Richard von Kaufmann

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Richard von Kaufmann (born March 29, 1849 in Cologne , † March 11, 1908 in Charlottenburg ) was a German-Jewish economist , university professor and government official as well as art collector and patron .

Life

Richard von Kaufmann studied law and political science in Bonn , Heidelberg and Berlin . He was a member of the Corps Guestphalia Bonn (1868) and Guestphalia Heidelberg (1869).

In 1871 he moved to Berlin, where he first worked at a bank before graduating from the Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität zu Berlin as a Dr. jur. and Dr. phil. received his doctorate , qualified as a professor and from 1879 worked as a teacher for political economy at the Agricultural University in Berlin . In the same year he was appointed professor of economics at the Technical University of Aachen . In 1883 he returned to Berlin, where he found a job with the Prussian Ministry of Finance . From 1889 he decided to resume teaching at the Technical University of Charlottenburg as a professor of economics. He owned numerous properties that provided him with a good income.

Inscription plaque on Richard von Kaufmann's grave

Richard von Kaufmann died in Charlottenburg in 1908 at the age of almost 59. He was buried in the family crypt in the basement of the cemetery chapel on the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Cemetery in Westend . Later his wife Marie von Kaufmann nee were also here. Eltzbacher (1860–1934) and two of their children are buried: Emilie Rintelen geb. von Kaufmann (1884–1970) and the doctor and film producer Wilhelm von Kaufmann (1888–1959) with his wife, the actress Henny Porten (1890–1960). Only a simple inscription panel with an ornamental frame on the south wall of the cemetery chapel reminds of the dead of the Kaufmann family. In the crypt itself are the two large wooden coffins belonging to the Kaufmann couple and a bronze copy of an ancient sculpture of Niobe's head on a shelf . Richard von Kaufmann acquired the crypt when the chapel was built in 1903.

Another son was the diplomat Heinrich von Kaufmann-Asser .

The art collector

Richard von Kaufmann began collecting between 1879 and 1883, primarily acquiring antique cabaret and medieval art. But only after his final move to Berlin did he begin to collect on a large scale. He now acquired paintings, sculptures and handicrafts from the early modern period . His preference was primarily for cisalpine art, but he also collected Italian and contemporary works, in line with contemporary tastes. Among other things, he owned the "Apocalyptic Rider" by Arnold Böcklin . When purchasing and furnishing his house in Charlottenburg, he took advice from Wilhelm von Bode . In his capacity as a recognized educated citizen and collector, he was a co-founder of the Orient Committee and a member of the Kaiser Friedrich Museum Association , the Art History Society , the Association of Friends of Ancient Art and the Association for German Folklore . In addition, he financed extensive excavation work in Sendschirli in Turkey. In March 1892 he discovered the so-called tomb of Aline in Egypt , which contained some of the most famous mummy portraits today .

In connection with Wilhelm von Bode, he donated a number of works of art to the Berlin museums ( department of the sculptures of the Christian era, Gemäldegalerie ), of which Robert Campin's “Madonna on the lawn bank” deserves a special mention. In 1938 this “Richard von Kaufmann Foundation” had to be renamed “Foundation in favor of the Gemäldegalerie” due to the Jewish origin of its founder. After his death, his widow donated more works to the museums before the collection was auctioned in 1918. His imposing collection included works by Pieter Bruegel the Elder. Ä. ("Schlaraffenland" - today Munich, Alte Pinakothek), Lucas Cranach d. Ä. , Gerard David ("St. John the Baptist" - today New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art), Giovanni di Paolo , Jan Gossaert ("Portrait of a Man" - today New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art), Hans Suess von Kulmbach ("Portrait of a Man" - today Berlin, Gemäldegalerie), Zanobi Machiavelli , Master of the Bartholomäus Altar ("The Baptism of Christ" - today Washington, National Gallery of Art), Pietro da Rimini and Peter Vischer d. Ä. or d. J.

Fonts

  • The sugar industry. Berlin 1878.
  • The representation of the economic interests of Europe in the states. Berlin 1879.
  • L'association douanière de l'Europe centrale. Paris 1880.
  • The finances of France. Leipzig 1882. (translated into French: Paris 1884.)
  • The reform of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Berlin 1883.

literature

  • Sven Kuhrau: The art collector in the empire. Art and representation in Berlin's private collector culture. Ludwig, Kiel 2005, ISBN 3-937719-20-2 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Kösener corps lists 1910, 21 , 556; 112 , 832
  2. ^ Hans-Jürgen Mende : Lexicon of Berlin burial places . Pharus-Plan, Berlin 2018, ISBN 978-3-86514-206-1 , pp. 475–476, 479.
  3. ↑ German Archaeological Institute (ed.): Ancient monuments. Volume 2, Berlin 1908. ( digitized version )
  4. ↑ cf. The files of the Kaiser-Friedrich-Museum, Berlin 2008
personal data
SURNAME Kaufmann, Richard von
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Kaufmann-Asser, Richard von
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German economist, art collector and patron
DATE OF BIRTH March 29, 1849
PLACE OF BIRTH Cologne
DATE OF DEATH March 11, 1908
Place of death Berlin-Charlottenburg