Jürgen Abeler

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Jürgen Abeler (born November 24, 1933 in Wuppertal ; † July 24, 2010 there ), the son of Georg Abeler in Wuppertal, was an art collector , master watchmaker , goldsmith and gemologist .

life and work

The imperial crown of Napoleon III. Replica from the Abeler crown and insignia collection, Wuppertal.

Jürgen Abeler came from a family of watchmakers and goldsmiths, from which 26 watchmakers and goldsmiths have emerged in six generations. His father was Georg Abeler . Jürgen Abeler, together with his wife Gudrun and his son and successor Henrick Abeler, ran a traditional jewelery and watch shop in Wuppertal that had been in existence since 1840, with one of the most important private museums , the Wuppertal Watch Museum , with around 1000 exhibits and other collections of crowns and insignia (160 objects), rings (600 objects), menus (approx. 25,000 objects) and wine labels (approx. 30,000 objects). Together these collections consisted of over 40,000 exhibits. The clock museum was closed in 2016 and most of the clock collection was then auctioned.

After Jürgen Abeler's death, his son took over the company, in 2017 the business was closed and the company was dissolved. According to the family, on the one hand the changed situation in the watch and jewelery trade was one reason, on the other hand there was no possible succession within the family. About a year later, however, the family opened a smaller jewelry store elsewhere, which is limited to high-priced watches and jewelry, but wants to continue the family tradition.

In addition to his professional activity, Jürgen Abeler was a member of the police advisory board and worked on the press and advertising committee of the city of Wuppertal and on the church council of St. Marien Elberfeld. He was co-organizer of the Order of Tolerance and sponsor of the Wuppertal Zoological Garden and for many years a member of the committee against bird murder. Jürgen Abeler had been a member of the general assembly of the Wuppertal-Solingen-Remscheid Chamber of Commerce and Industry since 1986 and has been involved in various chamber committees since then. In addition, he was active on a voluntary basis in numerous different organizations and associations for many years. For his exemplary commitment, he was awarded the Cross of Merit 1st Class of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany in 1998 and the Ring of Honor of the City of Wuppertal on May 27, 2002 , which can be awarded to personalities who are particularly concerned with the well-being of the city Well deserved. He was holder of the papal order Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice .

Abeler's grave

Jürgen Abeler was the author of several specialist books. He has documented the branching family history of the Abeler watchmaking dynasty in three volumes and has written several specialist books on clocks, including a work on Bergische grandfather clocks , a special feature of the region, for which he identified 160 manufacturers in the Wuppertal area. Jürgen Abeler also presented the invention of summer time in his own essays. Also worth mentioning are the Ullstein watch book and the standard work Meister der Uhrmacherkunst , in which 14,000 watchmakers from the German-speaking area are listed. The revised edition of this work was published in February 2010. Abeler also wrote the works Kronen: Herrschaftszeichen der Welt (7 editions), which document the extensive collection of self-made copies of crowns and rulers from all over the world, as well as the writings Vom Siegelring zum Liebesring and On Peter Henlein .

Jürgen Abeler died on July 24th, 2010 after a long and serious illness. He had been married to Gudrun Abeler (* 1939) since 1959 and had five children.

Publications (selection)

  • The Wuppertal clock museum (= museums of cultural history in Germany. Vol. 12). Walter de Gruyter, Berlin 1971, ISBN 3-11-002469-1 .
  • Crown. Sign of rulership of the world . Photography: Vok Dams . Econ, Düsseldorf / Vienna 1972, ISBN 3-430-11002-5 .
  • Ullstein watch book: a cultural history d. Time measurement, with drawings by Dieter Messerschmidt. Ullstein, Berlin / Frankfurt am Main / Vienna 1975, ISBN 3-550-17462-4 .
  • Master of watchmaking. Over 14,000 watchmakers from the German-speaking area with life or impact data and a list of their works known to the author. Wuppertal Clock Museum, Wuppertal 1977; 2nd edition 2010, ISBN 978-3-00-030830-7 .
  • 5000 years of timekeeping. Shown on the clocks of the Wuppertal clock museum and the J. u. G. Abeler traveling exhibition . Wuppertal Clock Museum, Wuppertal 1968; 2nd expanded edition 1978.
  • In terms of Peter Henlein. Self-published by Jürgen Abeler, Wuppertal 1980.
  • In terms of Peter Henlein. In: Jewelry & Watches. Independent trade journal for trade and industry in the jewelry, watch and silver goods sector. 1981, No. 1, pp. 16-24, No. 2, pp. 32-46, No. 3, pp. 20-30, and No. 4, pp. 31-36.
  • The Wuppertal Clock Museum (= Little Art Guide No. 1411). Schnell & Steiner, Munich / Zurich 1983.
  • Time sign. The portable watch from Henlein to this day. Harenberg Kommunikation, Dortmund 1983, ISBN 3-88379-362-0 .

Web links

Commons : Jürgen Abeler  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ University of Bonn - Department of Language and Communication ( Memento from October 29, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Source number 262, accessed in May 2008
  2. ↑ http://www.wz.de/lokales/wuppertal/abeler-1000-uhren-in-drei-stunden-versteigert-1.2315528
  3. ↑ https://wuppertal-total.de/stadtleben/juwelier-abeler-schliesst-geschaefte
  4. ↑ https://www.wz.de/nrw/wuppertal/abeler- sucht-ins-elberfelder-rathaus_aid- 24986001
  5. ↑ Bergische Wirtschaft 12/2003
  6. ^ Rings of honor for Jürgen Abeler and Reinhard Grätz ( Memento from October 29, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Services 24, accessed May 2008
  7. ↑ Jürgen Abeler: The ancestors of the watchmaker and goldsmith family Abeler: watch, jewelery, jewelry specialty shops in 9 cities in West Germany, Wuppertal-Elberfeld, self-published
  8. ↑ Jürgen Abeler: Ullstein watch book: a cultural history d. Time measurement, with drawings by Dieter Messerschmidt, Berlin, Frankfurt (center), Vienna: Ullstein, 1975, ISBN 3-550-17462-4
  9. ↑ Jürgen Abeler: Master of the art of watchmaking: over 14,000 watchmakers from the German-speaking area with life or impact data and a list of their works . Wuppertal Clock Museum, 1977
  10. ↑ Jürgen Abeler: Kronen: Signs of rule of the world . Photography: Vok Dams. Düsseldorf, Vienna: Econ-Verlag, 1972; ISBN 3-430-11002-5
  11. ↑ Jürgen Abeler: In the matter of Peter Henlein . Self-published, 1980
  12. ↑ Vera Zischke: Jürgen Abeler is dead ; Westdeutsche Zeitung (online) from July 27, 2010.
personal data
SURNAME Abeler, Jürgen
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German art collector, master watchmaker, goldsmith and gemologist
DATE OF BIRTH November 24, 1933
PLACE OF BIRTH Wuppertal
DATE OF DEATH July 24, 2010
Place of death Wuppertal