry date of 1934 – which cast the figure under suspicion. Its acquisition history could, however, also be substantiated by further internal documents: A mechanic from Passau had carried out installation work at Niedernburg Abbey and asked the nuns for the Tödlein as a rather curious form of payment. Max Heuwieser, the museum director in 1934, became aware of this figure through as yet unexplained circumstances and purchased it from the mechanic in 1934 for the Ostmarkmuseum.
3) "Is this yours?" appeal
Under the slogan ‘Is this yours?’, we invite you to help us identify works of art whose provenance remains unclear.
It must be assumed that some of the objects held at the Oberhausmuseum were looted in France. Four works from a specific collection have so far been traced; they were looted in May and June 1942 from various commercial furniture warehouses in Paris, where their Jewish owners had stored them. You can find more information about this collection here.
We would appreciate your assistance with the remaining works: we need to decipher signatures, identify artists’ names and recognise the places or people depicted. Any information you provide may help us to trace the rightful owners of these works of art.
The photographs you can use for your research, as well as information about the works, are available for download below.
If you are able to identify any people or places, please contact the museum director, Dr Stefanie Buchhold, at stefanie.buchhold@passau.de.
Thank you very much!
