May 05, 2009
One of my client’s paintings was discovered at an upcoming sale at the Dorotheum. It’s entitled In the Wine Cellar by Domenico Pennacchini (1860 - 1910). As soon as I informed the Dorotheum, they were unbelievably helpful. They researched this painting and found that it had gone through the Dorotheum sales room in 1942. This meant that it was most likely looted, since the Dorotheum acted as a Nazi clearinghouse during the war. The Dorotheum also did not have any information on the provenance of the artwork.
I sent them a copy of the photograph that my client has, and the experts at the Dorotheum agreed that this was the same painting.
| Here’s the image that the Dorotheum has: | Here’s a copy of the picture my client has: |
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The Dorotheum pulled the painting from the sale so that we could determine the best course of action. We very quickly came to an agreement between my clients and the consignors and were able to put the watercolour back up for sale at the auction, along with a new provenance to show that it belonged to my client. You should be able to view the link to the Pennacchini page on the Dorotheum website.
I was really impressed by how cooperative the Dorotheum was. What could have been a complicated mess turned out to be very simple and straightforward. This was due to the willingness of the consignor, the Dorotheum, and my clients to work together to come up with a resolution that would make everyone happy.
The sale took place on 25 May, but the painting didn’t sell. The Dorotheum is putting it in their gallery to display before they offer it up for sale again in the Autumn.
This is fascinating! What was the role of the Dorotheum during WWII?